Enhancing Patient Access Through Scheduling Innovation, Patient Facing Tools, and Workforce Redesign at a...

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Health Services Research
• Oncology Operations

Background:

• Timely patient scheduling and healthcare access are critical for early diagnosis, effective treatment, and patient satisfaction.
• Inefficiencies in healthcare access can lead to delayed care and decreased operational performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of five integrated access initiatives on appointment scheduling, operational performance, and patient experience at a tertiary oncological center.
• To assess the effectiveness of redesigned scheduling algorithms, expedited appointment protocols, workflow optimization, patient-facing tools, and workforce redesign.

Main Methods:

• The study analyzed new patient referrals over a two-year period, focusing on appointment scheduling, operational metrics, and patient experience.
• Five key initiatives were implemented: redesigned scheduling algorithms, same-day/next-day (SD/ND) scheduling, four-hour patient contact workflow optimization, a patient referral tracking tool (My Referral Status), and workforce redesign with data analytics training.

Main Results:

• Median time to appointment creation decreased from five to two days, and the four-hour patient contact rate improved by nearly 40 percentage points to 90%.
• Patient satisfaction scores for scheduler courtesy exceeded the 97th percentile, and communication scores increased by 5% with the use of the My Referral Status tool.
• Workforce stability saw significant improvement, with turnover and vacancy rates dropping below 5% and engagement scores rising.

Conclusions:

• Coordinated, data-driven access strategies effectively reduced barriers, improved scheduling timeliness, and enhanced operational transparency.
• The integrated model offers a replicable framework for healthcare systems to improve patient access, experience, and operational sustainability in oncology.