Comparison Between Short Text Messages and Phone Calls to Reduce No-Show Rates in Outpatient Medical Appointments: A Randomized Trial
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Rogério Cortecioni Lance1, Antônio Pazin-Filho, Fábio Fernandes Neves
1Professional Master's Program in Health Organizations Management (Mr Lance), and Department of Internal Medicine (Dr Pazin-Filho), Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Sao Paulo, Brazil; and Department of Medicine, Federal University of São Carlos, Sao Carlos, Sao Paulo, Brazil (Dr Neves).
Abstract:
The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of telephone calls and short text messages (SMS) on no-show rates regarding scheduled appointments with a general practitioner. In a prospective, intervention-controlled, and randomized study, we divided 306 patients into 3 groups: telephone call, SMS, and no intervention. We compared no-show rates, as well as variables that influenced it. The lowest percentage of no-show (9.5%) occurred in the telephone call group, while the SMS group presented at 21% and the no-intervention group at 22.8% (P = .025). Telephone calls proved to be a superior strategy to text messaging.
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