What an emergency answering service should do at 2 a.m.

A patient in pain or a burst pipe can't wait for the morning voicemail. An emergency answering service like Aida answers the call, marks it Urgent and texts your on-call person as soon as the call ends. Your on-call person decides what happens next.

What happens when someone calls with an emergency after hours?

Aida answers as your business, takes the caller's name and a number to call back, and asks what is wrong. If it is urgent, Aida marks the call Urgent and texts your on-call person as soon as the call ends.

Before the call ends, the caller hears that the person on call will get their details. Your team sees the whole call written up in the morning.

One night, start to finish:

• 2:10 a.m. Answered. A caller rings about a cracked tooth and swelling, or water coming through a ceiling.
• 2:11 a.m. Written down. Their name, a callback number read back to them, the problem, and how bad it is.
• 2:12 a.m. On-call person texted. The text carries the details and a link to call back.
• 8:00 a.m. On your screen. Your team opens the day with the call, who was on call and when they saw it.

Can an AI answering service handle emergency calls?

Yes. Its job is to get the right person told fast, with the facts they need. Aida does not try to fix the problem on the phone. It answers, writes it down and reaches your on-call person, so nothing waits in a voicemail box until morning.

You decide what counts as urgent for your business. Pain, swelling and bleeding fit a clinic. No heat, a leak or no power fits a trade.

An emergency call at 2 a.m., three ways

How does the on-call person find out?

By text, as soon as the call ends. Your staff set who is on call, week by week, in the Aida portal. The person on call needs only a phone that receives texts: no app and no login.

If no one is on the schedule that week, Aida texts your administrator instead.

Does the AI give medical or repair advice?

No. Aida gives no medical, dental or repair advice, and it does not tell a caller what to do about the problem. It takes the details and passes them to your on-call person, who makes every decision.

If you choose, callers after midnight hear that a reply may wait until morning. The text to your on-call person still goes out as soon as the call ends.

What does an emergency answering service cost?

Aida Inbound is CA$500 a month per location in Canada, or CA$400 a month billed annually (CA$4,800 a year). It is US$350 a month per location in the United States and A$500 in Australia. All prices include tax, with unlimited calls and no setup fee.

The same Aida that handles your emergencies also answers routine calls, books appointments and replies to messages during the day.

Full prices are on the pricing and fit page.

Where to go next

• Dental societies: Aida On-Call runs a society's after-hours emergency line.
• Dental clinics: emergency calls in a dental practice and after-hours answering in Canada.
• Trades: answering services for plumbers and HVAC.

Hear how Aida handles an urgent call. Request a tailored demo and call it yourself.