Texting for wait times: the future for emergency departments?
Posted by CEP America on Fri, May 07, 2010 @ 11:45 AM
As a follow up to a story that was posted to this page in April, there is now a short video that further discusses how California's Riverside Community Hospital's "Know Before You Go" text system is generating positive benefits in the emergency department.
To view the video, click here.
As the largest emergency department in Riverside County, averaging over 77,000 emergency patients annually, the hospital recently implemented the system and is reporting increased patient and emergency staff satisfaction levels. The text message program works using a technology that links the computer system in the emergency room with the texting abilities of cell phones.
While the national average wait time exceeds four hours, Riverside Community Hospital's wait times can be as low as just a few minutes. Hospital administrators say the system not only cuts a person's wait time once they arrive at the ER, but also helps the hospital design ways to become more efficient.
Of course, many emergency situations can't be predicted, and in a true medical emergency, patients should call 911 for assistance. But for situations where texting is an option, the system is clearly providing benefits across the board. Take a look at the video and judge for yourself.