Managing no-shows and resource utilisation for outpatient appointment scheduling

Outpatient appointment scheduling is complicated by uncertainties such as patient no-shows and variability in service times, leading to under-utilisation of resources and patient dissatisfaction. While overbooking strategies mitigate the impact of no-shows, achieving an optimal balance between resource optimisation and patient satisfaction remains challenging. In this study, we propose a novel approach to outpatient appointment scheduling by applying the newsvendor problem framework to manage overbooking and reduce the negative effects of no-shows. Our model optimizes the overbooking threshold to maximize expected profit while balancing resource utilisation and patient satisfaction, considering service time variability. A sensitivity analysis highlights how key parameters influence the optimal overbooking level, providing a quantitative solution to balance patient waiting times and physician idle times. Our findings offer actionable insights for healthcare providers seeking to improve clinic efficiency.