AI vs. Manual Patient Outreach: A Data-Driven Comparison

We analyzed over 10,000 patient outreach attempts across multiple healthcare practices to understand when AI-powered calling outperforms human callers - and when it doesn't.

The Study

Over six months, we tracked both AI-initiated and human-initiated calls for appointment rebooking across 15 healthcare practices. We measured answer rates, conversion rates, time to completion, and patient satisfaction.

Key Finding #1: Speed Is Everything

The single biggest factor in successful slot filling isn't who makes the call - it's how fast the call happens.

Human callers had to finish their current task, notice the cancellation, and find time to make calls. AI systems started immediately. This speed advantage translated directly to higher fill rates.

Key Finding #2: Answer Rates Were Comparable

One concern about AI calling is whether patients would answer or hang up. Our data showed minimal difference:

Patients weren't screening out AI calls at significantly higher rates. The 5% difference was not statistically significant given our sample size.

Key Finding #3: Conversion Rates Depend on Complexity

For straightforward appointment rebooking (same type, just different time), AI performed as well as humans:

However, when situations required nuance - patients with complex scheduling needs, those needing to discuss appointment preparation, or cases with insurance questions - humans had a clear edge:

Key Finding #4: Volume Changes the Equation

The most significant advantage of AI became apparent with volume. A human caller can make perhaps 8-10 calls per hour (including wait time, voicemails, and documentation). AI can initiate 50+ calls in the same period.

When a practice had multiple cancellations on the same day, human callers couldn't keep up. AI called through the waitlist systematically, often filling all slots before a human caller would have finished the first.

Key Finding #5: Patient Satisfaction Was Neutral

In post-interaction surveys, patients who booked through AI calls reported satisfaction rates of 4.2/5 compared to 4.4/5 for human calls. The difference was not statistically significant.

Interestingly, many patients didn't realize they were speaking with AI. When informed afterward, most reactions were neutral or positive ("That's pretty cool").

The Optimal Approach

Based on our data, the best strategy combines both:

• AI first: For immediate, high-volume outreach when cancellations happen
• Human escalation: When AI encounters complex situations or patient questions it can't handle
• Human follow-up: For patients who didn't answer AI calls and may need a personal touch

This hybrid approach captured 89% of recoverable slots in our study - better than either AI-only (78%) or human-only (71%) approaches.

Conclusion

AI patient outreach isn't about replacing human interaction - it's about augmenting it. AI excels at speed and volume. Humans excel at nuance and relationship-building. The practices that succeed will be those that leverage both appropriately.