healthcare_scheduling

VAPI Health Clinic - Complex Booking System

Overview

This system provides an AI-powered voice assistant for VAPI Health Clinic that handles appointment scheduling, rescheduling, cancellation, and general inquiries. The assistant, Amy, uses natural language processing to guide callers through appointment management workflows while maintaining a warm, professional, and empathetic tone.

System Architecture

The system consists of three main components:

1. VAPI AI Assistant (agent/assistant_config.json) - The conversational AI that handles voice interactions
2. n8n Workflow (tools/scheduling/n8n_workflow.json) - Backend automation that processes scheduling requests
3. cal.com API - Calendar management system that stores and manages appointments

Important Notes

• The system enforces business hours (9 AM - 5 PM) and will not book outside these times
• The system uses number for booking (assumed +1 US numbers)
• Doctor availability is automatically enforced based on day of week
• All scheduling operations require proper event type selection based on day, doctor, and consultation type
• NOT Optimised for multiple booking records (ensure only 1 booking exists for rescheduling or cancellation for smooth operation)
• Cal.COM bookins WILL fill up after use, sanitize unused bookings / cancel to avoid availability fill up.
• Transfer calls goes to arbitrary US number
• Insurance collection details not required (added for realism)

AI Assistant: Amy

Amy is only designed to:

• Answer patient questions and handle FAQs (extreamly general, denoted in prompt)
• Book, reschedule, and cancel healthcare appointments
• Route callers to appropriate human staff when needed (one destination)
• Maintain clinical professionalism without giving medical advice

Key Features

• Business Hours: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, Sunday to Saturday (America/Los_Angeles)
• One question at a time: Asks questions sequentially and waits for responses
• Natural conversation: Never mentions "functions", "tools", or technical terms
• Guardrails: Handles inappropriate questions and medical emergencies appropriately

Scheduling Tools

All scheduling operations are handled through five main tools that connect to the n8n workflow:

1. checkCalendarVAPIHealth

Purpose: Check available appointment slots

Parameters:

• requestedTime (required): Requested time in format yyyy-mm-ddTHH:mm:ss (e.g., 2025-07-04T11:00:00)
• EventTypeID (required): One of the four event type IDs
• EventTypeSlug (required): One of the four event type slugs
• timeZone (optional): Defaults to America/Los_Angeles

Logic (from n8n workflow):

• Queries cal.com API for available slots around the requested time
• If exact match found → returns confirmation message
• If no exact match but slots available → returns alternative times
• If no slots available → expands search window (±2 hours) and retries
• If still no slots → suggests alternative days

2. bookCalendarVAPIHealth

Purpose: Create a new appointment

Required Parameters:

• firstName, lastName: Patient name
• requestedTime: Selected appointment time
• eventTypeID, eventTypeSlug: Event type identifiers

Optional Parameters:

• phone: Patient phone number (normalized to E.164 format)
• birthDate: Date of birth
• reason: Reason for visit
• insuranceProvider, insuranceID: Insurance information

Logic (from n8n workflow):

• Normalizes phone number to E.164 format (+1XXXXXXXXXX)
• Creates booking via cal.com v2 API
• Updates/creates patient record in n8n DataTable
• Returns success confirmation with booking details

3. getCalendarVAPIHealth

Purpose: Retrieve existing appointment by patient details

Required Parameters:

• phone: Patient phone number

Optional Parameters:

• name: Patient name (for verification)

Logic (from n8n workflow):

• Normalizes phone number to E.164 format
• Queries n8n DataTable for appointment by phone number
• If found → retrieves appointment UID from cal.com
• Returns appointment details (date, time, UID)

4. rescheduleCalendarVAPIHealth

Purpose: Change an existing appointment to a new time

Required Parameters:

• bookinguid: Unique identifier from getCalendarVAPIHealth

Optional Parameters:

• start: New start time in ISO 8601 UTC format

Logic (from n8n workflow):

• Calls cal.com v2 API to reschedule booking
• Updates appointment time in n8n DataTable
• Returns success confirmation with new appointment details

5. cancelCalendarVAPIHealth

Purpose: Cancel an existing appointment

Required Parameters:

• phone: Patient phone number

Optional Parameters:

• name: Patient name (for verification)

Logic (from n8n workflow):

• Retrieves appointment using getCalendarVAPIHealth logic
• Cancels booking via cal.com v2 API
• Optionally clears appointment data from DataTable
• Returns cancellation confirmation

Event Types & Doctor Availability

The system supports 4 event types in cal.com, mapped to specific doctors and consultation types:

Event Type Mapping

Event Type ID	Event Type Slug	Doctor	Consultation Type	Available Days
3954317	dr-chan-clinic-30-minute	Dr. Chan	In-person	Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday
3954310	dr-wong-clinic-30-minute	Dr. Wong	In-person	Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
3954311	dr-chan-telehealth-30-minute	Dr. Chan	Telehealth	Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday
3954306	dr-wong-telehealth-30-minute	Dr. Wong	Telehealth	Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday

Doctor Availability

Dr. Chan

• Days: Sunday, Wednesday, Saturday
• Hours: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
• Timezone: America/Los_Angeles

Dr. Wong

• Days: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday
• Hours: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
• Timezone: America/Los_Angeles

Event Type Selection Logic

The AI assistant automatically selects the correct event type based on:

1. Consultation type (in-person vs telehealth)
2. Requested day of week
3. Doctor preference (if specified)

Example:

• Caller requests: "Telehealth appointment on Monday"
• System selects: 3954306 / dr-wong-telehealth-30-minute (Dr. Wong, Telehealth, Monday)

n8n Workflow Logic

The n8n workflow (tools/scheduling/n8n_workflow.json) handles all backend processing:

Webhook Endpoint

• URL: https://vapiai.app.n8n.cloud/webhook/calendar-book12
• Method: POST
• Receives tool calls from VAPI AI assistant

Workflow Steps

1. Request Validation

   • Validates incoming webhook is a tool-call request
   • Routes to appropriate handler based on tool name

2. Tool Routing (Switch Node)

   • Routes to different flows based on tool name:
     • checkCalendarVAPIHealth → Availability checking flow
     • bookCalendarVAPIHealth → Booking flow
     • getCalendarVAPIHealth → Retrieval flow
     • cancelCalendarVAPIHealth → Cancellation flow
     • rescheduleCalendarVAPIHealth → Rescheduling flow

3. Phone Number Normalization

   • Converts various phone formats to E.164 (+1XXXXXXXXXX)
   • Handles US numbers (10 digits) and international format (11 digits with country code)

4. DataTable Integration

   • Stores patient information (name, phone, DOB, appointment UID, appointment time)
   • Uses phone number (E.164) as primary key
   • Supports upsert operations for patient records

5. cal.com API Integration

   • v1 API: Used for checking availability (/v1/slots)
   • v2 API: Used for booking, rescheduling, and cancellation (/v2/bookings)
   • Handles timezone conversions (America/Los_Angeles)
   • Manages event type selection based on day/doctor/consultation type

6. Error Handling

   • Returns appropriate error messages for failed operations
   • Handles missing appointments gracefully
   • Provides fallback responses for technical issues

Conversation Flow

Booking Flow

1. Intent Detection: Caller expresses desire to book appointment
2. Information Collection: Amy collects:
   • First name, last name
   • Date of birth
   • Phone number
   • Reason for visit
   • Insurance information (optional)
   • Consultation type (in-person/telehealth)
   • Preferred time/day
   • Doctor preference (optional)
3. Availability Check: Calls checkCalendarVAPIHealth with appropriate event type
4. Slot Selection: Presents 2-4 available options to caller
5. Confirmation: Confirms appointment details
6. Booking: Calls bookCalendarVAPIHealth to create appointment
7. Confirmation: Provides booking confirmation with details

Rescheduling Flow

1. Appointment Retrieval: Uses getCalendarVAPIHealth to find existing appointment
2. Verification: Confirms appointment details with caller
3. New Time Collection: Asks for preferred new time
4. Availability Check: Checks availability for new time
5. Rescheduling: Calls rescheduleCalendarVAPIHealth with booking UID
6. Confirmation: Confirms new appointment time

Cancellation Flow

1. Appointment Retrieval: Uses getCalendarVAPIHealth to find appointment
2. Verification: Confirms appointment to cancel
3. Cancellation: Calls cancelCalendarVAPIHealth
4. Rebooking Offer: Optionally offers to book new appointment

Data Storage

Patient and appointment data is stored in:

• cal.com: Primary source of truth for appointments
• n8n DataTable: Patient records with appointment references
  • Fields: first_name, last_name, phone, dob, appointment_uid, appointment_time

Timezone Handling

• All appointments are managed in America/Los_Angeles timezone
• The system converts between UTC (for API calls) and Pacific Time (for user communication)
• Business hours are enforced: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Pacific Time

Error Handling

The system handles various error scenarios:

• No appointment found: Offers to book new appointment
• Time slot unavailable: Suggests alternative times
• Technical errors: Provides user-friendly error messages and fallback options
• Invalid phone numbers: Normalizes or requests clarification

Security & Privacy

• Phone numbers are normalized and stored in E.164 format
• Patient data is stored securely in n8n DataTable
• All API communications use secure HTTPS endpoints
• HIPAA compliance considerations are built into the system design

Configuration Files

• assistant.json: VAPI AI assistant configuration with system prompt
• tools/scheduling/n8n_workflow.json: n8n workflow definition
• tools/scheduling/*.json: Individual tool definitions for VAPI