Open Forum

How are specialty clinics handling referrals with long wait times?  We have 2 clinics in particular that new patients are booked out through December 2026. 

Here is what we are considering. 

1. only booking out a couple of months at a time
2. currently we are sending a letter to the patient and the primary when the patient might expect to be scheduled and placing them on a wait list. They are then removed from the primary work queue to either a waitlist or the differed section. 

Would like to hear how others are handling their long waitlist and work queues?  

I think this also impacts our high no show rate which only compounds the problem.  We are a resident-based clinic that primarily serves uninsured and underinsured patients.    

Cheri 

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Cheri Meador
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Hi Cheri, 

One thing I would consider with only booking out a couple of months at a time is that the follow up work queue will always have a high number and some of those patients may be complex. Those patients typically get lost in the mix and won't call to schedule their own appointment if left up to them. We would see orders for patients to follow up in 3-4 months with the provider but by the time we saw the orders, they would be pushed out 9+ months. One thing our facility implemented was bringing in mid-level practitioners to help offset the large volume and they would see the more "simple" diagnosis. Providers were hesitant to give up their patient's at first but it was much needed. 

I know this doesn't really help answer your question but wanted to provide what we ran into when we only booked out 6 months at a time. 

Haley

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Original Message:
Sent: 04-29-2026 09:41
From: Cheri Meador
Subject: referrals with long wait list

How are specialty clinics handling referrals with long wait times?  We have 2 clinics in particular that new patients are booked out through December 2026. 

Here is what we are considering. 

1. only booking out a couple of months at a time
2. currently we are sending a letter to the patient and the primary when the patient might expect to be scheduled and placing them on a wait list. They are then removed from the primary work queue to either a waitlist or the differed section. 

Would like to hear how others are handling their long waitlist and work queues?  

I think this also impacts our high no show rate which only compounds the problem.  We are a resident-based clinic that primarily serves uninsured and underinsured patients.    

Cheri 

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Cheri Meador
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We have a similar solution to Haley's- we hired a number of APPs who take on many of the non-surgical referrals. If they find that the patient needs something more complex, then they refer that patient on to an MD but are always available for ongoing care in between. And we just (barely) started having nurses see patients for last-minute appointments to provide care that's within our scope, such as uncomplicated earwax removal with instruments and now (in progress) simple trach changes. The nurse visits are rolling out slowly because we have to create new RN procedures and protocols for each procedure, and it takes a while to get those approved. But all this has increased access. 

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Ingrid Hawkinson
RN, MSN, AMB-BC
UCSF Otolaryngology
San Francisco CA
415-353-2148
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-29-2026 09:41
From: Cheri Meador
Subject: referrals with long wait list

How are specialty clinics handling referrals with long wait times?  We have 2 clinics in particular that new patients are booked out through December 2026. 

Here is what we are considering. 

1. only booking out a couple of months at a time
2. currently we are sending a letter to the patient and the primary when the patient might expect to be scheduled and placing them on a wait list. They are then removed from the primary work queue to either a waitlist or the differed section. 

Would like to hear how others are handling their long waitlist and work queues?  

I think this also impacts our high no show rate which only compounds the problem.  We are a resident-based clinic that primarily serves uninsured and underinsured patients.    

Cheri 

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Cheri Meador
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