Wait time management strategies for scheduled care: what makes them succeed?

OBJECTIVES To assess experts' perceptions of the contextual and local factors that promote or inhibit the implementation of waiting time management strategies (WTMS) in Canadian healthcare organizations. METHODS We conducted 16 semi-structured interviews and one focus group with individuals involved in WTMS at the federal, provincial or organizational level. RESULTS The most frequently cited local factor was physicians' participation. Physicians' leadership made the greatest difference in bringing resistant physicians on board. To be effective, however, local leadership had to be supported by senior management. Alignment of financial incentives between the contextual and local levels was also frequently cited, and interviewees stressed the importance of tools used to design, monitor, evaluate and prioritize WTMS. CONCLUSIONS Finding the right balance between supportive resources and tools and an effective management system is a tough challenge. But achieving this balance will help reconcile contradictions between top-down and bottom-up WTMS.