Decrease PET/CT cancellation rate through patient and staff education

Objectives Since September 2007, our PET facility has been averaging 62 cancellations per month. Nearly 40% of the cancelled procedures were within 24 hours of the scheduled appointment. The aim of this study was to decrease the number of unnecessary cancellations of PET/CT procedures by improving patient and staff education resulting in more efficient patient scheduling.

Methods PET/CT procedure cancellations within 24 hours of the scheduled appointment were reviewed for the past 15 months. Data was analyzed and separated into inpatient and outpatient categories. To increase patient awareness of the preparation needed for the procedure and as a reminder of the scheduled appointment, a confirmation call was placed to outpatients two days prior to the study to allow for ample time to cancel. To increase staff awareness of the procedure, an informative email was sent to all nurse managers to increase staff and inpatient awareness of the preparation needed for the PET/CT procedure. Cancellation rates were reviewed for the period following the changes in protocol.

Results Prior to implementation of the confirmation calls and staff education, the PET/CT center had an inpatient cancellation rate of 54% and an outpatient cancellation rate of 10%. After staff education, inpatient cancellation rates were decreased to 10%. Initiation of phone call to outpatients two days prior to appointment did not have a significant difference in cancellation rate.

Conclusions Additional staff education proved to be affective in decreasing inpatient PET/CT cancellations. To initiate a more effective program to decrease outpatient cancellations, an informative brochure was created and mailed to outpatients.