Funding outcome

The Stollery Children's Hospital (SCH) provides a variety of outpatient, specialized medical services. Each year, tens of thousands of outpatient clinic appointments are made for tens of thousands of children and their families who live in central and northern Alberta (and beyond). Clinic appointments are booked, rebooked, and cancelled (by telephone) by a number of administrative professionals in the Department of Pediatrics (Doll, UAlberta) and SCH who work in partnership with > 100 pediatricians and allied health professionals, all of whom use and rely on this complex system. Members of our research team have direct and indirect experiences with this scheduling system, including both its strengths and drawbacks. The purpose of our research is to conduct focus group interviews with people who interact with the system on a day-to-day basis, including parents (n~20), clinicians (n~20), and administrative professionals (n~20). We will explore their shared and unique experiences with and perceptions of this scheduling system. We will also ask them about specific recommendations to improve the system. Subsequently, we will prioritize recommendations through a consensus-building process called a Delphi Study. The top recommendations will be used to determine quality improvement projects and research we conduct in the future. Our team of researchers, clinicians, and health system administrators have the ideal experience and expertise to successfully lead this research. Importantly, we possess the necessary medical and health system leadership roles to implement the recommended changes based on this research. Improvements to our outpatient appointment scheduling system can enhance the clinical experiences families have with the SCH as well as improve the timeliness and quality of care they receive.