Objective: To measure the effect of integrating short messaging service (SMS) reminders with an electronic medical record (EMR) system on non-attendance rates in outpatient clinics in a Saudi hospital.
Methods: Pre- and post- observational studies were conducted at King Abdulaziz Medical City and National Guard Health Affairs, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from January 2010 and March 2010. Data collected from 16 out-patient clinics included the number of non-attended appointments at the clinics in a 3-month period (March-May) in 2 consecutive years: pre-implementation of SMS appointment reminders in 2008 and post-implementation in 2009.
Results: The mean non-attendance rates for the 16 outpatient clinics during 2008 were 23.9% (SD 0.0578) and for 2009 were 19.8% (SD 0.0386) with a 4.1% (p < 0.001, T-value = 4.81) reduction rate.
Conclusion: Integrating SMS reminders with EMR systems showed a positive effect on the reduction of the non-attended appointments at King Abdulaziz Medical City, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.