Use photos and CCTV as confirmation tools before admitting a patient. If the image, camera feed, or visible patient do not agree, close the Shutter and reject. Photo and CCTV checks catch anomalies that are easy to miss at the window, especially when the patient looks clean but another system shows static, distortion, or a camera-only tell.
Photos and CCTV are there to stop clean-looking patients from fooling the desk. I check the live animal first, then compare the photo or feed before anyone opens. A static photo, cursed-looking image, mismatched body detail, or camera-only threat is enough to hold the Shutter.
In actual runs, I keep the order short enough to remember while alarms and room prompts are going off: Look at the patient first. Take or read the photo. Check CCTV for mismatches or room threats. Call photo bad, cam bad, or room threat before anyone opens. That order keeps the desk from drifting open while someone is still fixing a room or recovering Sanity. It also gives public lobbies a simple rhythm: one player says the job, one player handles it, and nobody adds a fresh patient until the current problem is under control.
The mistake is treating the camera as background decoration. If someone is still checking a feed, the desk should wait. In co-op, call the feed or room number instead of giving a long speech.
The habits that save the run are small but noticeable. Say the camera feed or room number. Do not let the desk player leave if another teammate can read cameras. Static, cursed images, or mismatched patient details are enough to reject. Camera-only threats need fast callouts because the desk may not see them. When another player already has the problem covered, the best help is often boring: hold the Shutter, watch the next patient, or finish the room that got interrupted. Crowding the same spot usually hides the next mistake instead of fixing the current one.
For quick lobby decisions, the answers stay simple. Should photo and window match? Yes. If they do not line up, reject. Can CCTV expose a clean-looking patient? Yes. Trust the dangerous check and keep the Shutter closed. If the lobby feels messy, name the active problem out loud: unchecked patient, unfinished treatment, low Sanity, enemy, fire, ambulance, or ritual. Once the group knows which one is active, the next move is much easier to choose.
After the danger clears, I like taking one short reset before speeding up again. Check Sanity, check the room that got interrupted, and check whether the next animal outside has been fully screened. That tiny pause feels slow, but it stops one mistake from turning into three.