Outpatient Testing

Challenge:

There was an unacceptable level of no-shows and last minute cancellations of outpatient tests, leading to wasted materials, unutilized test capacity and overtime. There was also a belief that there was a high level of payment denials because pre-cert procedures were not being followed. Reduce the number of no-shows and last minute cancellations, and ensure that provider pre-cert requirements are fulfilled.

ASI Solution:

Telephone surveys of patients revealed that a large number of patients who missed appointments often forgot them, or were unclear about the location of the test. Some patients arrived improperly prepared because they had forgotten the preparation requirements. It was discovered that while overall payment denials for the hospital were substantial, those attributable to pre-cert failures were much smaller than previously believed.

Achieved Benefit:

Test cancellations were reduced by 50%. Pre-cert denials were not addressed, but a separate project was launched to address all denials.