Frequency and reasons for missed appointments of outpatient mental health care users in the uMgungundlovu District

Ramlucken, Lucelle; Sibiya, Maureen Nokuthula

doi:10.4102/curationis.v41i1.1835

Cited by 17 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 9 publications

(14 reference statements)

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“…Such a high rate can have a major impact on mental healthcare which can lead to clinical and administrative challenges for the staff as well as increasing the risk of hospitalization for the patient, overall increasing the cost of the healthcare system. [3,9] Among the different, demographic and administrative characteristics studied, only the nature of the service showed a main effect on no-show rates, with services delivered by psychiatrists having the highest rate compared to the other services offered at the mental health clinic. Furthermore, the consultation/orientation visit, which is only given by psychiatrists, was associated with higher no-show rates compared to other types of visits.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Missed appointments in mental health care clinics: A retrospective study of patients’ profile

Tempier

Bouattane

Tshiabo

et al. 2021

JHA

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Background: Missed appointments (no-shows) are a problem and common in outpatient clinics especially in psychiatric setting.Objective: This study aimed to describe the extent of no-shows in a regular psychiatric outpatient clinic, and to assess associations of missed appointments with patients’ demographic and clinical characteristics and types of services provided.Methods: Data collection from a hospital psychiatric clinic charts was conducted from administrative years 2017-18 and 2018-19, using descriptive analyses.Results: In the administrative year of 2017-18, the no-show rate was 9.5%, adding 10.7% for cancellations, for a total of 20.2%. In 2016-17, rates were 9.7%, with 17.3% cancellations, for a total of 27%. Rates varied from clinical groups (2.5% for borderline personality disorders patients to 30% for young psychotic patients) and by professionals (psychiatrists 5.6%, psychotherapists 23.3%) and for crisis services 21.9%.Conclusions: No-show numbers are comparable to other clinical sites but remain a challenge in delivering seamless and efficient services. A qualitative study will be conducted as a second phase to examine root causes and provide opportunities for service improvement.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Missed appointments in mental health care clinics: A retrospective study of patients’ profile

Tempier

Bouattane

Tshiabo

et al. 2021

JHA

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…, 2005; Williamson et al. , 2017; Ramlucken and Sibiya, 2018). It is clear however, that DNAs are strongly associated with a significant reduction in productivity and effectiveness of services, a deterioration in therapeutic working relationships (Lee et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are contrasting thoughts on the idea of DNAs, and whilst patients and administrative staff tend to find them frustrating, GPs find them useful for catching up National Health Service when they have fallen behind schedule (Martin et al, 2005;Williamson et al, 2017;Ramlucken and Sibiya, 2018). It is clear however, that DNAs are strongly associated with a significant reduction in productivity and effectiveness of services, a deterioration in therapeutic working relationships (Lee et al, 2019), and increased pressure on emergency services (Ferro et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Causes, impacts and possible mitigation of non-attendance of appointments within the National Health Service: a literature review

Wilson¹,

Winnard

2022

JHOM

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PurposeMissed appointments within the National Health Service (NHS) are a drain on resources, associated with not only considerable time and cost implications, but also sub-optimal health outcomes. This literature review aims to explore non-attendance within the NHS in relation to causes, impacts and possible mitigation of negative effects of missed appointments.Design/methodology/approachMEDLINE, CINAHL Plus and PubMed were searched with a date range of 2016–2021. Databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles published in English addressing non-attendance of adults within the NHS. Studies were excluded if they were theoretical papers, dissertations or research concerning patients aged under 18. A total of 21 articles met the inclusion criteria and were selected for analysis.FindingsThe results indicate a significant association of non-attendance and poor health outcomes. Patients from a lower socioeconomic status, adults aged over 85 and those with multiple co-morbidities are more likely to miss appointments. The most commonly reported patient-centred reasons for failing to attend were forgetfulness, transportation difficulties, and family commitments. Practice-specific reasons were cited as inefficiencies of the appointment booking system, failure of traditional reminders and inconvenient timings. Interventions included text reminder services, the inclusion of costs within reminders and enhanced patient involvement with the booking process.Originality/valueNon-attendance is complex, and to secure maximum attendance, targeted interventions are required by healthcare facilities to ensure patient needs are met. The adaption of scheduling systems and healthcare services can assist in reducing DNA rates.

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“…Patients miss appointments for a variety of reasons, including logistical (e.g., limited transportation), personal (e.g., forgetting), and health system-related (e.g., lack of communication or shared decision-making regarding referral to BH services, limited appointment availability; Nicholson, 1994; Ramlucken & Sibiya, 2018). Prior studies have found that a longer wait time between a BH referral and scheduled appointment is associated with lower appointment attendance (Gallucci et al, 2005; Loumidis & Shropshire, 1997; Sherman et al, 2009).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between wait time and behavioral health appointment attendance across patient characteristics.

Wang¹,

Knitter²,

Staab³

et al. 2023

Psychological Services

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Adequate access to behavioral health (BH) services is a critical issue. Many patients who are referred to BH care miss their appointments. One barrier to BH care is that longer wait times decrease the likelihood of appointment attendance. The present study examines the relationship between the wait time for BH services and appointment attendance, overall and by multiple patient characteristics. Logistic regression was performed to analyze the association between wait time and patient attendance for BH referrals made from March 1, 2016, to February 28, 2019, at an urban academic medical center. In total, 1,587 referrals were included. Most patients were female (72%) and of non-Hispanic/Latinx Black race (55%). Each additional week of waiting between the referral and scheduled appointment was associated with a 5% decrease in odds of attendance. In adjusted race/ethnicity-stratified analyses, Hispanic/Latinx patients had a 9% lower odds of attendance per week of waiting. Non-Hispanic/Latinx White and Black patients had a 5% lower odds of attendance per week of waiting. Patients with private insurance had a 7% lower odds of attendance per week of waiting, and patients with Medicare had a 6% lower odds of attendance per week of waiting. Limiting scheduling may improve BH care utilization by decreasing the rate of “no shows.”

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Frequency and reasons for missed appointments of outpatient mental health care users in the uMgungundlovu District

Cited by 17 publications

References 9 publications

Missed appointments in mental health care clinics: A retrospective study of patients’ profile

Missed appointments in mental health care clinics: A retrospective study of patients’ profile

Causes, impacts and possible mitigation of non-attendance of appointments within the National Health Service: a literature review

Association between wait time and behavioral health appointment attendance across patient characteristics.

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