As Ascension and its providers strive to deliver care that’s more person-centered, they’re looking at new ways to meet the needs of those they serve where, when and how they prefer. One way is by freeing up more time on physicians’ calendars. It’s called open access scheduling – leaving blocks of open time on the provider’s schedule every day for same-day appointments.
Widespread adoption of open access scheduling is a priority goal for 2015 for Ascension Physician Services, a division of Ascension Clinical Holdings. At a recent meeting of clinical and administrative leaders in Chicago, a panel of speakers detailed the positive benefits from this patient-friendly appointment approach.
In a consumer-driven market, patients who cannot get in to see their regular doctor will go someplace else. Open access turns the model of an overbooked appointment schedule on its ear. Rather than trying to squeeze patients with acute conditions into a packed schedule, providers promote same-day appointments, encouraging their patients to call on the day they need to be seen.
“With open access, our no-show rates have gone down and our number of patients has gone up,” said Mike Hanson, Chief Operating Officer of Ministry Medical Group in Wisconsin. The group started with 20 percent of the daily schedule being reserved for open access. Many providers have freed up even more time in their schedules, and the slots have filled up.
“We worked with our providers to show them supply and demand and how the change to open access would improve their satisfaction, their patient satisfaction, which improved the engagement of the patient, which improved patient compliance,” Hanson said.
“It’s a huge paradigm shift,” said Bruce Bethancourt, MD, Chief Medical Officer of St. Vincent Medical Group in Indianapolis. “What we’ve asked them to do here is open up one hour a day to start with. We’ve also asked the doctors to come in one hour early one day a week and stay until six o’clock one night a week. It’s been huge.”
Practicing physicians see the benefits too. Rene Sinopoli, MD, a Family Practice specialist with Columbia St. Mary’s Community Physicians in Milwaukee, said, “If you’re building a practice it’s going to be good for you. If you have a busy practice, you will have no problem filling up an open access schedule.”
Aaron Shoemaker, MD, a specialist in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics at St. Vincent Medical Group in Indianapolis, believes it allows physicians to see and treat a variety of conditions, especially in practices with multiple providers. If a patient calls on the day he wants to be seen but his doctor is not available, the patient will be encouraged to make an appointment to see one of the other providers in the office that day.
“I think it’s the reality of healthcare in the future,” Dr. Shoemaker said. “It will grow. It will be sustained because patients and everybody that we’re involved with is going to want it, and I think at the end of the day, it can make our lives better.”
Dr. Sinopoli added, “Absolutely patients are happier. They will thank you a zillion times for being able to see you today.”
David Pryor, MD, President and CEO of Ascension Clinical Holdings, summarized it this way: “Clearly, open access is a way to offer services when, where and how it is best for those we serve. It’s just one more example of how Ascension and our providers are focusing on person-centered care.”
Watch a video explaining open access scheduling in more detail.
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