Digital Wayfinding - All Upside

Some choices are not too good to be true.

Healthcare delivery, particularly in an acute care hospital setting, is inherently complex, stressful, unpleasant, and critically important. And for patients and their families, healthcare in the US is not a matter of choice, but a matter of circumstance. As a result, tensions exist between the healthcare provider and patient solely because of the environment in which such relationships are formed. 

I have spent the past 30 years creating and contributing information technology solutions designed to address many challenges unique to the US healthcare system and, as a result, I have benefited from a front-row seat to the industry’s journey along a bumpy road to adapt to new information technology solutions that are native to a global digital ecosystem. I believe it is fair to say that the promise of advances in information technology for healthcare providers has not been realized as it has in many other industries.  As a result, healthcare providers are understandably reluctant to move quickly when presented with new innovations promising great benefits.  Occasionally, however, there are solutions so obviously beneficial that such reluctance has left me dumbfounded and bewildered.  

We are all patients and family members.

Last month, a close family member began experiencing heart failure as we were watching the news. With a jolt of adrenaline, I drove her to the ER, helped her register, and answered questions from the clinical staff as they measured her vital signs, performed diagnostic tests, and provided preliminary treatment. She was admitted for inpatient care and transported to her room. Over the next two weeks, several tests, multiple procedures, and many visits brought me back to the hospital to visit, learn, and serve as an advocate. Family members of patients spend a great deal of cognitive energy while supporting their loved ones, often over long periods of time while hungry, thirsty, and sleep deprived. 

Most visits are not casual events. As an advocate and caring family member, they are mission-driven visits to prepare for post-discharge support. Care doesn’t begin and end at the hospital doors. Time visiting is time spent listening and learning to prepare to support those we deeply care for after hospital stay has ended.  

Digital Wayfinding is a no-brainer. 

When I did leave the unit to find some food or a restroom, I invariably had to ask multiple staff members how to find what I needed, and then, how to return to my family member’s room. The mere function of finding my way through the hospital was such a brain drain that I became reluctant to leave, even for food and restroom breaks. And at the end of each day, I had the same challenges navigating the complex building layout just to get to the door through which I entered, hours earlier. It didn’t have to be that way.  As I drove home each night, I was hungry, tired, anxious, and generally sleep deprived. Digital wayfinding is a cost effective, very low risk technology solution often dismissed as unimportant, and therefore discretionary. In my opinion, digital wayfinding is no more discretionary than technologies and services used to secure buildings, or systems designed to support post-discharge care and follow up.  I don’t think it is hyperbole to suggest that intuitive digital wayfinding can have a direct and positive impact on patient outcomes. 

A disorganized message erodes trust.

The juxtaposition of incomprehensible 20th century signage and healthcare provider messaging that highlights quality care, world class medical staff, and access to leading edge medical science and information technology is confusing and nearly impossible to reconcile.  The result is eroded patient trust resulting from an experience that does not meet expectations. After all,  the patient’s experience is the patient’s reality. 

Patients and their families take away one of two possible messages: the healthcare organization isn't as sophisticated as its messaging suggests, or those we entrust with our health and wellness, most often in times of distress, don't care enough to remove obstacles that serve only to create frustration, stress, and anxiety.

Just one conceptually simple choice to implement a digital wayfinding solution will invariably prove to be a wise, and relatively small investment with substantial returns. If an improved Patient Experience is the goal, Eyedog.US Digital Wayfinding is a good place to start.