Test the impact of information provision and social nudges to reduce the likelihood of patient no-shows

Last registered on December 17, 2024

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Test the impact of information provision and social nudges to reduce the likelihood of patient no-shows
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0015015
Initial registration date
December 12, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
December 17, 2024, 8:29 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Affiliation

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-02-01
End date
2025-04-30
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study evaluates the effectiveness of social nudges in reducing no-show rates and promoting proactive cancellations among patients unable to attend their scheduled appointments. We plan to conduct a randomized controlled field experiment across three patient groups: a control group receiving standard appointment reminders and two treatment groups receiving tailored nudge messages designed to leverage social norms and encourage responsible behavior. The primary outcomes measured are the no-show and active cancellation rates across groups. Overall, we aim to evaluate the effectiveness of social nudges in reducing clinic no-show rates and encouraging active cancellations.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Cheng, Guang. 2024. "Test the impact of information provision and social nudges to reduce the likelihood of patient no-shows." AEA RCT Registry. December 17. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.15015-1.0
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2025-02-01
Intervention End Date
2025-04-30

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
No-Show Rate: Percentage of patients who fail to attend their scheduled appointments without notifying the clinic.
Cancellation Rate: Percentage of patients who proactively cancel their appointment if unable to attend.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
For this experimental study, our target population would be the patients who have made “next-day” appointments within the data collection period of six months. For each such patient, we plan to randomize them into one of the three arms with equal probability. Patients will receive an SMS on the day of their appointment according to the group assignment.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
randomization done in office by a computer
Randomization Unit
individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
2889 patients
Sample size: planned number of observations
2889
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
1182 patients in control group, 1182 patients in basic reminder group, and 525 patients in the social nudge group
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number