title: Impact of same-day appointments on patient satisfaction with general practice appointment systems.
abstract: Following recent concerns about patients' inability to book appointments in advance, this study examined the relationship between the proportion of GP appointments reserved for same-day booking, and patient satisfaction with appointment systems. In a survey of 12,825 patients in 47 practices, it was found that a 10% increase in the proportion of same-day appointments was associated with an 8% reduction in the proportion of patients satisfied. Practices should be wary of increasing the level of same-day appointments to meet access targets.
authors.affiliation: School of Health and Related Research, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK. f.c.sampson@sheffield.ac.uk
authors.forename: Fiona
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sampson
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pickin
authors.forename: Alicia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: O'Cathain
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goodall
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Salisbury
mesh_terms: D001071:Appointments and Schedules; D005194:Family Practice / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011216:Practice Management, Medical / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013997:Time Factors
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