About two-thirds of patients — 64 percent — will book medical appointments online by the end of 2019, according to new research from Accenture.
This translates to 986 million appointments and a potential $3.2 billion in savings for the healthcare system over the next five years. Health systems that offer self-scheduling capabilities will be able to divert about 80 percent of patient volume through self-scheduling online.
Currently, Accenture estimates self-scheduling is available for only 11 percent of appointments and is utilized only 2.4 percent of the time.
"Just as consumers use online tools to book restaurant reservations or request a cab, patients will want the same experience in self-booking a doctor's appointment," said Dipak Patel, managing director of Accenture's patient access solutions. "Evidence also shows health systems can use self-scheduling tools to boost appointment capacity, reduce costs and/or increase productivity."
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