Patient waiting times

Area of Science:

• General Practice
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Patient wait times are a significant concern in primary care settings.
• Understanding factors influencing wait times is crucial for efficient patient flow.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of patient arrival times on waiting times for family doctor appointments.
• To compare waiting times between booked and acute patient categories.

Main Methods:

• A prospective study in a Whangarei general practice during May 1993.
• Monitored appointment booking, patient arrival, and consultation times for 407 patients.
• Analyzed waiting times based on arrival status (early, on-time, late) and patient type (booked, acute).

Main Results:

• 66% of booked patients arrived early, increasing average wait times to 23.30 minutes.
• Patients arriving on time waited 17.58 minutes; late arrivals waited 14.56 minutes.
• Acute patients had longer average wait times (24.39 minutes) than booked patients (20.68 minutes).

Conclusions:

• Early patient arrivals significantly extend actual waiting times.
• Correcting for early arrivals reveals no difference in waiting times between on-time and late patients.
• Optimizing patient arrival strategies and acute patient triage can enhance practice efficiency and reduce wait times.