Pro-Touch

Self-Service: How Are Kiosks Benefiting The Health Care Industry?

The Kioskmarketplace.com has published a white paper regarding self-service in health care. Touch screen kiosks, monitors and PCs are used in many industries to better customer experience and improve business efficiency. But it seems that the healthcare industry will benefit 9.5% from self-service in the next five years according to the report. 10% of the survey respondents thought there would be an increase in the works which is a surge from 7% in the 2007 survey. So, more and more health care organisations are seeking out touch screen technology to slash costs, especially because of current government financial cuts. Kiosks can save costs in the long-run by reducing staff numbers and give employees the chance to better their time doing more important tasks such as tending to patients rather than burdensome paperwork.

So what features are there of a kiosk in health care;

– Way finding

According to the report, 13% of American hospitals use a kiosk for way finding purposes.

– Patient Check-in

The check-in process is the most consuming time spent for patients. Time consumed on filling in forms and making appointments is longer than actual time spent seeing the doctor.

– Educate

Health information can be displayed to better patient’s knowledge.

– Visitor Check-in

As well as checking-in patients, kiosks can also check-in salespeople, vendors and business associates.

– Payment

The survey findings show that 4% of Americans use a kiosk to pay medical bills.

Just in one health care organisation in America, the Adventist Health Systems, 55,000 people are employed to operate 44 hospitals with 7,700 beds. Care is provided for four million patients each year and that is just in the US alone in one company; so imagine how helpful touch screens can be for health care across the world?

Benefits include;

– Reducing paper work and postage costs

– Improved labour costs as staff can see to more patients in a given time

– Increased return on investment

– Reduce waiting times for patients therefore bettering their experience

– Faster payments from patients because it is easier to pay as it is right there and available

– Provide access to more audiences as multiple languages can be displayed which is great for communities that have multiple ethnicities and backgrounds.

So reap the welfares too by deploying a touch screen kiosk in your local hospital and health care organisation with Protouch.

How Are Kiosks Aiding Politics?

Kiosk technology has helped many industry sectors improve customer service and better staff efficiency and it seems now that the affairs of the state is getting involved too. Citizens in Mumbai, India will soon be able to vote for their government and do their part for politics via an e-kiosk. The population can cast their vote through the e-smart kiosk after the state election commission considered the possibility of setting up touch screens at various spots across the city to encourage more people to vote. People who are physically challenged, pregnant or are patients will find it easier to register themselves and cast their votes for next year’s civic elections. This is a fantastic use of touch screen technology to inspire more citizens to stand up and be counted in politics. In 2009 in India the voter turnout figures was just 58.19% and the general election figures in the UK in 2010 was just 65.1%. Kiosks such as this which provide easier ways for citizens to get involved are predicted to be a sure-fire way to boost the numbers who vote. With many voting times for elections during the day, in which most people are at work, units such as these which can be deployed across a town are perfect to ease the difficulties that come with finding time to vote. The State Election Commissioner, Neela Satyanarayan, agreed saying: “It’s true that we end up losing a majority of voters such as pregnant women, patients, senior citizens, physically challenged, among others as they can’t personally visit the polling booth and exercise their franchise. This e-voting will enable such voters to exercise their franchise without any hassle.” The company that manufactured the electronic voting machines (EVMs) is the Electronic Corporation of India Ltd (ECIL). The machines work by featuring a printer which prints out the voting strip which is then collected in a sealed box below the printer for security reasons.  A hologram sticker will be on each unit to make them safe and secure. The facilities will be demonstrated to political parties, government and the election commission of India, media and the general public before implementation. Satyanarayan added: “In 2012 civic elections, we will use holograms on voting machines. Their numbers will be recorded on our servers. If any attempt to tamper or shift the machine is made, we will come to know about it almost immediately.”

What do you think about e-voting via kiosks? Does it create more risks for fraud and security or will it boost voter turnouts? Let us here at Protouch know your thoughts!

Self-Service Technology: In Danger?

There is an article on Kioskmarketplace.com that argues that self-service checkouts are in danger of checking out. The site reports how a grocery store chain in America is pulling self-checkout systems from all of its 217 stores to focus on better customer service and how this could mean that self-service is on its way out. A writer for the FINS career resource website noted that consumer surveys indicate that customers want to talk to people in retail environments but contrary research by Wincor Nixdorf AG shows that the majority of consumers would rather bank with a machine rather than a human. David Hadesty, VP of Product Management for Wincor Nixdorf's U.S. Banking Division, said automation is no longer a “nice to have” – it is a necessity and this correlates to the nation’s trust resting in machines rather than man, even in the retail sector.

The FINS piece referenced a recent Consumer Reports survey published earlier this month that indicates that not being able to find a store salesperson ranked among consumers' top complaints but by deploying self-service units in retail stores for product browsing and purchasing, the staffs’ time is freed up more to better customer experience and be on-hand more efficiently when looked upon to answer questions. Self-service technology is enhancing many industries including retail, government, banking, transport, education, health and more. And it is no surprise because self-service brings huge benefits to a business as well as the consumer. It reduces waiting times, gives the power to the customer, frees up employees time to do more important tasks and saves costs in the long-run. The concept of self-service being in danger is absurd- as technologies grow and expand so is customers’ needs. Kiosks, digital signage and touch screen monitors are present to cater to these increasing needs and reflect the ever- changing society. Contact us to find out more.

Kiosks V Man: Employment Saga Continued With McDonalds

The concept of man vs. machines has been going on for years but only recently has it been catapulted to the forefront of mainstream media when President Obama took a swipe at kiosks and ATMs for world-wide unemployment numbers. But yet this follows reports by McDonalds that despite deploying hundreds of kiosks across its branches throughout Europe it has no plans to cut employees. The U.S President sat down in a Today show interview with Ann Curry a couple of weeks ago and slated the touch screen technology by saying how it had contributed to the nation’s unemployment figures. But yet the restaurant chain has announced that reports predicting its wide deployment of self-service kiosks would replace human jobs- are false. A spokesperson for McDonald’s Europe said: “Self-order kiosks are not designed to replace front-counter service. “Front counters remain a focal point of service where we have installed self-order kiosks, and customers can decide whether they wish to place their order at the counter or through kiosks. Staff are on hand in the dining area to assist customers using the kiosks.” The fast food giant has installed more than 840 kiosks throughout Europe including France and the UK. The spokesperson continued that deploying the kiosks wasn’t about cutting costs but rather to provide better customer service.

McDonald’s explain that the kiosks are not intended to reduce staff numbers and in fact they expect overall staff figures at the restaurants to increase as the business grows. They added that the restaurant relies on workers to man the machines and help customers unfamiliar with the kiosks on how to operate them as well as prepare food, assemble the order and deliver it to waiting customers. The spokesman added: that the kiosks “give customers the opportunity to take the time that they need to consider and place their order…based on feedback from some customers that (said) they would appreciate more time during the ordering process.” For more touch screen industry news click here.