Patients are asked to arrive to their appointments before their scheduled appointment time. New patients are to arrive 30 minutes before their scheduled appointment time. Established patients are to arrive 15 minutes before their scheduled appointment time. This allows enough time for the registration process to be completed before the actual appointment time.
A grace period of 15 minutes will be permitted for unforeseen delays a patient may encounter while travelling to the clinic location for their appointment. If a patient arrives more than 15 minutes late for their appointment, the patient will be given the option of either being seen that day as a walk-in, if the schedule permits, or rescheduled for a later date. This process will ensure patients that do arrive on time are seen in a timely manner.
A “No Show” is a patient who fails to appear for a scheduled appointment without providing a 24 hour cancellation notice. Further, a rescheduled appointment that is less than the 24 hour cancellation notice is still considered a cancellation and is treated as such. There is a $50 charge for all No Show visits.
To assist the patient in keeping appointments, Patient Service Representatives (PSRs-robo call) initiate a reminder telephone call 48 hours before the patient’s scheduled appointment. During the reminder call the patient is offered the opportunity to either confirm or reschedule the appointment. All reminder calls are documented in the patient’s electronic health record (EHR). Following the reminder call (or appointment confirmation), the patient is responsible for cancelling or rescheduling the appointment no less than 24 hours before the scheduled appointment.
If the PSRs are unable to directly contact the patient, the PSRs leave a voice message indicating the date, location and time of the patient’s appointment. It is the responsibility of the patient receiving the voicemail to confirm, cancel or reschedule 24 hours before the scheduled appointment. All reminder calls are documented in the patient’s electronic health record (EHR). If the patient’s phone is “out of service” or not receiving calls, the patient is still responsible for keeping the scheduled appointment.
All patients will have no more than three (3) no show appointments and/or cancelled appointments.
All patients who have three (3) no show appointments and/or cancellations will no longer be permitted to schedule appointments with AHG and will only be seen on a walk-in basis.