No-show appointments costing big bucks

  • Published
  • By By Senior Airman Kasey Zickmund
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AIR FORCE BASE, S.D. --  Since September 2008, the cost of missed medical appointments for Ellsworth has grown to more than $372,000. This is an increase of 8.9 percent compared to the first half of 2008.

The average cost per appointment in 2008 for the entire Ellsworth medical clinic was $272, which includes personnel salaries, lab and pharmacy costs, equipment, supplies, facility costs, radiology costs and support service costs tracked by the Medical Expense and Performance Reporting System.

The MEPRS is the standard cost accounting system for the Military Health System containing Tri-Service financial, personnel, and workload data from reporting medical and dental treatment facilities worldwide making it an essential tool for MHS decision-making and performance evaluation.

The appointments missed most are for Family Health and Physical Therapy.
"If someone misses an appointment, the costs of staff salaries, utility bills, etc., are still paid but with less productivity. This causes our cost per visit to rise meaning we are doing less work with the available resources," said Karen Kjellerson, 28th Medical Support Squadron MEPRS program manager.

Ellsworth leadership considers the missed appointments a very serious issue.

It is important to point out that a no-show at the 28th Medical Group is much more than just a fiscal issue, said Lt. Col. Jon Mohatt, 28th Medical Support Squadron commander. It is actually more of an access issue. For every appointment left open due to a no show, a fellow Airman or other eligible beneficiary is denied a 28 MDG appointment and is forced to seek care later or downtown, if an urgent problem. The 28 MDG is committed to optimizing not only the quality of our care but also the quantity to minimize time away from one's unit and maximize continuity with one's provider.

"The economic crisis that is gripping our nation, forces us to quite literally, fight for every dollar we receive. The cost of missed appointments takes badly needed funds away from our Airmen and their families. It's the responsibility of each individual to ensure they attend their appointments, self-made or otherwise. I expect all levels of supervision to hold their Airmen accountable and ensure this trend is stopped," said Chief Master Sgt. Clifton Cole, 28th Bomb Wing command chief.

If an appointment is missed, it is most often reported to the individual's first sergeant.

"The consequences of missing an appointment are based on individual situations. The first offense is verbal counseling, second is written counseling and, if it is more than that, it progresses to a letter of reprimand and so on," said Master Sgt. David Wells, 28th Force Support Squadron first sergeant.

In order to reduce cost and missed appointments, the 28th Medical Group will be implementing a Show Time Policy starting Feb. 17.

"This means when a patient calls for an appointment they will be given a show time to be checked in and be seen instead of being told show up 15 minutes prior to a certain time," said 2nd Lt. Jason Carter, 28th Medical Support Squadron group practice manager.