Liverpool Women’s Hospital is one of the first trust’s we have been working with and we are seeing some good early results.
Analysing its DNA data for outpatients in greater detail than before enabled the hospital to target follow up discussions directly with specific communities and groups of patients with the highest rates of missed appointments. Speaking with those most likely to miss appointments has given the hospital a deeper understanding around their reasons for not attending. As a result, the hospital has been able to improve its approach to appointments, leading to better access, experience and outcomes for patients who may normally struggle accessing services.
One example of the adjustments made by the hospital following discussions with patient groups was to upgrade its sign-in kiosks. It has led to quicker check in times and is preventing queues at reception that may have delayed patients and resulted in them missing their appointments.
Due to the success of this approach the hospital has now adopted a continuous process of data review and targeted community engagement towards achieving ongoing improvements in DNA rates.
Through May 2023, Liverpool Women’s Hospital has reduced its missed appointment rate to an average of 9% from an average of 11% in January 2023. This represents over 600 appointments being freed up for other patients who have been waiting for a date and time to be seen.
More widely, this approach adopted by other hospitals across Cheshire and Merseyside has contributed to a reduction in DNA rates from 10% in January 2023 to 8% in April 2023 equating to 10,000 more outpatient appointments being made available across the area.
Additionally, this approach is helping address some of the inequalities in healthcare that exist in our region, by increasing knowledge about our different patients and reducing any barriers to services they may be experiencing whenever we can.
Dr Doug Robertson, consultant physician for Mid Cheshire Hospital Trust and clinical lead for NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s Outpatient Recovery and Transformation programme, said: “Problems with transport, childcare and financial pressures may be behind many missed appointments and we are listening to people to gain real insight into these barriers to see how we can remove them where possible. By working with patients in this way we are making changes to our appointment systems based on their experiences and helping to fill thousands of slots in hospitals across Cheshire and Merseyside that might have been previously missed. This benefits everyone.”
