Introduction and Objectives: Patients coming from all over the governorate of Ma€™an to visit specialty clinics at Ma'an comprehensive Health Center have been facing difficulties in getting the Service. A pilot field study was conducted to identify the main reasons behind low quality of provided services at these clinics. Lack of well-organized patient flow in these specialty clinics was found to be detrimental. The main objective of this study was to increase the satisfaction level of patients referred to the specialty clinics in Ma€™an by applying an appointment system. Specific objectives aimed at reducing the proportion of patients not receiving the service from the first visit, waiting time and increasing encounter time with physicians. Methodology: A. Study Design: The quasi-experimental method was used with pretest and posttest carried out on subjects from intervention and control groups. Subjects were randomly selected but not randomly allocated to the intervention and control groups. Specialty clinics at Ma'an comprehensive Health Center and at Ma€™an Hospital were considered for the intervention and control group respectively. The intervention group consisted of internal medicine, surgery, orthopedic and ENT clinics, while the control group consisted of pediatrics, obstetrics & gynecology and nephrology clinics. A six-week pretest study was conducted on each group, followed by a posttest study for an identical period. The posttest was done after introducing the intervention, namely the application of the appointment system for about 12 weeks. Waiting time for patients to see the physician and the encounter time with him/her was measured separately using precise chronometers. After filling the time observation sheets, patients were interviewed and asked questions about their levels of satisfaction regarding the provided health services by using a specifically designed questionnaire. B. Sampling Universe and Sample Size: The study population consisted of all patients calling on specialty clinics from all over the Governorate of Ma'an. The sample size was calculated to be 200 patients for each group (intervention and control) in the pretest and 200 patients for each group in the post-test. C. Data Collection Techniques and Intervention: Data was collected through observation by recording waiting and encounter time. In addition, an interview questionnaire was used to measure patient satisfaction. The core stone of the intervention was the establishment of a special Central Appointment Unit (CAU) at the Ma'an Health Center, which was staffed and supplied with telephone services. Two liaison officers were allocated at each health center in the Governorate. Referred patients visited the liaison officer, who in turn phoned the CAU to immediately arrange for an appointment at the respective Ma€™an specialty clinic. Special forms (registry books) were designed used to document the appointments at both the health center and the CAU levels. Date and time of the appointment were recorded on referral forms, which were stamped by the seal of the relevant center. At the end of each working day the CAU staff produced a list with the names of patients referred to each clinic and handed it over to the relevant clinic nurse, who in turn posted it on the clinic door after preparing the files of the following day's patients. Upon departure from clinics, treating physicians and nurses directed patients to visit the CAU. The unit handed patients their appointment cards, which were specially prepared in various colors each to indicate a specific clinic. Patients were required to present their appointment cards on each visit. These cards listed the patient€™s name, the next appointment date and the seal of the unit. D. Data Analysis: Once the research team and assistants completed collecting pretest and posttest data, it was entered into the computer using the SPSS program. Data was then analyzed by using the following: - Descriptive statistics using simple frequencies and crosstabulations. - Comparison of means of groups using independent samples t test or its equivalent the Mann Whitney U for non-parametric analysis. - Comparison of proportions using χ2. Results: Health services at specialty clinics were improved after applying the appointment system. The percentage of patients attending clinics without being served on the first visit decreased from 11.5% to 2%, while patient satisfaction regarding the provided services was improved. This came as a result of reducing the average time spent waiting for service from 137 to 50 minutes; and increasing the average encounter time with physicians from 4.3 to 6.1 minutes. The results observed in the intervention group were not found in the control group, which confirms the role of the intervention in the change that had occurred. All results were backed up with the appropriate statistical tests. Discussion: Data analysis results surpassed the set objectives. Resultsrevealed a considerable increase in patient satisfaction with services. This came as a result of reducing the average waiting time by approximately two thirds, and increasing the average encounter time with the physician by about 42%. Furthermore, the proportion of patients attending clinics without being served on the first visit decreased. Multiple problems were encountered in implementing the appointment system. The concept was not well received by patients at the beginning of the implementation. The study coincided with maintenance works at the intervention site. Personal connections interfered with arrangement of appointments early during implementation. However, the determination of the research team to adhere to the proposed methodology assisted in overcoming the problems. Recommendations: - Applying the Appointment System to all specialty clinics in Ma'an. - Applying the System to other governorates sharing similar geographic and demographic nature.