title: A Pilot Study of Reasons and Risk Factors for "No-Shows" in a Pediatric Neurology Clinic.
abstract: Missed clinic appointments lead to decreased patient access, worse patient outcomes, and increased healthcare costs. The goal of this pilot study was to identify reasons for and risk factors associated with missed pediatric neurology outpatient appointments ("no-shows"). This was a prospective cohort study of patients scheduled for 1 week of clinic. Data on patient clinical and demographic information were collected by record review; data on reasons for missed appointments were collected by phone interviews. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted using chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression to assess risk factors for missed appointments. Fifty-nine (25%) of 236 scheduled patients were no-shows. Scheduling conflicts (25.9%) and forgetting (20.4%) were the most common reasons for missed appointments. When controlling for confounding factors in the logistic regression, Medicaid (odds ratio 2.36), distance from clinic, and time since appointment was scheduled were associated with missed appointments. Further work in this area is needed.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA.
authors.forename: Lindsay M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Guzek
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health, Indianapolis, IN, USA.
authors.forename: William F
authors.initials: WF
authors.lastname: Fadel
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Neurology, Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA mgolomb@iupui.edu.
authors.forename: Meredith R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Golomb
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008484:Medicaid; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009462:Neurology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000067455:No-Show Patients / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010045:Outpatients / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010372:Pediatrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States
keywords: access; compliance; insurance status; risk factors; scheduling