Impact of questionnaires and telephone screening on attendance for ambulatory surgery.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether patient questionnaires along with pre-operative telephone screening could help to reduce the number of cancellations or postponements of patients listed for day case endoscopy and local anaesthetic procedures and thereby provide cost effective and more efficient patient care management. A total of 566 questionnaires were sent out with a return figure of 477 (84.27%). Of those not returning the questionnaires, 56 (9.89%) were contacted by telephone giving an overall figure of 533 (94.16%) patients contacted. The cancellation rate for this group was only 2.25% compared to figures between 8-12% as noticed in the previous year. We conclude questionnaires along with telephone screening are a very effective tool in reducing cancellations and postponements of day case patients.