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Completed

NCT Number: NCT05000619

Encouraging Overdue Healthcare Appointment Scheduling Among Patients With Chronic Diseases

The goal of this study is to determine the most effective messages for encouraging patients with chronic conditions, who have not seen their doctor in at least one year, to return to the clinic. Study participants will receive postcards or letters encouraging them to make an appointment. Researchers will assess whether messages increase appointment scheduling (and attendance).

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Key information

Conditions

Health Promotion Behavior Prevention Risk Reduction Behavior

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Geisinger

Danville, Pennsylvania, 17822, United States

About this study

About 18,500 Geisinger patients, Geisinger Health Plan members, and Medicaid patients with chronic illness have not been seen in a clinic for at least one year, which is concerning because regular appointments are necessary for chronic disease management. Geisinger is therefore working to encourage those with chronic illness and overdue appointments to return to the clinic.

In the present study, patients will either receive a mailer (with a message encouraging them to schedule an appointment with their physician), or no mailer. The purpose of the study is to compare three different mailers to assess which is most effective at encouraging patients to schedule and attend an appointment. The three mailers include (1) a standard outreach postcard (emphasizing that we are "checking in" with the patient), and, informed by behavioral science research, (2) a postcard with a cartoon and humorous messages and (3) a letter signed by a physician. The study will compare the effectiveness of the three experimental mailer arms to each other and to a no-contact control arm.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Geisinger patient, Geisinger Health Plan member or Medicaid patient
  • Chronic illness
  • No appointment for > 1 year

Treatment and study plan

Outreach mailer

Behavioral

Postcard or letter

Humor/Salience

Behavioral

Funny cartoon

Doctor's authority

Behavioral

Letter from a doctor

Information

Behavioral

Information about benefits of the appointment

Primary outcomes

  1. Patients - Appointment scheduling

    Time frame: 30 days

    Proportion of Geisinger patients who schedule an appointment

Secondary outcomes

  1. Patients - Appointment scheduling - Comparing mailers

    Time frame: 30 days

    Proportion of Geisinger patients who schedule an appointment, comparing relative efficacy of the mailers

  2. Patients - Attendance at scheduled appointments within 180 days of mailer

    Time frame: 180 days

    Proportion of appointments (from the primary outcome) that were attended. This outcome focuses on attendance at appointments that were scheduled within 30 days of the mailer drop date.

    It is possible to schedule an appointment months in advance, so the Time Frame needs to be long to capture attendance at any appointment scheduled within 30 days of the mailer. 180 days should be sufficient to capture all scheduled appointments.

  3. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Attendance at any appointment

    Time frame: 30 days

    Attendance at any appointment within 30 days of drop date

  4. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Attendance at any appointment

    Time frame: 90 days

    Attendance at any appointment within 90 days of drop date

  5. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Attendance at any appointment

    Time frame: 180 days

    Attendance at any appointment within 180 days of drop date

  6. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Timing of appointment

    Time frame: 30 days

    Number of days between the drop date and any appointment captured in Secondary Outcome 3

  7. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Timing of appointment

    Time frame: 90 days

    Number of days between the drop date and any appointment captured in Secondary Outcome 4

  8. Patients, Members & Medicaid - Timing of appointment

    Time frame: 180 days

    Number of days between the drop date and any appointment captured in Secondary Outcome 5

Other outcomes

  1. Patients - Appointment scheduling - Comparing mailers

    Time frame: 14 days

    Proportion of Geisinger patients who schedule an appointment, comparing relative efficacy of the interventions. Note: this analysis will inform internal operations but will not be reported in publication.

  2. Patients - Calls to scheduling line

    Time frame: 30 days

    Proportion of Geisinger patients who call the appointment scheduling line.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Geisinger Clinic

Other

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2021
Primary completion
2021
Study completion
2022
First posted
Aug 11, 2021
Registry last updated
Dec 1, 2022

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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