PEDIATRICS Vol. 64 No. 1 July 1979, pp. 81-87
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Pearce, T.
Right arrow Articles by Wessen, A. F.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Pearce, T.
Right arrow Articles by Wessen, A. F.

Correlations Between Appointment Keeping and Reorganization of Hospital Ambulatory Pediatric Services

Tola Pearce PhD1, John S. O'Shea MD1, and Albert F. Wessen PhD1

1 Department of Sociology, Brown University; Section of Reproductive and Developmental Medicine and Section of Community Health, Brown University Program in Medicine, Providence, Rhode Island

Over a period of 13 months before and after a university-affiliated hospital's daytime ambulatory pediatric facility was upgraded from an episodic care clinic to a primary care unit, 260 subjects were interviewed in an attempt to predict compliance with return appointment scheduling. The parents of patients more than 10 years of age were the least compliant, but most of the differences in compliance appeared due to the subject's evaluation of the diagnostic ability, thoroughness, and sympathy of the physician at the initial visit. Although no changes were noted in the subjects' demographic characteristics or in their general opinions of ambulatory health care delivery or of attitudes desired of physicians, their evaluations of recent visits improved and the missed appointment rate declined by 46% in the course of the study. Moreover, the pediatric house officers, who evaluated the patients, demonstrated an increased ability to assess the characteristics the subjects found important in physicians.

Improvements are still needed, especially in the amount of communication between house officers, patients, and parents, but heeding clients' opinions about the provision of primary health care may help to make missed appointment rates negligible.

Submitted on August 26, 1978
Accepted on February 13, 1979




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 CLIN PEDIATRHome page
G. S. Liptak, D. M. Super, N. Baker, and K. J. Roghmann
An Analysis of Waiting Times in a Pediatric Emergency Department
Clinical Pediatrics, April 1, 1985; 24(4): 202 - 209.
[Abstract] [PDF]

Home page
 CLIN PEDIATRHome page
J. G. Jones
Compliance with Pediatric Therapy: A Selective Review and Recommendations
Clinical Pediatrics, April 1, 1983; 22(4): 262 - 265.
[Abstract] [PDF]