Patient factors associated with missed appointments in persons with schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE

There is limited research on factors that may predict missed appointments. This study examined correlates to missed appointments in a sample of persons attending an outpatient schizophrenia program.

METHOD: We measured the rate of missed appointments for 342 outpatients with severe and persistent mental illness (that is, with diagnoses of schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and delusional disorder) attending a psychiatric outpatient clinic over a period of 2 years and 3 months. We collected and analyzed demographic and clinical variables to ascertain differences between patients with high and low rates of nonattendance.

RESULTS

Patients who missed 20% or more of their appointments were significantly younger, were more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol, and manifested lower levels of community functioning.

CONCLUSIONS

This profile may be useful in helping clinicians to schedule appointments for this clinical population, to identify those who may need community outreach services, and to improve their treatment prospects.