Could shared medical appointments (SMAs) offer patients and healthcare providers greater value in certain circumstances? Research carried out by ESMT Berlin assistant professor Nazlı Sönmez has found advantages in the setting of eyecare delivery.

Contrary to assumptions that the loss of privacy and individual attention in SMAs would negatively impact on patient engagement, the study found the opposite to be true.

In the study’s sample of 1,000 patients, those who experienced SMAs asked 33 per cent more questions and made nine per cent more non‑question comments than those at one-on-one appointments. Patients were undergoing glaucoma treatment over a three-year period at Aravind Eye Hospital in India and each required four appointments scheduled four months apart.

“Our analysis sheds light on the benefits of service models that enable customers to be more helpful in serving one another, leading to more efficacious service encounters,” said Sönmez, who conducted the study with Harvard Business School’s Ryan Buell and London Business School’s Kamalini Ramdas, alongside researchers at Aravind Eye Hospital.

Notably, providers spent over 600 per cent more time with each patient using the SMA design, albeit alongside others. This may explain the greater non-verbal engagement among SMA patients on measures such as attentiveness, positivity and end-of-appointment happiness.

“During our trial, our physician partners observed that patients in SMAs were motivated to ask particular questions by hearing the queries and comments of others,” Sönmez added.

This article is adapted from one that originally appeared in Business Impact magazine (Issue 4 2023, volume 18)