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Mobile telephone short message service reminders can reduce nonattendance in physical therapy outpatient clinics: a
Nicholas F Taylor1, Judy Bottrell, Katherine Lawler
1Allied Health Clinical Research Office, Faculty of Health Sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia. n.taylor@latrobe.edu.au
Objective:
To investigate whether short message service (SMS) reminders reduce nonattendance in physical therapy outpatient clinics.
Design:
Prospective single-blinded randomized controlled trial.
Setting:
Two physical therapy outpatient departments in metropolitan acute public hospitals.
Participants:
Participants with an appointment in a physical therapy outpatient clinic and who provided a contact mobile telephone number were included. Participants were excluded if their appointment was scheduled for the same day on which they made the appointment.
Intervention:
Participants allocated to the intervention group received an SMS reminder before their next appointment; participants allocated to the control group did not receive a reminder.
Main Outcome Measures:
The primary outcome was rate of nonattendance without cancellation. Secondary outcomes were cancellation and attendance rates and exploration of other factors associated with nonattendance.
Results:
Patients (N=679) were allocated to receive either an SMS reminder (n=342) or no reminder (n=337). The nonattendance rate for patients who did not receive a reminder (16%) was more than nonattendance for patients receiving the SMS reminder (11%; odds ratio, 1.61; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.03-2.51; number needed to treat, 19; 95% CI, 9-275). There were no differences in cancellation or attendance rates between groups. Exploration of other factors found that patients who were younger with a neck and trunk musculoskeletal or a neuromuscular disorder and who were scheduled to have an initial appointment or an appointment on a Monday or Friday were significantly predictive of increased nonattendance.
Conclusions:
SMS reminders can reduce nonattendance in physical therapy outpatient clinics.
