0448-Hour Confirmation Calls

Purpose

Reducing DNAs by confirming attendance two days before every appointment, and recovering the slot when a patient cancels.

Procedure

1. Call the patient 48 hours before their appointment to confirm attendance. This is done for every appointment type, without exception.
2. Record the outcome of the call.
3. If the patient confirms, no further action.
4. If the patient cancels, release the slot and go to the cancellation list (05) to fill it.
5. Log the call against the tracking tab so cancellations recovered and DNAs avoided can be counted.

Fields recorded

Patient · appointment date · date of call · outcome (confirmed / cancelled / no answer) · slot refilled (Y/N)

Notes

• The purpose of the tab is measurement as well as prevention - it shows how many cancellations are captured in advance and how many DNAs are avoided.
• This is a significant manual effort and a strong candidate for partial automation in Medicus, but the call itself is what recovers the slot.

Open points

• Whether a cancellation on this call automatically triggers the cancellation list, or admin picks it up separately.

Flowchart