On November 28, 2016, Eastern Health implemented a new policy to address the number of ‘no-shows’ to its Adult Ambulatory Clinics, as well as diagnostic imaging appointments.

Approximately one million appointments are scheduled annually at Eastern Health’s adult ambulatory clinics, sometimes referred to as the outpatient specialty clinics. They include a variety of program areas, such as endoscopy, orthopedics, diabetes, and physician appointments, among others.

Statistics for fiscal years 2016-2017 indicate that 10.4 per cent of patients either did not show up for their appointments – or did not cancel with sufficient notice. This equates to just over 97,000 missed appointments, which have a significant impact on both the organization’s resources and its waitlists.

When a person doesn’t show at the appointed time, or doesn’t give sufficient notice, diagnostic equipment lies idle, as there is no time to offer that appointment to someone else, resulting in wasted resources of both staff and equipment. Additionally, the ‘no-show’ patient usually needs to be re-booked, which, in turn, slows down the booking/appointment process overall.

Eastern Health asks the public to partner with staff to make the appointment process more efficient and fair for all by:

• keeping scheduled appointments,
• or cancelling with at least 48 hours’ notice, and
• by keeping contact information up to date.

Policy:

• PRC-001 No Show Appointments for Regional Acute Care Ambulatory Services (adult) (PDF)

More Links:

• Frequently Asked Questions - No Show Policy
• No Show Poster (PDF)
• Frequently Asked Questions – Automated Notification System