An acupuncture visit has a long quiet stretch in the middle. Once the needles are in, the patient rests for twenty or thirty minutes with the lights low, often half asleep. That rest is part of the treatment, and a knock on the door or a voice in the hall cuts into it.
Acupuncturists usually work across two or three rooms, needling one patient, checking on another, and removing needles from a third. With no front desk, new arrivals sit in the waiting area with no way to say they're here, and the practitioner keeps detouring to the lobby to look. TapIn is an acupuncture check-in kiosk that sends the arrival to you instead.
An iPad sits on a stand in your waiting area. The patient taps your name, and you get a silent push notification on your phone or Apple Watch, wherever you are in the clinic. You finish with the room you're in and greet them when you get to the front.
What gets in the way in an acupuncture practice
Resting patients hear every knock
With needles in, a patient can't easily sit up or turn toward a noise, and being startled is the last thing you want. A doorbell or a raised voice in the hallway carries into rooms where people are trying to rest.
You're moving between rooms, not watching the door
Running several rooms already splits your attention. Walking to the lobby every few minutes to check for arrivals throws off your timing for the patients whose needles are due to come out.
Shared treatment rooms leave no quiet way to announce yourself
In a community acupuncture room with several recliners, an arriving patient can't call out without disturbing everyone already resting. They hover in the doorway until the practitioner happens to look up.
How TapIn helps
Patients check in without saying a word
The patient taps your name or photo on the iPad and sits down. The contactless check-in takes a few seconds and makes no sound in the treatment area.
The alert follows you from room to room
Each arrival comes to your phone or Apple Watch as a silent notification. You see who's in while you're checking on a patient or removing needles, and you go out when the room you're in is done.
Solo or multi-practitioner clinics
A solo acupuncturist needs one seat. In a clinic with several practitioners, or one shared with massage therapists or a chiropractor, each person gets their own seat and only their own alerts from one kiosk.
Runs alongside Jane and your charting
TapIn doesn't connect to Jane or whatever you use for booking, intake, and notes. It stores only a name or initials, or nothing at all, and deletes each check-in after 24 hours.
A check-in, step by step
- 1
A patient arrives for a 10:30 follow-up while the acupuncturist has patients resting in two rooms.
- 2
He taps the acupuncturist's name on the iPad in the waiting area and sits down.
- 3
In the second room, the acupuncturist feels a silent buzz on her Apple Watch as she removes needles from an earlier patient.
- 4
She lets that patient sit up slowly, sees them out, and brings the new patient back to the room she just freed.
- 5
The check-in is deleted automatically within 24 hours.
Want the full setup, including locking the iPad into kiosk mode? Read the iPad check-in kiosk setup guide.
From practices using TapIn
“TapIn gives our clients a simple, professional way to check in while notifying each provider directly. It has been an excellent solution for our shared therapy practice, and the developer has been remarkably responsive to our feedback.”
Village Therapy Collective “The customer service has been excellent, particularly during the initial set-up… We also really appreciate how user-friendly the app is for both patients and therapists.”
Hughes Healthcare “I got a doorbell, but that became very tedious. Other clients from other businesses were ringing my doorbell. It got really annoying. Now, I get instantly notified on my phone. Simple as that!”
LeapStar Pediatric Therapy
Simple per-seat pricing
$5.99/month for the first therapist and $3.99/month for each additional, billed monthly. Unlimited iPads and locations, admin users free. Every plan starts with a 14-day free trial and no credit card. See pricing.
Acupuncture check-in questions
Will a patient resting with needles in hear anything?
No. Nothing rings in the clinic. Checking in is a silent tap on an iPad, and the alert on your phone or Apple Watch is a silent push notification.
Does it work for community acupuncture with a shared treatment room?
Yes. The iPad stays by the entrance, arriving patients tap the practitioner's name and take a seat, and the practitioner sees the alert without anyone speaking in the room.
Does TapIn connect to Jane?
No. It runs alongside Jane or any other booking and charting system. Appointments, intake forms, and notes stay where they are.
What if I share the clinic with other practitioners?
Each practitioner who receives check-ins is a seat, and patients tap the person they're seeing. The first seat is $5.99 a month and each additional one is $3.99, with unlimited kiosks.
What does TapIn store about patients?
Only the name or initials typed at check-in, if you collect one at all. No health history, no intake, no payment information. Check-ins are deleted after 24 hours.
Also built for
- Massage Therapy patient check-inYour next client taps your name on an iPad in the waiting area. You feel a silent buzz on your watch, finish the session on time, and open the door when you're ready.
- Chiropractic patient check-inPatients tap your name on an iPad at the door and take a seat. You get a silent alert on your phone or watch in the adjusting room and keep the line moving.
Keep reading
- iPad patient check-in kioskA patient check-in app for iPad: patients tap their therapist, who gets a silent alert on their phone or Apple Watch. 14-day free trial, no credit card.
- How to set up an iPad check-in kioskTurn a spare iPad into a patient check-in kiosk in about 10 minutes: pair it by QR code or pairing code, lock it with Guided Access, and test the alert.
- Running a practice without a front deskHow therapy practices without a receptionist handle arrivals: timed pickup, doorbells, texts, wall lights, sign-in sheets, and iPad check-in compared.
- How therapists know a client has arrivedDoorbells, texts, cameras, wall lights, sign-in sheets or an iPad check-in: seven ways therapists without a receptionist know a client has arrived.
- When to use a notification groupHow TapIn notification groups work: one kiosk button for walk-ins, new patients, and "next available" visits that alerts the whole team, and lets one person take the patient. When to use a group and when to keep individual buttons.
Let patients check in without breaking the quiet
Try TapIn free for 14 days with no credit card. Pair an iPad you already have and keep your treatment rooms undisturbed.