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No-show management: for perfect presenteeism

> Missing a scheduled appointment has an impact on the work dynamic

There is a situation that afflicts those areas that work with the management of user appointments and that has increased in recent times: no-shows. A no-show (also known as no-show or no-show) is when a person who makes a reservation or coordinates an appointment does not show up. It differs from a cancellation in that an early cancellation allows the vacancy and management time to be managed and a no-show has a direct impact on the productivity of the business.

Now, what does no-show mean in the healthcare world? When it comes to medical care: office consultations, appointments for medical studies or tests, no-shows have a direct impact on the management time of the health facility, which must be prevented:

Financial loss

Time that is lost is time that is not being produced and that could not be allocated to some activity. Therefore, the no-show rates of a facility or service provider have an impact on its economic performance.

Discomfort among medical personnel

Managing the agenda of healthcare professionals is fundamental to their work dynamics. Therefore, when absenteeism is generated in the consultations they have scheduled, this has repercussions in a disorganization of their tasks that hinders the flow of their work.

Time-out

Just as there is an economic loss, there is also a loss of time, which compromises the productivity of the health center. Downtime is a loss in every sense.

> How can you reduce the no-show rate of your health center or institution?

There are several strategies that can be implemented to reduce the number of no-shows and ensure that your patients show up for every appointment they schedule. From SkyMed, we highlight three main ones that when applied successfully guarantee a reduction in no-shows:

Direct follow-up strategies

Clear cancellation rules: When closing a patient's appointment, it is effective to provide ways for the patient to cancel the appointment in advance if desired. Additionally, make reference to any restrictions that may apply. For example, withholding 50% of any payment or having to wait a reasonable amount of time to reschedule a new appointment.

Possibilities of prepayment: in case the service you are offering must be paid for in a differential way, you can offer ways to pay in advance. This action is a guarantee of attendance to the coordinated appointment that is efficient to ensure that there is no no-show.

Reminders at key times: this is where Omnichannel comes into play. The effective thing is to be able to make several reminders at a reasonable time so that it is not too repetitive, but at the same time, with the necessary frequency to have an effect. Omnichannel is present in the choice of means of communication: a text message, an email or a phone call.

Incorporation of multiple communication channels: just as we mentioned the implementation of omni-channeling, it is essential to be able to count on different communication channels that facilitate interaction with patients in a comfortable and immediate way for them, guaranteeing responses adjusted to the times of the health center or institution.

Indirect follow-up: Maintaining interest

For no-show reduction to be effective, it is necessary not only to have a direct follow-up but also to approach it in a comprehensive way with an indirect follow-up. Indirect follow-up is about providing relevant information and content to our patients in order to maintain their interest in the medical consultation or studies to be performed.

In a scenario where a person has arranged an appointment for a general checkup, being able to receive parallel information about the benefits of having an annual general checkup may induce them to make their appointment more relevant and circumvent obstacles that may cause them to prefer not to attend.

At SkyMed we are specialists in applying the necessary strategies to reduce your no-show rate. Leave us your details here to arrange a virtual meeting with one of our representatives.

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