Kitchener hospital launches self-check-in kiosk

KITCHENER, Ont. – St. Mary’s General Hospital in Kitchener has added a touchscreen self-check-in kiosk into its emergency department, in hopes of streamlining patients through the triage system. This new kiosk will replace the old system of registration, which required those coming to the ED to fill out a paper form and wait for their number to be called.

Now when you enter the ED, the touchscreen kiosk will ask you to enter your first and last name and primary reason for your visit. After submitting your registration, you will be asked to have a seat and wait for a triage nurse to call your name.

Overall, the implementation of this new registration system is aimed at not only helping improve the flow of patients through triage, but also providing a better experience for those coming into the ED and waiting to be seen.

The Emergency Department at St. Mary’s has porters and housekeepers that share the responsibility of cleaning the ED and touchscreens. They have hand sanitizers by the screens and encourage and ask that everyone sanitize their hands before and after using the touchscreen.

To assist anyone coming in, there is staff available to help patients with the new technology, a translator tablet if needed at triage, and when able to, will welcome ED volunteers back who will also be trained on how to assist people in using the new kiosks.

Quick facts:

• The Self-Check-In Kiosk will provide a quicker and more efficient check-in process as everything will be done on the touchscreen instead of having to fill out a piece of paper in the waiting area.
• Instead of waiting to hear for a number to be called, you will be called by your name.
• Triage nurses will better understand the reason for everyone’s visit immediately and be able to prioritize the needs of each patient.
• A reduction in paper reduces our waste footprint that will have a big environmental impact over time.