Telemedicine reduces odds of no-show clinic visits for surgical patients: Study

The use of telehealth is effective at reducing odds of no-show clinic visits by more than two-thirds for surgical patients. 

Research findings, presented at the Scientific Forum of the American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress 2022, evaluated the association between telemedicine use and patient no-show visits, according to an Oct. 16 press release. 

Researchers looked at data collected from seven clinics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham for patients undergoing surgeries between January 2018 and December 2021. 

Here's what they found:

• No-show rates were the highest among in-person appointments, 11.7 percent, compared to telemedicine visits, 2.5 percent.
  
  
•  Telemedicine reduced no-show rates by 79 percent.
  
  
• No-show rates were lower in older patients. 
  
  
• Male patients were 12 percent more likely to not complete their appointments than women.
  
  
• Black patients, compared with white patients, were 68 percent more likely to be no-shows, and Asian patients were 32 percent more likely to be no-shows.