Electronic monitoring promises to slash waiting times at Hong Kong clinics
Patients who have to see a specialist in the public sector currently spend an average of two hours sitting in a queue
An electronic management system could save patients millions of hours wasted in queues at specialist public sector clinics.
The system, developed by United Christian Hospital, Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Hong Kong Eye Hospital, tracks the patient from the moment their appointment slip is scanned on arrival. The time they enter the consultation room is also recorded when the doctor scans their medical record.
Queue status is instantly updated on a display screen in the waiting hall, informing patients how much longer they have to wait.
If a patient’s appointment time slot is 11am, but the actual queue has been cleared up to
9.30am only, they could go for a quick coffee
“If a patient’s appointment time slot is 11am, but the actual queue has been cleared up to
9.30am only, they could leave for a while and go for a quick coffee,” said Dr Bill Chan hin-biu, service director in information technology and telecommunications at United Christian Hospital in Kwun Tong.
If waiting times were particularly long, more medics could be called in or patients redirected instead of sitting idly for hours in the clinic.
