Appointment Commitment Policy Brief

Policy Statement:  High no-show rates reduce provider productivity, and limit access to appointments for other patients.  This policy provides consistent no-show monitoring, designed to improve patient appointment commitment. 

Scope: This policy applies to all patients at Lower Lights Christian Health Center. 

Definitions & Abbreviations:

No-Show: A patient who fails to attend a scheduled appointment without prior notification to Lower Lights Health.
Late Cancellation: A cancellation is communicated less than 24 hours before the scheduled appointment.
Late Arrival: Arriving more than 15 minutes late to their appointment may result in rescheduling, which will be recorded as a no-show.

Policy Details:

Notification Requirement  

  • Patients must notify LLCHC at least 24 hours in advance to cancel or reschedule an appointment.

Repeated No-Show Progression 

  • 1 no-show within a rolling 12-month period:
    • Survey will be sent to our patient to explore the cause of the recent no-show
  • 2 no-shows within a rolling 12-month period:
    • Survey will be sent out to the patient to explore the cause of the recent no-show
  • 3 no-shows within a rolling 12-month period:
    • A Lower Lights Health Community Health Worker will reach out to the patient for a care coordination review to consider possible barriers to receiving care, and advise of potential scheduling restriction due to no-show pattern .

Note:  4 or more no-shows within a rolling 12-month period may result in dismissal from the practice. 

Appeals

  • Patients may appeal an individual no-show by responding to the survey sent at the (1) or (2) No-Show status;  or, when communicating with Lower Lights Health’s Community Health Worker at the (3) No-Show status.

Acknowledgment of Differences in Care Pathways

  • This policy serves as a general guideline for Lower Lights Christian Health Center. Specialty care offerings (obstetrics, dental, optometry) may have additional or differing appointment commitment policies based on the nature of their services. Patients are encouraged to talk with their care team about specialty-specific policies.