October 16, 2012
STEM-110T/Tues.
Advancement of Patient Self-Service
Every year, our society sees new advancements in various technologies we use on a daily basis. Most people are familiar with next generation cellular phones, revolutionized laptops, and year model automobiles that come out. Those things are the most popular, but technological advancements go so beyond flashy items for fun and flaunt. Technology affects a big part of health and wellness. This can range from new medicines being created to help fight and cure diseases to equipping offices with the latest software and programs to expedite customer service. A technology that would prove to be beneficial for health care is the further development of electronic kiosk in the doctor office. An electronic kiosk or computer kiosk houses a computer terminal that often employs custom kiosk software designed to function flawlessly while preventing users from accessing system functions (Wikipedia). Predominantly touchscreen, but not limited to trackballs or computer keyboards, these kiosks reduces lines, eliminate paper, and improve efficiency and service. Over the past few years, doctor offices around the country have be implementing electronic kiosk in there lobby areas. The kiosk in doctor offices automates patient registration, reduces paperwork flow, and considerably speeds up the check-in process. Apart from that, the kiosk frees up valuable time for staff to pursue other important duties. Individuals that are patient and interactive will also find that some kiosk will give bill payment options, the display of medical records, and informative notes on the practice and its staff members. The electronic kiosk has definitely proved useful in that it has allowed patients to perform non-specialized task themselves, but this technology can be expanded upon. The next step for these devices would be making them larger and increasing the capabilities it has with patients. The
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