Service Design: Improving the Exam Room Experience

How might we improve the exam room experience?

Imagine you are a patient that has just been called from the waiting room. You think, “Great, we’re moving along now!” The medical assistant weighs you, checks your vitals, etc, and says, “The doctor will be with you shortly.” And you believe them. For the first 10 minutes, anyway.

In reality, there is no way to know if you are first or fifth in line, and just HOW LONG that line is going to take. Additionally, you may be seated on an uncomfortable table, perhaps with nothing on but a paper sheet.

The typical experience while waiting in the exam room is one of boredom, discomfort and uncertainty. What can we do?

The Problem

The exam room problem is three-fold:

You are uncertain. It could be 5 minutes, or it could be 45. You are often left wondering if they even remember you are there. Did the medical assistant forget to tell anyone?
You are uncomfortable. You may have been left to wait in a less-than-comfortable position, perhaps on a table, and perhaps wearing nothing but a paper sheet.
You are bored. You may have absolutely nothing to do while you wait, except ponder the choice of wall decor, who might be responsible for it, and wonder if they’d like your interior design advice.

The Objective

Address the uncertainty of when the doctor will arrive, keeping the patient informed in real time.
Ensure the patient is not uncomfortable.
Provide optional activities to pass the time

My role

Research
Ideation
Prototyping

Research

Interviews

Since nearly everyone is a patient, it wasn’t hard to find people that relate to this exam room scenario. Most of what I heard were things I already felt myself. The uncertainty and discomfort of being left wondering when the provider will arrive. One interviewee even shared that, after sitting for 55 minutes, she decided to check on her status. It turned out that the medical assistant forgot to move her to a “ready” status in their system, therefore the provider was unaware she was waiting.

From the provider perspective I discovered that they often feel quite stressed and guilty knowing that people have been waiting a long time. I inquired whether patients usually complain directly to them, or to the staff. They shared that they rarely heard from the patient directly, but the staff definitely got an earful at times. The provider also shared that they would often try to communicate directly, or through staff that they were on their way, or what the timeline might be. However, from patients, I heard that was usually not the case.

Persona: Meet Samantha

Samantha is a single mom, late 30s, who works at a dentist’s office as an office manager. She values her time and prioritizes the health of both herself and her children.

Samantha really likes her Primary Care Provider and their practice. She uses this practice for yearly exams and any illnesses or issues that arise. The people are friendly and helpful, but the practice is quite busy, which often means she has to wait. It’s worth it though, because her Provider is very caring and patient with her when she asks alot of questions, which makes Samantha feel like she is in good hands.

The problem Samantha has is that, because she has to see the doctor on her lunch hour, it becomes quite stressful for her when she doesn’t know how long it will take. It would be great if she had some idea, so that she could communicate with her work if she is going to run late.

Journey Mapping

Mapping led me to 3 moments, 2 of which became my focus: 1. The point where the medical assistant leaves, and 2. The uncertainty a patient feels after they’ve been waiting for a while.

Ideation

The ideation session focused on 3 key areas:

How might we level-set expectations of when the doctor will arrive
How might we make the patient comfortable
How might we keep the patient engaged to minimize boredom and annoyance.

The session resulted in some innovative ideas including games in the style of cracker barrel or a bar, books on a book shelf and creative activities like coloring books.

The solution: A wait that doesn’t frustrate

The patient is left in a comfy chair facing a screen on the wall, for which they are given a remote to navigate the options. The screen contains a section at the top which lets the pateint know how many patients are in front of them, and the estimated wait time. The provider has a wearable device that feeds them queue information, and that they update each time they finish with a patient. This feeds into the display inside the exam room, so the patient gets updates in real time. The screen also contains a number of activities including meditation, health education, games and more, as well as a display of fun facts, in case they choose not to engage with the activities.