Intervention program to reduce waiting time of a dermatological visit: Managed overbooking and service centralization as effective management tools

Background: Long waiting times are an impediment of dermatological patient care world-wide, resulting in significant disruption of clinical care and frustration among carers and patients. Objective: To reduce waiting times for dermatological appointments. Methods: A focus group including dermatologists and management personnel reviewed the scheduling process, mapped potential problems and proposed a comprehensive intervention program. The two major approaches taken in the intervention program were revision of the scheduling process by managed overbooking of patient appointments and centralization of the dermatological service into a centralized dermatological clinic. Results: Following the intervention program, the average waiting time for dermatological appointments decreased from 29.3 to 6.8 days. The number of scheduled appointments per 6 months rose from 17,007 to 20,433. Non-attendance proportion (no-show) decreased from 33% to 28%. Dermatologist work-hours were without significant change. Conclusions: Waiting lists for dermatological consultations were substantially shortened by managed overbooking of patient appointments and centralization of the service.