Regulars who quietly stop being regular
A big share of many podiatry clinics' diaries is routine care: patients who come every six to ten weeks for nail cutting, corns, callus reduction and a check. Many are older, some are diabetic, some have been coming for years. They are the steady base of the clinic.
They are also easy to lose. A patient leaves without booking because the diary was not open that far ahead. Or they say they will phone. A few months later they turn up with a problem that has got worse, or they do not turn up at all.
Why routine recall slips
- The next appointment is not booked at checkout because the podiatrist's diary is not published far enough ahead.
- Each patient's interval is in the podiatrist's head or in the treatment notes, not in a field the system can use.
- Your clinic software can send reminders for booked appointments, but not for appointments that were never booked.
- Sole practitioners are in the treatment room and cannot rebook while the patient is dressing.
- Patients who cancel are not always offered a new date.
The root cause is that routine care is a cycle, but most clinic systems are built around individual appointments.
What drifting regulars cost
Gaps in the diary that are hard to fill at short notice. Patients who return with problems that take longer to treat, or who go elsewhere. Reception time spent phoning around to fill slots. And a sense that the clinic is always chasing, rather than planning.
| Patient situation | What usually happens | What recall does |
|---|---|---|
| Leaves without booking | Waits for patient to call | Rebooking prompt, then reminder at the interval |
| Cancels | Appointment removed | Offered a new date straight away |
| Diary not open yet | Told to ring later | Placed on a list and contacted when it opens |
| Overdue | Nobody notices | Appears on an overdue list |
| Stops coming | Unknown | Marked with a reason, so the list stays accurate |
How we build routine care recall
- Each routine patient has a recall interval, set by the podiatrist, held in a field on their record in Cliniko, WriteUpp or your clinic system, or in a linked table if the system has no suitable field.
- At the end of every appointment, the system prompts for the next booking at that interval, so reception or the podiatrist books it before the patient leaves.
- If no appointment is booked, a reminder goes to the patient by text, email or letter as the due date approaches, with a link or number to book.
- When a future diary opens, patients waiting for it are contacted in order of due date.
- Cancellations trigger an offer of a new date instead of simply disappearing.
- An overdue list shows routine patients past their interval with no booking, for reception to phone.
- When a patient stops coming for a known reason, such as moving into care, it is recorded so they drop off the list respectfully.
Intervals and who needs recall are clinical decisions made by your podiatrists. The system applies them, and nothing changes them automatically.
What the diary looks like afterwards
Most routine patients leave with their next appointment booked. Those who do not are reminded at the right time. The front desk phones the few who are overdue instead of everyone. The diary fills weeks ahead with the clinic's steady base, and new patients fit around it.
Does your recall need attention?
- Routine patients often leave without their next appointment booked.
- Recall intervals live in notes or in the podiatrist's memory.
- You could not produce a list of routine patients who are overdue.
- Patients who cancel are not always rebooked.
- Reception spends time filling gaps that regulars would have filled.