Rural mental health appointment adherence: implications for therapy.

Appointment adherence is a significant concern for community mental health centers. In this investigation adherence, cancellations and non-adherence in a rural county was assessed. Overall, 69.3% of the scheduled appointments were kept, 13.7% canceled, and 17% failed. There were no significant differences found between individuals and couples, females and males, or initial and ongoing contracts. Results are encouraging since they are similar to rates reported for other settings and populations. The present findings highlight the importance of the client-therapist relationship and suggest the need for brief therapy in rural communities.