What Is Modified Wave Scheduling?

Increased flexibility: Patients’ needs vary so widely from one another’s, even if they receive the same treatment. One patient might have several concerns to discuss with their doctor, while another might say nothing. A rigid appointment schedule is challenging, especially if you want your patient to feel heard and satisfied with their care. Modified wave scheduling allows for variation in patient interactions without causing significant delays.

Reduced patient wait times: Patients consider wait times a key indicator of the quality of their care, so reducing wait times is critical in retaining patients. Modified wave scheduling accounts for cancellations, no-shows, and patients arriving in need of emergency care, so patients can be seen quickly by reducing delays from earlier in the day.

Improved efficiency: Scheduling appointments in waves instead of on a patient-by-patient basis can reduce downtime for practice staff and improve efficiency. Instead of waiting for the next patient appointment, providers and staff can move quickly to a different patient scheduled in the same wave. “Buffer” periods between waves allow providers to catch up on paperwork or time lost by extended talks with patients.

Staff morale and stress: Change can be distressing, so switching to a modified wave schedule can be difficult if staff is not adequately informed and trained beforehand. Checking in several patients at once might be overwhelming for some staff members. If staff is accustomed to frequent breaks and downtime while using a traditional scheduling technique, they may struggle when those breaks are eliminated.

Not suitable for long appointments: Regular checkups and follow-ups with patients are relatively quick and easy to group in waves. However, longer appointments — such as medical procedures and treatments — will be harder to stack in this way. Longer appointments or appointments that require more one-on-one provider care might take too long to benefit from wave scheduling.

Difficult for large practices: Modified wave scheduling works when planned and executed well, but this may be harder to accomplish at large practices with high patient volume. While this technique can reduce patient wait times, it can also extend them. Staff must be synchronized to smoothly carry out modified wave scheduling, so exceptionally large teams may struggle with the intricacy and pace.