What can practices do to reduce missed appointments?

There are still a large number of appointments being missed in the UK each year – what can practices do to help reduce them?

The NHS has launched a major drive to reduce the number of hospital appointments missed every month to help the recovery of elective services with the aim eliminate waits of more than 18 months by April 2023; of the 122m appointments booked last year, around 6.4% were missed. 

Practices have been urged to improve their processes for cancelling and booking appointments, implement short notice lists to help fill last minute slots which patients have cancelled, and deliver remote appointments where this is appropriate. However, practices must also take action to encourage patients to attend their appointments, and this can be done in a number of ways. 

Make daily reminders calls 

Designating a staff member to make reminder calls each afternoon for the next day’s appointment can help to remind patients who may have forgotten. Patients who receive a verbal conformation over the ‘phone are more likely to show up. It is also a good idea to remind patients to let you know when they can’t make an appointment so that the time slot can be offered to someone else; this reminder will prompt a cancellation and avoid any no-shows. 

Use automated reminders

Using an automated notification service to send secure texts and email reminders creates an additional avenue for reaching patients, especially in the eventuality that daily reminder calls cannot be made.  Many patients rely on automated reminders as a way to jog their memories about their upcoming appointments. 

Tailor the reminder to the patient 

When patients schedule an appointment, the practice should establish which method or methods of contact they prefer to make it as easy as possible to prevent them from missing their appointments. 

Thank patients who show up on time

Acknowledging a patient for showing up on time is a great way to encourage them to continue attending scheduled appointments and arriving on time; this can build patient loyalty and demonstrate that their time is appreciated.