The causes of missed health care appointments are complex and varied, and not an issue to blame patients for, according to new research which suggests addressing the issue of "missingness" should be a policy priority. The new research, which is published in BMC Medicine and led by researchers at the University of Glasgow, looked at the causes and consequences of multiple missed appointments in primary care, and the role this plays in producing and widening health inequalities in society. This is the first major paper to look specifically at the causes of multiple missed appointments, and researchers believe the findings suggest a different approach is required to tackle the challenge of missing patients.
The study is a realist review of current research on this subject, taking into account 197 previous papers in order to better understand the reasons behind multiple missed appointments, beyond the public narrative of forgetfulness or irresponsible patient behavior. Overall, the research found that the reasons behind missed primary care appointments were rooted in the interaction between people and health care systems, countering stereotyped portrayals of poor patient behavior. Study results showed that missing multiple appointments were caused by an overlapping set of complex factors.
Patients may not feel that primary care services are the right place for them: they may feel their problems cannot be solved or have low expectations for their health, or experience anxiety, wor.
