Patent ID: 8243891

Claim:
A method for institutional voice messaging, comprising: authenticating, via a call management system, user identification information regarding a user located within an institution; verifying that the user is allowed to place a telephone call to a telephone associated with an outside party remotely located from the institution; determining whether a telephone number of the outside party is an authorized telephone number to call and, if the telephone number is an authorized telephone number to call, placing a telephone call to the authorized telephone number; determining that the telephone call is answered by a recording device or that the telephone call is not answered; providing a prompt for the user to leave a message in a user mailbox if the telephone call is answered by a recording device or the telephone call is not answered, wherein the user mailbox is associated with the user and is located within the call management system; storing the user's message in the user mailbox; dialing the telephone number of the outside party until the telephone is answered by a person or by a recording device; detecting whether the telephone call is answered by the person or by the recording device; providing a prompt to the person to accept the telephone call if the system determines that the telephone call is answered by the person; providing a notification message to the person if the system receives information for accepting the telephone call, wherein the notification message comprises information for retrieving the user's message in the user mailbox; storing the notification message in the system mailbox if the telephone call is answered by the recording device, wherein the message is stored in the system mailbox for playback to the outside party; and receiving a telephone call from the outside party for retrieving the message in the system mailbox or the user mailbox, wherein the outside party communicates information to the call management system to retrieve the message in the user mailbox or the call management system notifies the outside party of the message stored in the system mailbox upon accessing the call management system.