Summary:
In a busy clinic, every second counts. Tails AI helps you move faster—from pre-visit intake to SOAPs and client communication. Clear, specific prompts yield accurate and actionable results that save you time and enhance patient care.
TL;DR
Use the formula: Goal + Context + Action + Audience + Output
Keep prompts short and structured (1–3 sentences, one task per prompt).
Assign a role for tone (e.g., “Act as a vet tech…”).
Iterate and verify: refine step by step.
Tails AI is integrated, so it already knows your Patient and Pet Parent data—no need to retype.
Jump to 'What is a Prompt?'
Jump to Tails Pet Parent Intake | Jump to Tails Dictation - QuickSOAP
Jump to Tails Assistant | Jump to Tails Discharges
Jump to Tails Assistant - Communication
What is a “Prompt”?
A prompt is any instruction or question you or the system gives the AI to generate a result.
Tails Feature | Who Prompts Whom | Purpose |
Tails Intake Agent | AI → Pet Parent | Collects pre-visit info and summarizes for staff |
Tails AI Dictation | Clinician → AI | Converts speech to structured text |
QuickSOAP | Clinician → AI | Turns notes into standardized SOAPs |
Tails AI Assistant | Clinician → AI | Answers questions, verifies SOAPs, summarizes |
Communication | Clinician → AI | Drafts client messages, summaries, and follow-ups |
✅ Why it matters: Clear prompts = cleaner documentation, clearer communication, and less rework.
Core Prompting Best Practices
1️⃣ Start with the end in mind
Define what you want before typing.
❌ “Write a patient summary.”
✅ “Summarize [Pet Name]’s history focusing on chronic conditions, recent treatments, and care milestones.”
2️⃣ Be specific and contextual
The more detail and structure you include, the more accurate and useful the output will be.
❌ Instead of: “What should I recommend?”
✅ Try: “List treatment recommendations for a cat presenting with urinary issues, focusing on dietary management, hydration strategies, and environmental stress reduction.”
💡 Tip: Since Tails works directly within Digitail, it already understands your Patient’s background, visit type, and medical notes — you need to guide what outcome you want.
3️⃣ Assign a role to the AI
Guide tone and focus.
Example: “Act as a veterinary technician, drafting discharge instructions for a cat recovering from dental surgery. Include home-care tips and medication schedule.”
Advanced Prompting Techniques
1️⃣ Use step-by-step instructions
Guide complex tasks in stages:
“Step 1: Summarize GI history. Step 2: List differentials. Step 3: Recommend diagnostics.”
2️⃣ Provide templates or examples
Show expected format:
“Draft a treatment plan using this example; focus on Assessment and Plan for a senior dog with hypothyroidism.”
3️⃣ Specify what to avoid
“Write a follow-up email; avoid medical jargon and keep tone friendly but professional.”
💡 Pro Tip: Save effective prompts in your clinic’s Prompt Library.
The Prompt Formula
Goal + Context + Action + Audience + Output
Examples:
“Summarize this exam for a canine dental cleaning, focusing on anesthesia recovery, in bullet points for a Pet Parent.”
“Verify this SOAP for completeness and tone for DVM review; list missing Objective details.”
🐾 1) Tails Intake Agent — Pre-Visit Automation
Collect consistent, high-quality pre-appointment information without manual entry.
Best Practices
Keep questions simple: “Have you noticed changes in appetite or energy?”
Ask one question per topic.
Add friendly context: “This helps your vet prepare for your visit.”
Customize question sets per visit type (wellness, sick, surgery, behavioral).
🔗 Related: Tails AI Patient Intake | Tails Intake Agent Settings
💡Tip: Keep Questions Focused and Conversational.
🎙️ 2) Tails Dictation | QuickSOAP
Tails AI helps you transform your dictations or notes into structured, standardized SOAP records that reflect your clinical tone and structure. Whether you dictate findings directly or type them manually, QuickSOAP ensures consistency and accuracy — while letting you define exactly how you want your SOAPs to look.
✅ Core Prompt Tips
“Summarize diagnostics and medications.”
“Separate findings by SOAP sections.”
“Simplify the Plan for a client discharge summary.”
💾 Setting and Using Personal QuickSOAP Instructions
QuickSOAP allows each user — especially DVMs — to define their own clinical style and structure by saving personal AI instructions.
This goes beyond a simple prompt: you can write and save your entire SOAP example once, and Tails AI will use it as your baseline formatting and tone guide every time you create a new SOAP.
Why this matters
Structure: Decide how Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan are ordered and formatted.
Tone: Set your clinical voice — concise, narrative, detailed, or shorthand.
Depth: Specify your preferred level of detail (bullets vs. paragraphs).
Once saved, your personal QuickSOAP instructions act like a living template.
Each time you run QuickSOAP or Dictation, your output follows your model — saving time and preserving consistency.
✍️ Example: Creating your personal QuickSOAP baseline
User instruction example
“Use the following structure and tone for all my SOAP notes. Maintain a concise, professional DVM voice and avoid redundancy.
Subjective: Chief complaint, history, and owner observations.
Objective: Physical exam findings, diagnostics, and key measurements.
Assessment: Differential diagnoses, confirmed conditions, and case interpretation.
Plan: Diagnostics performed, treatment plan, medications, and recheck recommendations.
Ensure each section is clearly labeled and separated by headers. Use medical abbreviations appropriately. Keep tone factual, not conversational.”
Two Effective Workflows
1️⃣ Dictation → Full SOAP Generation
Prompt: “Create a complete SOAP from this dictation using my saved instructions. Ensure each section follows the correct DVM structure and tone.”
Tip: Dictate with structure (“Assessment: otitis externa. Plan: start topical therapy.”)
2️⃣ Written Notes → Structured SOAP Organization
Prompt: “Organize these notes into a properly structured SOAP using my saved QuickSOAP instructions, preserving my phrasing and tone.”
🧠 Why Strong Input Still Matters
Even with personalized instructions, your input quality defines your output quality.
Provide complete findings and clear context; use short clarifiers when refining (e.g., “Focus on Assessment,” “Simplify Plan for Pet Parent”).
💡 Remember: QuickSOAP follows your instructions — but it builds from your clinical reasoning.
💬 3) Tails AI Assistant — Your Smart Teammate
Use it to:
Answer clinical questions
Verify SOAP accuracy
Summarize histories and records
Analyze images/labs with Tails Vision
Create client education and client discharges
Prompts
“List differentials for coughing in small dogs.”
“Explain otitis externa vs. media in client-friendly terms.”
“Verify this SOAP for completeness.”
🔗 Related: Tails AI Assistant | Prompt Library | SOAP Verification | Tails Vision
🏥 4) Tails AI Discharge Notes — Prompting for Clarity, Empathy, and Consistency
Tails AI helps you turn medical plans into Pet Parent–ready discharge notes that are clear, professional, and compassionate.
Even with templates and prefilled Plan data, your prompt shapes the output’s tone, accuracy, and usefulness.
🔗 Related: | Generate Discharge Notes
🎯 Core Prompting Principles
1️⃣ Be clear about the goal
Tell Tails what type of discharge you need.
“Create a discharge summary for a dog after dental cleaning, focusing on pain control, feeding, and home-care.”
2️⃣ Set the tone and audience
Guide tone directly in your prompt.
“Use a reassuring tone for a Pet Parent unfamiliar with medical terms.”
3️⃣ Define structure
Use consistent section cues.
“Format as: Summary, Medications, Home Care, Recheck Instructions.”
4️⃣ Emphasize safety
Include red-flag signs and when to contact the clinic.
“Add a short ‘When to Call’ section with 3–5 warning signs.”
5️⃣ Refine output
Re-prompt instead of rewriting.
“Shorten this by 25% but keep tone warm.”
💬 Example Prompts
Scenario | Example |
Post-Surgery | “Discharge for spayed cat — incision care, pain meds, recheck timing, friendly tone.” |
Dental | “Discharge for dog after cleaning — feeding tips, medication schedule, signs of discomfort.” |
Medical Case | “Summarize SOAP Plan into a Pet Parent–friendly discharge for otitis externa. Avoid jargon.” |
Wellness Visit | “Preventive care summary for healthy adult dog — diet, exercise, next due vaccines.” |
💡 Pro Tip: Add your best-performing discharge prompts to your Prompt Library for quick reuse.
⚙️ Advanced Prompting Tips
Start with a tone cue: friendly, professional, educational.
Control length: “Keep under 200 words.”
Focus content: “Emphasize aftercare and recheck.”
Add role context: “Act as a veterinarian writing discharge instructions.”
📌 Discharge Prompt Formula
Goal + Context + Tone + Structure + Key Details
“Create a discharge note for a canine dental extraction in a friendly tone.
Include Summary, Medications, Aftercare, When to Call.”
✅ Best Practices
Always review AI output before sending.
Keep it simple, structured, and empathetic.
Include recheck date, medication timing, and emergency contact info.
Encourage your team to share and refine discharge prompts together.
🔗 Related: | Generate Discharge Notes
📞 5) Communication — Clear, Empathetic Client Messaging
Examples
“Write a friendly follow-up for Bella’s dental cleaning, including care tips and next visit reminder.”
“Summarize this phone log in 2 sentences with action items.”
“Rephrase this discharge note for a Pet Parent in clear, empathetic language.”
💡 Pro Tip: Automate message templates or summarize calls directly into the Patient record.
🔗 Related: Automate Client Communication | Summarize Phone Logs
Prompt Troubleshooting
Issue | Cause | Quick Fix |
Dictation stops mid-recording | Browser refreshed | Keep the tab open until finished |
Output feels repetitive | Prompt too broad | Add structure (“Focus on Objective”) |
Intake responses lack detail | Question unclear | Rephrase simply |
Assistant off-topic | Multiple asks in one prompt | Split into separate questions |
Email too technical | Role not defined | Add “client-friendly, avoid jargon” |
Overcoming Common AI Challenges
Refine prompts: Add missing context or split complex requests.
Verify outputs: Review for accuracy before saving.
Iterate intentionally: Use each result to improve the next.
Leverage feedback: Treat each prompt as training for your AI workflow.
🧩 5 Pro Tips for Veterinary Teams
1️⃣ AI complements expertise — Automate repetitive tasks, but always apply your clinical judgment and review outputs before finalizing.
2️⃣ Test & experiment — Try different prompt styles and save what works best in your shared Prompt Library. Small tweaks can dramatically change quality.
3️⃣ Lead with empathy — When crafting Pet Parent-facing content, emphasize warmth and clarity. Empathy builds trust and compliance.
4️⃣ Refine, don’t restart — Instead of starting over when the result isn’t perfect, re-prompt Tails AI with clarifiers like “Focus more on the assessment section” or “Simplify for Pet Parent understanding.” Iteration is your friend.
5️⃣ Keep a prompt audit — Periodically review saved prompts and outputs. Retire old ones, highlight top performers, and align them with your clinic’s preferred tone and workflow.
Key Takeaway
Tails AI is built to think with you—not for you.
With clear, intentional prompting, you’ll spend less time typing and more time where it matters most — with your Patients.