Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 2010-2
To See or Not to See? ……. That is the question: An analysis of out-patient follow-up arrangements and non-attendance in a community paediatric population
To investigate the relationship between the number of outpatient appointments made; the distance traveled to attend these and the proportion of these appointments missed.
Design
Retrospective Cohort Study.
Setting
Community Paediatrics.
Participants
Eighteen pre-school children on the Special Needs Register.
Results
With an increase in the number of appointments made and the distances involved in attending these, the number of missed appointments tends to increase.
Conclusions
We need to educate parents as to the importance of follow-up, include families in decision making about appointments and rationalize the number of appointments made.
MurdockA, RodgersC, LindsayH.Why do patients not keep their appointments? Prospective study in a gastroenterology outpatient clinic. J R Soc Med2002; 95: 284–286.
DreiherJ, GoldbartA, HershkovichJ.Factors associated with non-attendance at pediatric allergy clinics. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology (Online Early Articles). DOI:10.1111/j.1399-'3038.2007.00691.x.
4.
GatradAR.A completed audit to reduce hospital outpatients non attendance rates. Arch Dis Child2000; 82: 59–61.
5.
GatradAR.Comparison of Asian and English non attenders at a hospital outpatient department. Arch Dis Child1997; 77: 423–426.
6.
BowmanRJC, BennetHGB, HoustonCA.Waiting times for and attendance at paediatric ophthalmology outpatient appointments. BMJ1996; 313: 1244(16 November).
DownerSR, MearaJG, Da CostaAC.Use of SMS text messaging to improve outpatient attendance. Medical Journal of Australia2005; 183(7): 366–368.
9.
GeraghtyM, GlynnF, AminM.Patient mobile telephone ‘text’ reminder: a novel way to reduce non-attendance at the ENT outpatient clinic;Journal of Laryngology and Otology2007; 1: 1–3.
10.
LimLS, VarkeyP.E-mail reminders: A novel method to reduce outpatient clinic non-attendance: The InternetJournal of Healthcare Administration.2005; Volume 3 Number 1.
11.
McClureRJ, NewellSJ, EdwardsW.Patient characteristics affecting attendance at general outpatient clinics. Arch Dis Child1996; 74: 121–125.
12.
DoddKL, RheadS, ToweyK.Paediatric medical outpatients: are all those reviews necessary?Archives of Disease in Childhood, 1994; 70(6): 493–495.
13.
BeauchantS, JonesR.Socio-economic and demographic factors in patient non-attendance. Br J Healthcare Manage1997; 3: 523–528.
