How Interactive Kiosks are Transforming Healthcare in the Asia-Pacific

In the case of the healthcare sector, the use of interactive kiosk for healthcare information or transactional signage goes a long way to ensure a patient’s comfort and decrease their anxiety. Indeed, the placement of a digital signage kiosk in hospitals throughout the Asia-Pacific region has transformed the in-facility patient experience, particularly in the post-COVID era.

In Singapore, particularly in the healthcare sector, the use of digital kiosks for hospitals also decreases the need for individuals to handle processes that can easily be automated, such as those checking patients in or out of the facility, billing and payment, and even the setting of appointments with individual doctors.

What are Interactive Kiosks for Healthcare and What Can They Do for Your Hospital or Clinic?

The term interactive kiosk refers to a freestanding digitised information station deployed in a public space, and these are commonly used by the public to perform specific transactions. For example, customers in a retail or grocery stores can do self-check-out for their items where they can scan the items they purchased, swipe their credit card and leave the store. Aside from it being convenient for the customer and retail store, It can also promote Loyalty as these self-check-out kiosks can be programmed to automatically update points plus capture the customers’ valuable feedback for continuous improvement of the store.

In the context of healthcare digital signage , digital kiosks for hospitals are used for the following purposes:

1. Checking Patients In or Out of the Facility

A digital kiosk makes it easier for hospitals to see who’s coming in and who’s checking out. Input features also ensure that these kiosks collect accurate patient information and relay it to corresponding systems. The addition of a payment feature also allows for cashless settling of hospital / clinic / pharmacy expenses on the part of the patient or their companion.

2. Clinical and / or Patient Management Portals

Connecting a hospital’s networked kiosks to a cloud-based patient management system decreases the need for physical data entry and, consequently, reduces the time necessary for information gathering or records retrieval. For patients, kiosks also offer a way to preview test results for individual accounts.

3. A More Accurate Wayfinder

Integrating a map / wayfinder function into a digital kiosk gives patients a more accurate idea of where to go. In more advanced models, patients are also advised as to nearest landmarks, which lift to take, how far their destination is from where they are, and even how long it will take to get there. Likewise, directories of individual clinicians may also be accessed via these kiosks.

4. Security

Hospital-based kiosks may even be used to boost security, as patients or guests will be required to enter their personal details as well as their purpose for coming in order for the system to generate a code or badge to give them access. A generated QR code also prevents visitors from going to restricted areas, as this only grants them access to where they need to go.

5. Human Resource Hub

On the backend of hospital operations, hospital staff can use dedicated kiosks to check on their employee benefits, leave credits, and payslips. HR hubs can also be used to disseminate important announcements to employees.

6. Provision of Telehealth Services

The advent of telemedicine over the past three years revolutionised the provision of healthcare at a distance. While most doctor-patient interactions are still done with the former in the office and the latter at home, Healthcare digital signage have helped change the game. Some digital signage kiosks are equipped with peripheral machinery to check a patient’s vitals prior to them entering their doctors’ clinic, but a number that are currently in development could allow doctors to monitor the health of those with chronic health conditions from afar.

7. Queue Management System (QMS):

Improving the hospital customer experience is crucial to retain patients, reduce stress of hospital visits, and maintain a healthy environment. The Queue Management System can help patients manage their expectations by assigning queue numbers and displaying the customers place in the queue together with expected wait time, remove the need to keep the patients from standing from their seats to persistently ask when their turn is, by sending mobile alerts to the patient when they are next in line, improve the hospital speed and efficiency and reduce perceived wait time. Having digital kiosks for hospitals will not only create happier customers/patients but will also reduce the need for paper work and manual processes.

What are the Benefits of Having Interactive Kiosks for Healthcare?

Now that we have shown the functions interactive kiosks offer for the healthcare sector, let us consider the benefits that they offer:

1. They decrease the need to hire additional staff for the simple purpose of data entry, records keeping, and even manual queueing;

2. They decrease the need for physical contact, thus preventing the spread of illness in a facility;

3. Security is improved exponentially as the influx of patients and guests is closely monitored and the issuance of badges via QR code ensures that people do not enter restricted zones; and

4. Physicians are given a more effective means of monitoring the health of their patients even at a distance.

Discover more about Scala’s variety of services of interactive kiosk for Healthcare , digital signage kiosk and more that can contribute to the transformation of healthcare in Asia Pacific to ensure your patients’ on-site experience is both comfortable and stress-free.

About the Author:

Scala digital signage experts share their experience and thoughts in our blog to provide practical tips and advice for real-world applications. Our team aims to offer interesting content through a variety of formats including long form articles, video logs, interviews and infographics.

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