Ways to reduce no-shows.....
I struggle with this so much, in part from caring for arthritis patients that tend to be older, disabled, and poor more than the average, and probably more from giving too many exceptions to the rules below.
Better patients come from better practices and often have better insurance, which is the eternal uphill climb of practicing. So you have to eliminate referral sources and insurances that exacerbate your no show rate without hurting your bottom line or reputation. Sometimes it takes switching to another ehr which affects the referral pattern.
Better patients are trained patients. We can try to hold our new patients to a high standard with policy statements and protocols they can expect, and train your established patients to increase their standard of paying their co-pays, showing-up, and paying their remainders?
Better reminders. I think the best system would be texting them 2 days in advance, staff calling your most important appointments such as endoscopies and consults, and an automated system the night before for the rest.
Better consequences for the non-compliant patient to prune the practice and prevent lawsuits. We charge missed consults, but give a free warning for the first established patient no-show with a reminder of the whole policy, and then start escalating the fees for subsequent no-shows. I think the fees help, because it practically prepares them for the fact that after so many no-shows they will be discharged from the practice. If there is no fee, there is no consequence, and they are shocked that you would discharge them. Enjoy the conversations with the patients who can think of an excuse for everything! And be thankful for the patients who leave in a huff, for they will be replaced by a better patient.
And if that doesn't work, you can spend more time on the Amazing Charts forum.
