37% of NHS acute hospitals use self-service technology to improve patient experience of hospital visits
The self-service technology, that 37% of NHS acute hospitals now utilise, allows patients to check-in at easy-to-use kiosks, similar to the way they would use self check-in at the airport or self check-out at the supermarket. The kiosks avoid the extra stress of waiting in a queue to check-in when patients arrive for their appointment, and can also provide clear directions to help the patient find their way around hospital as easily as possible.
High profile hospital Trusts including University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have all recently introduced self check-in for outpatients, allowing them to become more involved in their own care experience in a fun and interactive way when arriving at hospital.
Mr Phil Taylor, Acting Directorate Manager at The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, commented on the use of self check-in kiosks in their children’s outpatient department: “The big difference for us has been that the patient and family experience has been much improved. We no longer have queues and we are managing the patient flow in a much more efficient manner, which ultimately means that the quality of the visitors’ experience is much better.”
Gordon Lorimer, Managing Director at patient flow management solutions provider Intouch with Health commented on the implementation of self-service within the NHS, highlighting that ease of use and familiarity are the key to its popularity: “Most people are familiar with self-service technology and how convenient and user friendly it is in their everyday lives, meaning that when patients are presented with it in a healthcare environment they naturally want to use it. This makes self-service a very workable and multi-functional solution to drive efficiency at a time when the NHS is facing its biggest savings challenge ever.”
