title: Patient characteristics affecting attendance at general outpatient clinics.
abstract: A study was carried out to identify the characteristics of children who do not attend appointments at general outpatient clinics. Over six months, 359 children who had an appointment at a general clinic were studied using a questionnaire given to parents (74% response rate) and by inspection of case notes. Based on their first appointment in the study period, children were divided into 'attenders' (n = 262) and 'non-attenders' (n = 97) for analysis. Non-attenders were significantly more likely to have one or more of the following characteristics: lower social class, poorer housing, unmarried parent(s) (56% v 33%), longer journey to clinic (35 v 27.6 minutes), more appointments per year (4.2 v 3.3), poorer past attendance record, and received their appointment by post (76% v 44%). Surprisingly parents of non-attenders rated their children to have a significantly more severe illness than those who attended. These results suggest that attendance is primarily determined by social and logistical factors as well as appointment details, rather than illness severity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, St James's University Hospital, Leeds, UK.
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: McClure
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Newell
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Edwards
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004739:England; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011177:Postal Service; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012923:Social Class; D012924:Social Conditions; D016312:Treatment Refusal