Illustrative case study · Healthcare & Life Sciences

Both clinic types want AI scheduling. Independents can sign for it.

The first sales hires for a new AI scheduling tool would follow one choice: sell to hospital-owned clinics first, or to independents. For the health-tech company making it, we delivered a report in 13 days, built on 150 clinic managers who run the daily schedule.

Illustrative scenario

Samplen = 150

Illustrative report

AI Scheduling in Outpatient Clinics

Should the company sell AI scheduling to hospital-owned clinics first, or to independents?

Study architecture

Map the workflowHow visits get confirmed, canceled and rebooked today

Gauge readinessWillingness to let AI book and rebook visits

Trace the signatureBarriers, approvals and who signs the contract

Scope

A manager who wants the tool may still have no power to buy it.

Sample

150

Managers of outpatient clinics across specialties, hospital-owned and independent.

Research by

Study typeAdoption study

ScenarioIllustrative

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportExecutive summary

Executive summary

Clinic managers in both ownership types want AI scheduling, and independents can sign for it

The 150 outpatient clinic managers describe a schedule that runs on the phone, with a median 41 rebooking calls in the past week. Hospital-owned managers are as ready to adopt AI scheduling as independents, yet only 9% can sign for it. 73% of independent managers sign alone, up to a median $15,000 a year.

41median

rebooking calls per clinic in the past week

66%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers would adopt within a year

73%n = 70

of independent managers can sign alone

$15,000median

a year, the signing limit of independent signers

Figures rounded. Base n = 150 clinic managers unless stated.

Top lines

1Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front deskConfirmations, cancellations and rebooking today03

2Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independentsReadiness to adopt and the first tasks to hand over04

3Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on ITSigning authority and signing limits05

4Linking to the practice system is the first barrierBarriers to adoption by ownership06

5Sample, screener and quality controlWho we interviewed and how07

AAppendixQuestion flow and data tables09

Sample

150 clinic managers

Ownership

80 hospital-owned, 70 independent

Method

AI-moderated interviews

Focus

Workflow, readiness and who signs

Illustrative report. The company, scenario, and all figures are fictional.

Illustrative report02

Illustrative reportExecutive summary

Illustrative example. The company, scenario, and all figures are fictional. They show UserCue’s method and deliverable format. They do not come from any client study.

The engagement

Delivered in

days, with the report, the data file and a live readout.

Interviews

150

Managers who run outpatient clinic schedules.

Audiences

80 hospital-owned and 70 independent clinic managers.

Method

Journey map

Workflow, readiness, barriers and who signs, by clinic ownership.

The brief

Client

A health-tech company

Decision

Which clinics to sell its AI scheduling to first

Stage

Go-to-market planning, before the first sales hires

How we ran it

Approach

AI-moderated interviews on workflow, readiness, barriers and buying

Measured

Rebooking load, readiness to adopt, barriers, signing authority

Sample

Outpatient clinics across specialties, hospital-owned and independent

Headline figures

Workload41

rebooking calls at the median clinic in the past week, and 66% rebook mainly by phone

Readiness66%

of hospital-owned managers would adopt within a year, against 61% of independents

Signing73%

of independent managers can sign a scheduling contract alone, against 9% in hospital-owned clinics

The question

Which clinics should AI scheduling reach first?

The company had built an AI tool that confirms, cancels and rebooks outpatient visits by text and phone. Hospital-owned clinics looked like the bigger prize and independents like the faster sale. The team needed the managers who run the schedule to say how they work today, how ready they are and who signs.

How do clinics schedule today, and where does front-desk time go?

How ready are managers to let AI book and rebook visits?

What blocks a purchase, and who signs it?

What we did

How the study ran, start to finish.

1Kickoff
Hospital-owned or independent first.
Do we sell AI scheduling to hospital-owned clinics first, or to independents? The kickoff turned it into three questions: where front-desk time goes today, how ready managers are to let AI book and rebook visits, and what blocks a purchase and who signs it.
2Design
Two clinic types, an adoption map.
Each manager ran the clinic’s daily schedule and had a say in its software: 80 from hospital-owned and 70 from independent clinics. Questions moved from current workflow to readiness, barriers and who signs, starting with a count of last week’s rebooking calls.
3Fielding
150 managers on how they schedule.
Managers took a median 27 minutes by voice or text, quant and qual in one conversation; every barrier drew a follow-up on who signs. The researcher read all 172 and removed 22 for off-target experience, rushed responses or duplicates, keeping 150.
4Analysis
Hospital clinics are ready; few can sign.
The researcher weighed readiness against signing authority, and the two clinic types split. Hospital-owned managers were as ready to adopt, 66% against 61%, but only 9% could sign a contract themselves, against 73% of independents.
5Readout
A $15,000 median signing limit.
The researcher showed the map of who signs at each clinic type to the product team during a live readout, beside a 31-page report on readiness and barriers and the full data file. The first plan is now priced under the median independent signing limit.

What we found

Four findings from the report.

Summary

Clinic managers rebook by phone, a median 41 calls in the past week. Readiness is high in both clinic types: hospital-owned managers want AI scheduling as much as independents do. Signing authority separates them: most independent managers sign alone, up to a median $15,000 a year, while most hospital-owned clinics send the decision to health-system IT.

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 1

Top line 1 of 4

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk

¹ Q8. How does your clinic handle confirmations and cancellations today? Multi-select, n = 150.

² Q9. How many rebooking calls did your front desk make last week? Open numeric, n = 150.

The strain managers describe starts with a cancellation. 66% rebook canceled visits mainly by phone, and managers counted a median 41 rebooking calls in the past week¹. 52% still confirm visits by phone call, and only 7% let patients rebook themselves online. The front desk carries the load between check-ins.

66%n = 150

rebook canceled visits mainly by phone

41median

rebooking calls in the past week

52%n = 150

confirm visits by phone call

7%n = 150

let patients rebook themselves online

How clinics handle confirmations and cancellations today

Scheduling practices, multi-select (n = 150)

Rebooking calls in the past week (n = 150)

Under 3030 to 49Over 49

Rebook mainly by phone, by ownership

Multi-select; shares do not sum to 100. Each manager counted rebooking calls for the past week before the interview. Base n = 150 managers: 80 hospital-owned and 70 independent.

Supporting evidence

Independent clinics lean harder on the phone, 80% against 54% in hospital-owned clinics. § 3.2
Managers with the most rebooking calls name staff time, more than cost, as their reason to adopt. § 3.3²

Illustrative report03

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 2

Top line 2 of 4

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents

¹ Q27. How ready would your clinic be to adopt AI scheduling within the next year? Five-point scale, n = 150.

² Q30. Which scheduling tasks would you hand to AI first? Multi-select, n = 150.

Readiness barely moves with ownership. 66% of hospital-owned managers and 61% of independents would adopt AI scheduling within a year¹, a gap that is not statistically significant at these sample sizes. Managers would hand over rebooking first (76%), then confirmations (59%). Only 8% would let AI set the clinic’s template of visit types.

66%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers would adopt within a year

61%n = 70

of independent managers would adopt within a year

76%n = 150

would hand rebooking to AI first

59%n = 150

would hand over confirmations

Readiness to adopt AI scheduling

Would adopt within a year, top-two box

Tasks to hand to AI first (n = 150)

First three tasks to hand over, hospital-owned

1Rebooking canceled visits
2Visit confirmations
3Filling same-day gaps

Five-point readiness scale, top two boxes. Two-proportion test at 95% confidence: the ownership difference is not significant. Task question multi-select; shares do not sum to 100.

Supporting evidence

Hospital-owned managers cite short staffing at the front desk as their reason to move. § 4.2
Visit templates stay with people: only 8% would let AI set them. § 4.3²

Illustrative report04

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 3

Top line 3 of 4

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT

¹ Q31. Who signs a contract for scheduling software at your clinic? Single select, n = 150.

² Q34. Up to what annual amount can you sign without further approval? Asked of those who sign alone.

Wanting the tool and buying it are separate steps. 73% of independent managers can sign a scheduling contract themselves, against 9% of hospital-owned managers¹. For 59% of hospital-owned managers the decision sits with health-system IT; for the other 41% it stays at the clinic, with the manager or a physician group lead. Independent signers approve up to a median $15,000 a year without anyone else.

73%n = 70

of independent managers can sign alone

9%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers can sign alone

59%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers defer to health-system IT

$15,000median

a year, the independent signing limit

Who signs a scheduling software contract

Can sign a scheduling contract alone

Who decides, hospital-owned (n = 80)

Health-system ITSomeone at the clinic

Signing limit, independent signers

Signing authority self-reported for a scheduling software contract at the clinic’s expected cost. Signing limits asked of every independent manager who signs alone, as annual contract value.

Supporting evidence

Hospital-owned managers who want the tool say an IT review adds a full budget cycle before any purchase. § 5.2
Independent signers want one annual price they can approve inside their own limit. § 5.3²

Illustrative report05

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 4

Top line 4 of 4

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier

¹ Q39. What would stand in the way of adopting AI scheduling at your clinic? Multi-select, n = 150.

² Barriers by ownership are in the appendix tables.

The doubts are practical. 49% name linking to their current practice management system as a barrier¹, ahead of patients who prefer to call (39%) and front-desk pushback (27%). Data privacy review weighs most in hospital-owned clinics, where IT runs it: 34% name it, against 9% of independents.

49%n = 150

name linking to the practice management system

39%n = 150

name patients who prefer to call

27%n = 150

name front-desk pushback

34%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers name privacy review

Barriers to adopting AI scheduling

Barriers named, multi-select (n = 150)

Data privacy review named, by ownership

Top barriers, hospital-owned (n = 80)

1Linking to the practice system
2Data privacy review
3Patients who prefer to call

Multi-select; shares do not sum to 100. Asked of all 150 managers, ready or not.

Supporting evidence

Managers who already offer online booking worry least about the practice system link. § 6.2
Clinics with an older patient base name patients who prefer to call most often. § 6.3²

Illustrative report06

Top line 1 of 4 · page 03Illustrative report · top line 1 of 4 · swipeIllustrative report

Question 1 · Today’s workflow

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk.

66% rebook canceled visits mainly by phone, and managers counted a median 41 rebooking calls in the past week. Only 7% let patients rebook themselves online.

Rebook canceled visits mainly by phone66%

Confirm visits by phone call52%

Track cancellations on paper or a spreadsheet31%

Patients can rebook themselves online7%

Scheduling practices · multi-select · n = 150

Question 2 · Readiness

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents.

66% of hospital-owned managers and 61% of independents would adopt AI scheduling within a year, a gap that is not statistically significant at these sample sizes. Rebooking canceled visits is the first job they would hand over.

66%hospital clinics ready within a year

61%independent clinics ready within a year

Ready to adopt within a year, top-two box · n = 80 vs n = 70

Question 3 · Who signs

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT.

73% of independent managers can sign a scheduling contract themselves, against 9% of hospital-owned managers. For 59% of hospital-owned managers the decision sits with health-system IT. Independent signers approve up to a median $15,000 a year.

73%independent managers can sign

9%hospital clinic managers can sign

Can sign a scheduling software contract alone · n = 70 vs n = 80

Question 3 · Barriers

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier.

49% name linking to their current practice management system as a barrier, ahead of patients who prefer to call (39%) and front-desk pushback (27%). Data privacy review weighs most in hospital-owned clinics.

Linking to the current practice management system49%

Patients who prefer to call39%

Front-desk pushback27%

Data privacy review22%

Barriers to adopting AI scheduling · multi-select · n = 150

“I could sign for this tomorrow if it fits my budget line. Anything bigger goes to the owners and waits a quarter.”

Clinic manager · Illustrative quote

Illustrative quotes

Three themes behind the numbers.

Phone load

“Monday mornings my front desk does nothing but call back last week’s cancellations. Nobody gets checked in on time until noon.”

Practice manager

Who signs

“I would love this. Software goes through system IT, though, and their list is longer than my waiting room.”

Clinic operations manager

The link

“Unless it writes back into our practice system, my staff key everything twice. That’s where these tools die.”

Office manager

What the health-tech company did

Three moves made with the report.

1The package · from finding 3

Priced the first plan under the signing limit.

An annual plan sits under the $15,000 median signing limit, so most independent managers who sign alone can buy it without another approval.

2The first market · from finding 2

Sold to independent clinics first.

Readiness held across ownership, so the first sales hires went where the manager who wants the tool also signs.

3The product · from finding 4

Built the practice system link first.

Two-way sync with the most common practice management systems, the barrier 49% named, moved to the top of the roadmap.

Illustrative example. The company, scenario, and all figures are fictional. They show UserCue’s method and deliverable format. They do not come from any client study.

Bring us your next adoption question.

A senior researcher designs and presents every study.

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More healthcare & life sciences studies

Market entry

Which clinics should AI scheduling reach first?

How the study ran, start to finish.

1Kickoff

Hospital-owned or independent first.

Do we sell AI scheduling to hospital-owned clinics first, or to independents? The kickoff turned it into three questions: where front-desk time goes today, how ready managers are to let AI book and rebook visits, and what blocks a purchase and who signs it.

2Design

Two clinic types, an adoption map.

Each manager ran the clinic’s daily schedule and had a say in its software: 80 from hospital-owned and 70 from independent clinics. Questions moved from current workflow to readiness, barriers and who signs, starting with a count of last week’s rebooking calls.

3Fielding

150 managers on how they schedule.

Managers took a median 27 minutes by voice or text, quant and qual in one conversation; every barrier drew a follow-up on who signs. The researcher read all 172 and removed 22 for off-target experience, rushed responses or duplicates, keeping 150.

4Analysis

Hospital clinics are ready; few can sign.

The researcher weighed readiness against signing authority, and the two clinic types split. Hospital-owned managers were as ready to adopt, 66% against 61%, but only 9% could sign a contract themselves, against 73% of independents.

5Readout

A $15,000 median signing limit.

The researcher showed the map of who signs at each clinic type to the product team during a live readout, beside a 31-page report on readiness and barriers and the full data file. The first plan is now priced under the median independent signing limit.

Four findings from the report.

Summary

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 1

Top line 1 of 4

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk

¹ Q8. How does your clinic handle confirmations and cancellations today? Multi-select, n = 150.

² Q9. How many rebooking calls did your front desk make last week? Open numeric, n = 150.

66%n = 150

rebook canceled visits mainly by phone

41median

rebooking calls in the past week

52%n = 150

confirm visits by phone call

7%n = 150

let patients rebook themselves online

How clinics handle confirmations and cancellations today

Scheduling practices, multi-select (n = 150)

Rebooking calls in the past week (n = 150)

Under 3030 to 49Over 49

Rebook mainly by phone, by ownership

Multi-select; shares do not sum to 100. Each manager counted rebooking calls for the past week before the interview. Base n = 150 managers: 80 hospital-owned and 70 independent.

Supporting evidence

Independent clinics lean harder on the phone, 80% against 54% in hospital-owned clinics. § 3.2
Managers with the most rebooking calls name staff time, more than cost, as their reason to adopt. § 3.3²

Illustrative report03

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 2

Top line 2 of 4

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents

¹ Q27. How ready would your clinic be to adopt AI scheduling within the next year? Five-point scale, n = 150.

² Q30. Which scheduling tasks would you hand to AI first? Multi-select, n = 150.

66%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers would adopt within a year

61%n = 70

of independent managers would adopt within a year

76%n = 150

would hand rebooking to AI first

59%n = 150

would hand over confirmations

Readiness to adopt AI scheduling

Would adopt within a year, top-two box

Tasks to hand to AI first (n = 150)

First three tasks to hand over, hospital-owned

1Rebooking canceled visits
2Visit confirmations
3Filling same-day gaps

Five-point readiness scale, top two boxes. Two-proportion test at 95% confidence: the ownership difference is not significant. Task question multi-select; shares do not sum to 100.

Supporting evidence

Hospital-owned managers cite short staffing at the front desk as their reason to move. § 4.2
Visit templates stay with people: only 8% would let AI set them. § 4.3²

Illustrative report04

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 3

Top line 3 of 4

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT

¹ Q31. Who signs a contract for scheduling software at your clinic? Single select, n = 150.

² Q34. Up to what annual amount can you sign without further approval? Asked of those who sign alone.

73%n = 70

of independent managers can sign alone

9%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers can sign alone

59%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers defer to health-system IT

$15,000median

a year, the independent signing limit

Who signs a scheduling software contract

Can sign a scheduling contract alone

Who decides, hospital-owned (n = 80)

Health-system ITSomeone at the clinic

Signing limit, independent signers

Signing authority self-reported for a scheduling software contract at the clinic’s expected cost. Signing limits asked of every independent manager who signs alone, as annual contract value.

Supporting evidence

Hospital-owned managers who want the tool say an IT review adds a full budget cycle before any purchase. § 5.2
Independent signers want one annual price they can approve inside their own limit. § 5.3²

Illustrative report05

AI scheduling adoption · Executive reportTop line 4

Top line 4 of 4

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier

¹ Q39. What would stand in the way of adopting AI scheduling at your clinic? Multi-select, n = 150.

² Barriers by ownership are in the appendix tables.

49%n = 150

name linking to the practice management system

39%n = 150

name patients who prefer to call

27%n = 150

name front-desk pushback

34%n = 80

of hospital-owned managers name privacy review

Barriers to adopting AI scheduling

Barriers named, multi-select (n = 150)

Data privacy review named, by ownership

Top barriers, hospital-owned (n = 80)

1Linking to the practice system
2Data privacy review
3Patients who prefer to call

Multi-select; shares do not sum to 100. Asked of all 150 managers, ready or not.

Supporting evidence

Managers who already offer online booking worry least about the practice system link. § 6.2
Clinics with an older patient base name patients who prefer to call most often. § 6.3²

Illustrative report06

Top line 1 of 4 · page 03Illustrative report · top line 1 of 4 · swipeIllustrative report

Question 1 · Today’s workflow

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk.

66% rebook canceled visits mainly by phone, and managers counted a median 41 rebooking calls in the past week. Only 7% let patients rebook themselves online.

Rebook canceled visits mainly by phone66%

Confirm visits by phone call52%

Track cancellations on paper or a spreadsheet31%

Patients can rebook themselves online7%

Scheduling practices · multi-select · n = 150

Question 2 · Readiness

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents.

66%hospital clinics ready within a year

61%independent clinics ready within a year

Ready to adopt within a year, top-two box · n = 80 vs n = 70

Question 3 · Who signs

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT.

73%independent managers can sign

9%hospital clinic managers can sign

Can sign a scheduling software contract alone · n = 70 vs n = 80

Question 3 · Barriers

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier.

Linking to the current practice management system49%

Patients who prefer to call39%

Front-desk pushback27%

Data privacy review22%

Barriers to adopting AI scheduling · multi-select · n = 150

Three themes behind the numbers.

Phone load

“Monday mornings my front desk does nothing but call back last week’s cancellations. Nobody gets checked in on time until noon.”

Practice manager

Who signs

“I would love this. Software goes through system IT, though, and their list is longer than my waiting room.”

Clinic operations manager

The link

“Unless it writes back into our practice system, my staff key everything twice. That’s where these tools die.”

Office manager

Three moves made with the report.

1The package · from finding 3

Priced the first plan under the signing limit.

An annual plan sits under the $15,000 median signing limit, so most independent managers who sign alone can buy it without another approval.

2The first market · from finding 2

Sold to independent clinics first.

Readiness held across ownership, so the first sales hires went where the manager who wants the tool also signs.

3The product · from finding 4

Built the practice system link first.

Two-way sync with the most common practice management systems, the barrier 49% named, moved to the top of the roadmap.

Illustrative example. The company, scenario, and all figures are fictional. They show UserCue’s method and deliverable format. They do not come from any client study.

Which clinics should AI scheduling reach first?

How do clinics schedule today, and where does front-desk time go?

How ready are managers to let AI book and rebook visits?

What blocks a purchase, and who signs it?

How the study ran, start to finish.

Hospital-owned or independent first.

Two clinic types, an adoption map.

150 managers on how they schedule.

Hospital clinics are ready; few can sign.

A $15,000 median signing limit.

Four findings from the report.

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk.

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents.

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT.

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier.

Three themes behind the numbers.

Three moves made with the report.

Priced the first plan under the signing limit.

Sold to independent clinics first.

Built the practice system link first.

Bring us your next adoption question.

Real-World Evidence Vendor Landscape

Health System Supply Spend Analytics

In-Home Nursing Visit Subscription Concept and Pricing Test

Which clinics should AI scheduling reach first?

How do clinics schedule today, and where does front-desk time go?

How ready are managers to let AI book and rebook visits?

What blocks a purchase, and who signs it?

How the study ran, start to finish.

Hospital-owned or independent first.

Two clinic types, an adoption map.

150 managers on how they schedule.

Hospital clinics are ready; few can sign.

A $15,000 median signing limit.

Four findings from the report.

Rebooking runs on the phone and fills the front desk.

Hospital-owned managers are as ready as independents.

Independent managers sign; hospital clinics wait on IT.

Linking to the practice system is the first barrier.

Three themes behind the numbers.

Three moves made with the report.

Priced the first plan under the signing limit.

Sold to independent clinics first.

Built the practice system link first.

Bring us your next adoption question.

Real-World Evidence Vendor Landscape

Health System Supply Spend Analytics

In-Home Nursing Visit Subscription Concept and Pricing Test