thedrifter
09-01-07, 09:42 AM
Naval hospitals: Stop skipping appointments
By Trista Talton - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 1, 2007 7:42:49 EDT
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — No one likes getting stood up.
Not once. Not twice. Not 34,980 times.
Yet that’s how many appointments were skipped at Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune last year.
“It’s essentially two entire days’ worth of appointments per month that go out the window,” said Navy Capt. Mark Olesen, the hospital’s commander. “Collectively, it’s a tremendous impact on our system.”
One of the biggest problems that no-shows cause for hospitals is wasted time for the staff and for other patients waiting in line for medical attention. And while Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune’s no-show rate has fluctuated in the seventh percentile the past five years, specialty clinics, such as physical therapy and mental health, have an even higher rate of skipped appointments, Olesen said.
It’s a challenge many hospitals, military and civilian, have been facing for years. While there seems to be no apparent industry standard, an informal survey of 217 medical groups tracking their missed and canceled appointment rates averaged 5 percent no-shows and cancellations, according to Medical Group Management Association, a national organization of medical group practice professionals.
At Camp Lejeune, 7.25 percent of appointments made last year were missed. In 2003, the no-show rate was 7.96 percent.
It’s higher at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, Calif., where, in 2004, 10.3 percent of appointments made were skipped. This year, 8.63 percent of appointments made at the hospital and two clinics on base have been missed, as of Aug. 8.
“People don’t realize that it’s OK to cancel an appointment, just remember to call,” said Doug Allen, Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton’s spokesman.
“It just helps in overall efficiency,” he said. “If you’re sitting around doing nothing because nobody showed up, that’s not efficient. You’ve only got a limited amount of appointments a day. It’s better for the patients to call if they can’t make that appointment so more people can get in.”
During the past year, the hospital at Pendleton has assembled a team to track no-shows. The hospital’s efforts to get the word out to Marines and sailors, be it through posters or the marquee sign at the hospital’s entrance, has paid off. More than 30,700 appointments were missed there in 2004. As of Aug. 8, 14,971 appointments have been skipped this year.
Hospital administrators at Lejeune also have launched new tactics to try to cut down on no-shows.
“We try to make canceling an appointment as easy as possible,” Olesen said.
The hospital has added a new feature to its automated phone system that allows patients to directly bypass to an appointment cancellation line. There’s also a computer system known as the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application, which allows corpsmen at battalion aid stations to see who has an appointment within the battalion.
Olesen has been appearing at family meetings on base, spreading the word about why it’s important to cancel an appointment.
“We’re looking for the help from our community,” he said.
Specialty clinics, such as physical therapy, face their own hurdles, Olesen said.
If a Marine has been going to physical therapy for an injured knee and, suddenly, the knee feels better, that Marine may decide he no longer needs treatment, Olesen said.
Ellie
By Trista Talton - Staff writer
Posted : Saturday Sep 1, 2007 7:42:49 EDT
CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. — No one likes getting stood up.
Not once. Not twice. Not 34,980 times.
Yet that’s how many appointments were skipped at Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune last year.
“It’s essentially two entire days’ worth of appointments per month that go out the window,” said Navy Capt. Mark Olesen, the hospital’s commander. “Collectively, it’s a tremendous impact on our system.”
One of the biggest problems that no-shows cause for hospitals is wasted time for the staff and for other patients waiting in line for medical attention. And while Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune’s no-show rate has fluctuated in the seventh percentile the past five years, specialty clinics, such as physical therapy and mental health, have an even higher rate of skipped appointments, Olesen said.
It’s a challenge many hospitals, military and civilian, have been facing for years. While there seems to be no apparent industry standard, an informal survey of 217 medical groups tracking their missed and canceled appointment rates averaged 5 percent no-shows and cancellations, according to Medical Group Management Association, a national organization of medical group practice professionals.
At Camp Lejeune, 7.25 percent of appointments made last year were missed. In 2003, the no-show rate was 7.96 percent.
It’s higher at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton, Calif., where, in 2004, 10.3 percent of appointments made were skipped. This year, 8.63 percent of appointments made at the hospital and two clinics on base have been missed, as of Aug. 8.
“People don’t realize that it’s OK to cancel an appointment, just remember to call,” said Doug Allen, Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton’s spokesman.
“It just helps in overall efficiency,” he said. “If you’re sitting around doing nothing because nobody showed up, that’s not efficient. You’ve only got a limited amount of appointments a day. It’s better for the patients to call if they can’t make that appointment so more people can get in.”
During the past year, the hospital at Pendleton has assembled a team to track no-shows. The hospital’s efforts to get the word out to Marines and sailors, be it through posters or the marquee sign at the hospital’s entrance, has paid off. More than 30,700 appointments were missed there in 2004. As of Aug. 8, 14,971 appointments have been skipped this year.
Hospital administrators at Lejeune also have launched new tactics to try to cut down on no-shows.
“We try to make canceling an appointment as easy as possible,” Olesen said.
The hospital has added a new feature to its automated phone system that allows patients to directly bypass to an appointment cancellation line. There’s also a computer system known as the Armed Forces Health Longitudinal Technology Application, which allows corpsmen at battalion aid stations to see who has an appointment within the battalion.
Olesen has been appearing at family meetings on base, spreading the word about why it’s important to cancel an appointment.
“We’re looking for the help from our community,” he said.
Specialty clinics, such as physical therapy, face their own hurdles, Olesen said.
If a Marine has been going to physical therapy for an injured knee and, suddenly, the knee feels better, that Marine may decide he no longer needs treatment, Olesen said.
Ellie