Abstract
We investigated the relation between the response time of an email-based counselling system and the re-utilization of the service. Activity data from the Kids Help Line (KHL) for a 22 month period were examined. The median response time for subjects who re-used the KHL service (n = 2822) was 140 h (interquartile range, IQR 37–257 h) which was significantly less than for subjects who did not re-use the service (n = 2781, median 183 h, IQR 45–289 h). The re-use rate was highest for a 4 h response time, and decreased as the response time lengthened. Response times less than 32 h did not have a significant difference between the observed and expected re-use rates, whereas response times of 32 h and greater did. The results showed that a greater delay in counsellor response time was associated with a lower re-use rate. Response time is a performance indicator which may be important in the ultimate success or failure of an email based counselling service.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.