title: Use of an orientation clinic to reduce failed new patient appointments in primary care.
abstract: Patients who fail to attend initial appointments reduce clinic efficiency. To maximize attendance by newly referred outpatients, we introduced a mandatory group orientation clinic for all new patients and determined its effects on no-show rates. Orientation clinic also provided health care screening and opportunities for patient feedback. The new patient no-show rate for initial provider visits decreased significantly from 45% before institution of orientation clinic to 18% afterwards (P<.0001). The total no-show (patients who failed to attend orientation clinic or an initial provider visit) rate of the postintervention group was 51% (P = .28, compared with before the intervention). This intervention improved the efficiency and minimized the wasted time of our clinicians.
authors: General Internal Medicine Section, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, 94121, USA.
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Jain
authors: C L
authors: CL
authors: Chou
mesh_terms: D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D005260:Female; D006787:Hospitals, Veterans; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010349:Patient Compliance / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010352:Patient Dropouts / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods / Q000458:organization & administration*; D012495:San Francisco