How to Fill Last-Minute Openings & Build a Resilient Practice

Key Takeaways

• Last-minute openings lead to losses in revenue and productivity.
• Practices can close gaps in openings with smart scheduling systems, automated waitlists, two-way HIPAA-compliant communication, and personalized follow-up.
• A patient engagement platform combines these and other communication features.
• Practices can automate the way they fill last-minute openings.

Fill Last-Minute Openings with Automation

Imagine a day with a fully booked schedule, no cancellations, and a waiting list ready to fill any sudden gaps. It’s every practitioner’s dream—and the right technology can make this dream a reality.

Last-minute cancellations happen for a variety of reasons. Patients mix up dates, forget they had an appointment, or have something come up. Regardless of the reason, last-minute openings mean losing productivity and revenue.

Let’s explore how you can manage last-minute openings effectively and build a resilient healthcare practice.

The Challenge of Last-Minute Cancellations

No-show rates can be as high as 80% in healthcare settings, contributing to a loss of $150 billion a year. Last-minute openings affect everything from staff productivity to revenue. Practitioners lose income and still have to pay for operating expenses. 

Employees have fewer patients to work with and fewer tasks to handle, yet they must be paid.

Most notably, patients who cancel at the last minute take away the opportunity for another patient to receive treatment. Patients who can’t get an appointment when they need it may take their healthcare needs elsewhere. This can lead to missed opportunities to grow your practice.

Automated Waitlists

Automated waitlists can fill open slots quickly and efficiently. When there’s an opening in your schedule, the automated waitlist will reach out to wait-listed patients to try to fill the opening. This frees up your front desk staff from playing phone tag while closing gaps on missed revenue.

Automated waitlists use HIPAA-compliant communication to protect sensitive information. Patients can easily respond to claim the appointment and will automatically be added to your schedule.

Smart Scheduling Systems

Smart scheduling systems can remove the guesswork of managing appointments and cancellations. The patients do the majority of the scheduling, freeing up time for front desk staff.

Using smart scheduling systems can reduce manual scheduling errors and improve efficiency. They integrate with your practice management software and allow patients to schedule appointments at any time, even after hours.

Giving this control to your patients will help to reduce no-shows and cancellations because they can choose times that work for them.

Enhancing Patient Engagement to Prevent Cancellations

Keeping patients engaged prior to their appointment (especially patient reminders via text message) can reduce no-shows. Here are some ways you can prioritize patient engagement.

Two-Way Communication

Two-way texting and automated patient reminders keep communication with patients open. They can confirm appointments, ask questions, or request changes in ways that are convenient to them.

This helps to keep appointments top of mind for patients, plus it reduces the workload on your front desk team.

Personalized Follow-Ups

Personalized messaging can encourage patients to keep their appointments. They feel more tailored than generic reminders, helping to further establish a good relationship with each patient.

A patient engagement platform gives you multiple communication functions in a single place. You can send and receive patient reminders via email or text and record responses in your practice management software. This automates the process to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Leveraging Technology for Efficiency

Beyond automation, technology can remove administrative barriers that prevent efficient scheduling. Here are some ways you can leverage technology to reduce last-minute openings.

Digital Forms and Online Scheduling

Digital intake forms reduce the demand on front desk staff. Patients can enter their information securely into forms prior to their appointment. This data automatically flows to your practice management software, eliminating the need for manual entry.

Patients can also schedule their own appointments online. Practices can provide available time slots for patients to choose from, then patients can choose the time that works best for them. This reduces the back-and-forth of trying to get patients scheduled.

Traffic Alerts and Smart Messaging

A patient running just a few minutes late can set the rest of the day’s schedule off balance. Automated traffic alerts can help ensure your patients arrive on time. 

Smart messaging can add more context to each patient’s appointment, allowing them to avoid additional delays. For example, you can share how to find your office, which waiting room to use, parking details, and other important information that can reduce late show-ups.

Fill Last-Minute Appointment Openings With Doctible 

Filling last-minute openings is critical for maintaining revenue, productivity, and practice growth. Practices must be proactive about filling these openings, and automation can make the process easier and more effective.

Doctible practice management software makes it easy to reduce missed appointments and reduce their negative impact on your bottom line. 

Doctible features that will help you fill last-minute openings include:

• EasyFill automated waitlist to contact wait-listed patients and fill your calendar
• Smart Scheduler to allow patients to request appointments online in just a few clicks
• Digital Intake Forms to reduce manual entry and improve the patient experience
• Automated Voice Reminders to reduce no-shows
• Traffic Alerts to help patients arrive on time
• Automated Patient Recall to remind patients to book their next appointments

Our comprehensive patient engagement solution integrates these and other tools into a single hub, allowing you to access everything your practice needs to succeed with just one sign-on. 

See Doctible in Action! Schedule a Demo

Doctible also offers training and support to ensure healthcare practices efficiently adopt and use their solutions. We prioritize quick onboarding, personalized training, and continuous support to help you get the most out of your practice management software.

Schedule a demo today to see Doctible tools can transform your practice.