Understanding the antecedents of patients’ missed appointments: the perspective of attribution theory

Abstract

The occurrence of missed appointments from online outpatient bookings significantly hinders the operational efficiency of outpatient services. This study aimed to investigate various factors influencing patients’ missed appointments from online outpatient bookings. Drawing on attribution theory, an empirical analysis was conducted using 382,004 authentic online outpatient appointments. The empirical findings revealed that appointment lead-time, appointment time, weekday appointments, online doctor rating, appointment doctor’s expertise, patient distance, and previous outpatient visit experience significantly influenced patients’ missed appointment behaviors from online outpatient bookings. Importantly, previous outpatient experience positively moderated the relationship between the appointment doctor’s expertise and patients’ missed-appointment behavior. This study provides insights into the factors influencing patients’ missed-appointment behavior from online outpatient bookings. It further offers a theoretical foundation for medical institutions in China to mitigate the likelihood and adverse effects of patients’ missed-appointment behavior from online outpatient bookings.