Evaluation of Skip the Queue Intervention Implemented to Reduce Patient Waiting Times at an Outpatient Pharmacy of a Tertiary Hospital in Gauteng Province, South Africa ^†

Background: Long waiting times have a negative impact on patients, including loss of income, reduced medication adherence, the risk of drug resistance, and deterioration of their health. While numerous pharmaceutical interventions have previously been implemented in South Africa, none of them proved to be entirely effective. The “skip the queue” (STQ) programme is an intervention that was developed and implemented at the study site in 2024 to reduce the long waiting times associated with the collection of medicines. Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the STQ intervention implemented to reduce patient waiting times at a tertiary hospital in Gauteng Province, South Africa. Methods: This is a descriptive, quantitative, and cross-sectional study that was conducted with 297 STQ-registered patients, aged 18 or older, who provided written consent to participate. Ethical approval was obtained from the Turfloop Research Ethics Committee and permission to conduct the study was obtained from the Gauteng Department of Health and the Hospital’s Chief Executive Officer. The actual waiting times of the STQ-registered patients were manually obtained. Data regarding satisfaction with the STQ intervention and socio-demographic, patient, and booking variables were obtained using structured questionnaires. Differences in mean scores for STQ satisfaction and their association with socio-demographic, patient, and booking variables were identified using Mann–Whitney U-tests and Kruskal–Wallis U-tests. A statistical significance threshold of p < 0.05 was set for this study. Results: More than half of the participants in this study were females (n = 203; 68.4%) and had education levels between Grades 8 and 12 (n = 189; 63.6%). More than three-quarters of the STQ-registered patients were able to afford mobile data (n = 227, 76.4), possess smartphones (n = 267, 76.4%), and have an internet connection (n = 246, 82.8%). The majority of the participants were able to access the website (n = 280, 94.3%), receive their booking reference numbers (n = 289, 97.3%), and have their preferred slots confirmed (n = 279, 93.9%). Work, affordability of data, successful booking and booking the preferred slots showed a strong association (p ≤ 0.05) with the total STQ satisfaction scores. The average time that the participants needed to wait to collect their medication through STQ was found to be 28 min, surpassing the advertised 15-min waiting time. Conclusions: Long waiting times in medical institutions are influenced by socio-demographic, booking, and satisfaction factors. Addressing booking issues is crucial for patient satisfaction and appointment adherence. The STQ program meets the patient satisfaction requirements, but prolonged waiting times still occur due to staff shortages, file unavailability, and the system being fully booked. Healthcare institutions should develop a user-friendly system that allows for medication pickup, an increased the number of booking slots, and the double-checking of patient files for improved patient satisfaction.