A meta-analysis of 45 retrospective cohort studies and a 474,212-appointment safety-net cohort both associate telehealth with lower odds of non-attendance. Here is what each reports, and where the evidence stops.
CNA reports that a nine-hour network connectivity disruption on Oct 13 hit Singapore's public healthcare institutions from around 7.10am, causing longer waits and payment issues. Synapxe said there was no indication of a cyber incident; all services were restored by 4.37pm. Across seven institutions CNA visited in the afternoon, most patients described limited impact, though some noted kiosk outages, unupdated app queue statuses and longer pharmacy waits.
The Straits Times reports that a system disruption on Oct 13 hit Singapore's public healthcare clusters NHG Health, NUHS and SingHealth, affecting call-centre appointment booking, visitor registration and billing inquiries. Synapxe said there was no indication of a cyber incident. Hospitals warned of longer waits, NHG Polyclinics pointed patients to live chat and apps, and mindline.sg reported being fully operational by 12pm.
Bioengineer.org reports an observational study in Pediatric Research that tested a transformer-based model on 7,931 pediatric appointments at six Houston-area clinics, 34.8 percent of which were no-shows. Adding social-needs screening data left prediction accuracy unchanged, but unconfirmed appointments, inactive patient portals, transportation needs and housing instability were linked to higher no-show odds. The roughly five-month study window and missing data limit conclusions.
KiowaCountyPress.net reports on Weisbrod Health's 2026 community survey, a volunteer sample of 44 respondents, mostly women from Eads. Cancer (82 percent) and aging (59 percent) topped health concerns. Among those who delayed care, cost and getting an appointment were each cited by 30 percent. Residents repeatedly raised keeping providers in town, and two-thirds preferred a text before or instead of follow-up calls.
Task & Purpose reports that, according to figures the VA provided to the outlet, new VA dental patients waited an average of 51 days for a first appointment, versus 14 days for established patients. A VA spokesperson said initial visits are more involved. A $30 billion, 10-year contract with Optum Serve aims partly to reduce waits, though no target wait time has been identified.
Task & Purpose, in a story carried by Yahoo, reports VA figures showing new dental patients waited an average of 51 days for a first appointment, versus 14 days for established patients. The VA gave no reason for the gap. It says a $30 billion, 10-year contract with Optum Serve aims partly to cut waits, but has not publicly named a target wait time for new patients.
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