The number of patients missing a doctor’s appointment has been reduced by almost a third in a trial using artificial intelligence (AI) that could save the cash-strapped NHS a fortune.
No-shows account for more than one million missed GP appointments each month, equivalent to one in every 20 scheduled consultations.
This increases pressure on a health system already weakened by the demands of an aging population.
Now a Leeds-based software company has developed an artificial intelligence tool that predicts which patients are most likely to miss their appointments.
AI win: TPP has developed a tool that reduces the number of patients who do not show up for GP appointments
The company, TPP, uses machine learning models to analyze patient behavior patterns based on a variety of factors.
Their algorithms analyze demographic details, including age, gender, and appointment booking history.
Younger male adults from a lower socio-economic background in urban areas are more likely to miss GP appointments, Dr Chris Bates, director of research and analysis at TPP, told the Mail on Sunday.
It said patients who lived closer to their GP surgery were more likely to skip a consultation than those who lived further away, although it is not clear why this is the case.
Armed with information about the type of patient most likely to miss an appointment, GP practices can take steps to encourage them to show up, such as sending them additional text alerts just before the appointment deadline and call them on the phone.
The idea is not to try to deprive patients of the opportunity to see their doctor based on an AI profile, but rather to encourage them to come by giving them additional reminders.
“AI in healthcare has been overhyped and not given enough attention; we are changing this,” he said.
“This is a shining example of what machine learning will bring to healthcare, helping to address real problems for frontline teams and patients,” added Dr Bates.
Missed appointments cost the NHS £216 million a year, enough to pay 2,325 full-time doctors, according to its own figures.
The scale of the crisis led former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to consider imposing a £10 fine on patients for each missed appointment, but the idea was quietly abandoned.
A successful trial of the technology is currently being rolled out across the country in Norfolk.
“Since we started using the report, we have seen our ADN (no-show) rate decrease by 30 percent, which is equivalent to hundreds of appointments since the start of the pilot program,” said Karen Bell, the practice’s director of surgery. Trinity and Bowthorpe, which has more than 11,000 patients.
Patients marked at risk of no-shows in red or amber are sent a text message the night before their appointments, he added.
TPP is also using AI to help oncologists detect ovarian and other cancers in patients much earlier than was previously possible.
“The DNA algorithm is just the start – we have a suite of AI solutions about to be launched, focused on the NHS’s key clinical and operational priorities,” added Dr Bates.
