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Reducing non-attendance rates in community psychiatry: a case for sustainable development?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Daniel L. Maughan  and
Michael Pearce
Daniel L. Maughan
Affiliation:
Royal College of Psychiatrists, London, UK Centre for Sustainable Healthcare, Oxford, UK, email daniel.maughan@sustainablehealthcare.org.uk
Michael Pearce
Affiliation:
Core Trainee in Psychiatry, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust. Oxford, UK
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Abstract

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Non-attendance at mental health clinics is an international problem. A survey was conducted in the UK investigating communication methods used by staff to inform and remind patients about appointments. Increased number of communication methods used was associated with a reduced non-attendance rate. A care modelling analysis is provided that explores the healthcare use of three hypothetical patients following clinic non-attendance. The financial and environmental costs of each are then calculated and results discussed. Reducing non-attendance is achievable through the use of multiple communication methods. This small change can improve the sustainability of mental healthcare in different countries by improving quality of care and reducing financial and environmental costs.

Type
Thematic papers: Mental health and climate change
Information
BJPsych International , Volume 12 , Issue 2 , May 2015 , pp. 36 - 39
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists 2015

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