Medisch Huis Veghel

General practice Poucki & Rutten is located in ‘Het Medisch Huis’ together with general practice Dr. Bouma & Dr. Bouma-van der Ploeg. Both practices work together in the same building with the same team of assistants and practice nurses. The patient population is diverse but primarily middle-educated.

Het Medisch Huis is a very busy general practice. Kim Tenniglo, the practice manager, explains: “We are located in the centre of Veghel. It is quite common for patients to come to the practice themselves to make an appointment or ask a question. This led to a constant rush at the desk and frequent queues. The assistants indicated they would like a solution for the queues at the desk. They also wanted to use ticket numbers because they wished to regain control over the workflow. With ticket numbers, the assistants can decide when to help someone at the desk.”

A bit of trial and error with the kiosk layout

Kim explains that they had to experiment a bit with the layout of the practice and the registration kiosk in the beginning: “We noticed that patients didn’t know which button to use. Therefore, it worked better for us to create general buttons such as ‘I have an appointment with the GP’. We also noticed that patients were very focused on the assistant behind the desk and would walk right past the registration kiosk! So, we tested different locations for the kiosk and found the ideal spot. My tip for other practices is to think carefully about the layout beforehand. And keep experimenting: what works for one practice may not work for another.”

Ticket numbers improve efficiency

In addition to registering for appointments, Het Medisch Huis has taken the registration kiosk a step further. Every patient who wants to ask the assistant a question or drop something off at the desk now needs to check in via the kiosk. For certain services such as a finger prick or ECG, ticket numbers are generated. The assistant can then call the patient when a room becomes available. The ticket numbers are called via the Wachtkamerschermen® in the waiting areas. Kim notes that the combination with the Wachtkamerschermen® is highly recommended: “It allows us to deliver care even more efficiently!”

Creating ticket numbers also gives the assistants the freedom to call patients only when they are ready to assist them. This returns control to the assistants, and queues at the desk are a thing of the past. Research by Wachtkamerschermen® with a baseline measurement before and an end measurement after installing the kiosk confirms this. The registration kiosk combined with ticket numbers works well: the average time spent at the desk has decreased by 1 hour and 15 minutes compared to the baseline measurement. Assistants also report that they can work more calmly and are disturbed much less frequently by patients coming to the desk.

Positive feedback

Overall, patients respond positively to the new check-in and calling system. Kim mentions that older patients initially struggled a bit more: “They miss the personal contact and found entering their date of birth a bit tricky. In some cases, an assistant would accompany them to the kiosk and help them through the process. But now, the majority of patients check in directly at the kiosk.”

Furthermore, during the end measurement, it was noted that patients tend to follow each other's behaviour. For example, we saw a patient who had walked straight to the waiting room turn back to the kiosk to check in after noticing other patients registering immediately upon arrival. It’s great to see patients following each other's positive behaviour and adapting easily to the new system, which only benefits Het Medisch Huis!

Collaboration with Humo for GPs

Humo is the collaborative organisation for general practitioners in the Oss, Uden, and Veghel regions. Together with Wachtkamerschermen®, pilots were conducted at affiliated practices such as Group Practice Lievekamp in Oss and Het Medisch Huis in Veghel. These pilots were successfully completed, and as a result, Humo has made collective agreements with Wachtkamerschermen® for GPs. Would you like to know more? Feel free to contact the sales department of Wachtkamerschermen® via the contactform.