Patient no-shows cause big problems for medical offices. Research shows that missed appointments make up about 14% of a practice’s daily lost income. All across the country, this problem adds up to $150 billion lost every year in healthcare. Each missed appointment costs providers about $200 on average. But the problem is not just money. No-shows also cause uneven patient flow, longer wait times for others, and wasted staff time and resources. When fewer patients come to their visits, it can lower overall patient satisfaction and hurt health results because care gets interrupted. Common Reasons Patients Miss Appointments Knowing why patients miss appointments helps offices make better reminder plans. Research points to some common reasons: Forgetting or not getting reminders on time. Confusion about dates, times, or locations. Conflicts with personal plans. Not feeling responsible, especially when there are no fees for late cancellations. Most patients do not mean to miss their appointments. But these reasons add up and cause many no-shows. Surveys say nearly 59% of U.S. patients missed or canceled appointments in the past year, showing this is a common problem. ✓ AI Answering Service Uses Machine Learning to Predict Call Urgency SimboDIYAS learns from past data to flag high-risk callers before you pick up. Let’s Chat How Personalized Communication Improves Patient Compliance Personalized communication means sending appointment reminders with specific patient details. Messages include the patient’s name, appointment date, time, provider, and location. Studies prove that personalized reminders increase attendance and lower no-show rates by 20% to 40%. When messages are made for each patient, they get noticed and show the visit’s importance. Holly Meyer of Providertech says that including appointment details makes communication more effective. Personalization also builds a connection between patients and care providers. When patients feel their care team pays attention to their needs, they are more likely to attend and tell the office if they have problems like scheduling conflicts or transportation issues. Multi-Channel Reminders: Meeting Patients on Their Terms Good appointment reminders use many ways to reach patients. These are phone calls, texts, emails, and automated voice messages. Each patient prefers different ways to get reminders. Using many channels increases the chance patients will see the message. A study of over 190,000 dental visits found that no reminders caused a 39% no-show rate. Live phone calls had the lowest no-show rate at 3%. Automated messages lowered no-shows to 24%, but live calls worked best alone. Big practices often use automated calls and texts with personalized messages because they can contact many patients without high costs. Reminding patients too many times can annoy them. Best practices say to send no more than three reminders per appointment to avoid bothering patients. Burnout Reduction Starts With AI Answering Service Better Calls SimboDIYAS lowers cognitive load and improves sleep by eliminating unnecessary after-hours interruptions. Start Building Success Now → Pre-Visit Engagement and Its Role in Reducing Anxiety and Improving Compliance Appointment reminders are part of a bigger plan called pre-visit engagement. This plan includes sharing educational information, administrative messages, and chances for patients to ask questions before their visit. Pre-visit engagement helps lower patient anxiety by giving clear information about what will happen, what to prepare, and any papers to bring. Studies show anxious patients tend to miss visits or avoid care. Clear, tailored communication helps more patients come to their appointments and have a better experience. Pre-visit messages also help patients give correct medical histories and describe symptoms well. This shared information leads to better decisions and treatment by doctors. AI and Automation: Transforming Workflow and Patient Communication Recently, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation have helped medical offices improve appointment attendance and reduce paperwork. AI systems like SimboConnect use conversational AI to call or message patients with personalized reminders. These AI tools understand patient responses. Patients can ask questions, reschedule, and get help during the message without waiting for a staff member. SimboConnect automates tasks like scheduling and sending reminders. This lets medical staff focus on more difficult work and lowers burnout. These systems are also HIPAA compliant, meaning they keep patient information private and safe. Benefits of AI-Driven Patient Communication Systems Efficiency: AI sends reminders anytime and across time zones without extra staff costs. Personalization at Scale: AI sorts patients by behavior and preferences to send better-targeted messages. Engagement: Patients can talk to the system naturally, making it easier to confirm or change appointments. Reduced No-Shows: Chatting AI has cut no-show rates by up to 70%, helping practice income. Administrative Relief: Automation reduces front desk work and improves workflow. Data Tracking: AI monitors confirmations, cancellations, and reschedules to improve outreach. Using AI tools like Simbo AI’s helps front desk work run smoothly, reach more patients, and keep more revenue. Personalization and Patient Engagement Impact on Healthcare Outcomes Patients who are more engaged because of personalized reminders and pre-visit talks have better health results. Research shows engaged patients follow aftercare better, attend appointments more, and give better information about their symptoms. In areas like physical therapy, engaged patients recover faster. Automated reminders with educational materials help patients stick to exercise plans and share progress or problems with doctors. Medical leaders and IT managers who invest in systems for consistent, personalized patient communication not only cut no-shows but also improve how their practices work and patients’ health. Best Practices for Medical Practices in the U.S. Send personalized messages with patient name, appointment time, place, and provider details. Use multiple communication methods like calls, texts, and emails to match patient preferences. Limit reminders to three contacts per appointment to respect patients’ time. Use AI tools to give interactive reminders and reduce staff workload. Work with providers who follow HIPAA rules to keep patient data safe. Track no-show and confirmation rates and patient satisfaction to improve reminders. Train staff on new technology and why personalized communication matters. Give patients educational materials before visits to lessen anxiety and boost attendance. Boost HCAHPS with AI Answering Service and Faster Callbacks SimboDIYAS delivers prompt, accurate responses that drive higher patient

Ahead of Intelligent Health (13-14 September 2023, Basel, Switzerland), we asked Yurii Kryvoborodov, Head of AI & Data Consulting, Unicsoft, his thoughts on the future of AI in healthcare.   Do you think the increased usage of Generative AI and LLMs will have a dramatic impact on the healthcare industry and, if so, how?   Generative AI is just a part of the disruptive impact of all AI tech on the healthcare industry. It allows to dramatically reduce time efforts, costs and chances of mistakes. Generative AI and LLMs are applied to automating clinical documentation, drug discovery, tailoring of treatment plans to individual patients, real-time clinical decision support and health monitoring, extracting valuable insights from unstructured clinical records, streamlining administrative tasks like billing and claims processing, providing instant access to comprehensive medical knowledge. And this list continues.

We sat with Benjamin von Deschwanden, Co-Founder and CPO at Acodis AG, to ask him his thoughts on the future of AI in healthcare.   Do you think the increased usage of Generative AI and LLMs will have a dramatic impact on the healthcare industry and, if so, how?   I think that the strength of Generative AI lies in making huge amounts of information accessible without needing to manually sift through the source material. Being able to quickly answer any questions is going to be transformative for everyone working with increasingly bigger data sets.The challenge will be to ensure that the information we get by means of Generative AI is correct and complete – especially in healthcare – as the consequences of wrong data can be fatal. We at Acodis are actively working on practical applications of Generative AI inside our Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) Platform for Life Science and Pharma clients to drive efficiency and accelerate time to market, whilst controlling the risks.

Intelligent Health 2024 returns to Basel, Switzerland on 11th–12th September. We’ve got prominent speakers. An extensive programme. Groundbreaking advancements in #HealthTech. And much, much more. Our incredible 2024 programme will dive deeper than ever before. From sharing the latest innovation insights to exploring use cases of AI application in clinical settings from around the world. All through our industry-renowned talks, limitless networking opportunities, and much-loved, hands-on workshops. Read on to discover what themes await at the world’s largest AI and healthcare summit. 

We sat down with Margrietha H. (Greet) Vink, Erasmus MC’s Director of Research Development Office and Smart Health Tech Center, to ask her for her thoughts on the future of AI in healthcare.   Do you think the increased usage of Generative AI and LLMs will have a dramatic impact on the healthcare industry and, if so, how?   The integration of Generative AI and LLMs into the healthcare industry holds the potential to revolutionise various aspects of patient care, from diagnostics and treatment to administrative tasks and drug development. However, this transformation will require careful consideration of ethical, legal, and practical challenges to ensure that the benefits are realised in a responsible and equitable manner.