Automated scheduling increases postpartum primary care, study finds

Automatically scheduling postpartum primary care and sending reminders and educational messages increased visits by 19%, a study found. Published in JAMA Network Open, the randomized, controlled study enrolled 360 patients with or at risk for a chronic condition. Primary care practitioner visit completion within four months occurred in 22% of patients who were responsible for scheduling their own appointments compared with 40% of people who had their appointments automatically scheduled and received reminders. Those who received automatic appointments also had fewer postpartum readmissions (1.7% versus 5.8%) and more recommended screenings. The authors believe automatic scheduling with reminders could improve postpartum health and well-being for the nearly half of people with chronic conditions who do not see their primary care practitioner in the postpartum year