Evaluating Patient Navigation to Improve First Appointment No-show Rates in Uninsured Patients with Diabetes

J Community Health Nurs. 2019 Jan-Mar;36(1):11-18. doi: 10.1080/07370016.2018.1555315.

Abstract

Free clinics increase access to care, however, patients frequently miss appointments. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to determine if providing patient navigation affects first appointment no-show rates and hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in uninsured patients with diabetes at a free clinic. For 6 months, all patients scheduled for new appointments received weekly patient navigation calls. First appointment no-show rates decreased by 17.7% (p = 0.01). Among patients who received at least one patient navigation call, a significantly greater proportion attended their first appointment (72%) compared to the show rate for those who did not receive a completed call (43%) (p = 0.004).

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Diabetes Mellitus / therapy*
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / therapy
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / therapy
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Medically Uninsured* / statistics & numerical data
  • Middle Aged
  • No-Show Patients / statistics & numerical data*
  • Patient Navigation / methods*
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Young Adult