Each therapy in the menu has a typical session duration with min and max ranges. Remicade is 2 to 4 hours depending on dose and ramp-rate protocol, IVIG is 4 to 6 hours, Rituxan is 4 to 6 hours for the first dose and shorter for subsequent doses, iron infusions are 1 to 2 hours, monoclonal migraine therapies are 30 minutes. The bot quotes the right range for the patient's regimen rather than improvising. Patients can plan work and childcare accordingly, which directly affects no-show rates.

It explains the process clearly, the center handles the PA submission, typical turnaround is 5 to 10 business days, the patient gets notified on approval. For specific insurers, the bot can mention common gotchas (BCBS often prefers infliximab biosimilars, United may require step-therapy through methotrexate first for some autoimmune indications, Aetna has tightened on Remicade in 2024). The patient is not surprised when the prior auth route goes through a biosimilar instead of the originator.

Biosimilars are mainstream now for infliximab, rituximab, bevacizumab, trastuzumab, adalimumab. The bot explains that biosimilars are clinically equivalent products approved by the FDA, that insurer preferences drive substitution, and that switching from originator to biosimilar is generally smooth. Patients with specific concerns about a previous reaction history route to the medical director, not into chat.

Yes, around your real calendar. The center's scheduler (Beckers, Infusion Source, or a custom system) provides the chair calendar, and the bot generates booking links with the right therapy duration blocked. Patients see real availability including evening and weekend slots if the center offers them, which is often a differentiator for working-age patients with chronic conditions who cannot easily lose a weekday.

Clinical management of infusion reactions is the nursing team's job. The bot provides the nursing line phone, after-hours pager, and clear triage guidance, such as a low-grade fever in the 24 to 72 hour window can be normal or can be infection, the nurse sorts it. Severe reactions during infusion are managed at the chair, the bot does not handle real-time emergency triage and routes such questions to call 911 or the on-call line.

Yes. Outpatient hydration for hyperemesis gravidarum, antibiotic infusions for non-hospital cases like osteomyelitis maintenance, post-surgical IV therapy, all live in the therapy menu with their own session lengths and insurance considerations. These cases often arrive from hospital discharge planners or specialists, and the bot handles the referral context and scheduling like any other therapy.

Yes. The bot can answer logistics and education questions for caregivers, what to bring, parking, length of session, what the patient might experience, without disclosing PHI. Specific patient-by-patient questions about an existing patient's regimen route to the nursing team with the caregiver's relationship documented. Most centers have a release-of-information form for caregiver communication, the bot can explain how that works.

Scope the chat to therapy education, scheduling, and insurance navigation. Patient-specific clinical content stays out of chat. Run OpenAI under HIPAA-eligible configuration with a BAA, encrypt the WordPress database, restrict log access by role, and document the chat in your privacy notice. Infusion centers often operate inside hospital systems with stricter institutional policies than HIPAA minimums, and the chat configuration should match those policies.