How should hospitals and medical practices design systems to remind patients of their upcoming appointments to improve healthcare access and utilization? This research examines this important question by studying the effect of the patient’s preference and the frequency of appointment reminders on the ability of patients to keep their appointments. Despite research into reducing missed appointments in a clinical setting, very little is known about leveraging a reminder preference and frequency in how the patient is reminded about the appointment and its consequences. We utilize a unique and comprehensive dataset of patient appointments spanning 5 years with over 2 million appointments from three medical facilities and 23 departments from October 1, 2016, to November 1, 2024, to document three findings. Our study reveals three key findings: First, personalizing the delivery method of appointment reminders significantly increases patient attendance. Second, a higher frequency of reminders correlates with decreased missed appointments. Lastly, the study highlights variations in the effectiveness of reminders based on patient demographics such as age and gender. These insights underscore the importance of tailored communication strategies in healthcare settings to enhance patient engagement and reduce missed appointments.
