Managing Visitor and Patient Flow During the COVID-19 Pandemic: ExpectingU App

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Infectious Disease Control
• Health Informatics

Background:

• COVID-19 pandemic necessitated severe restrictions on hospital access to mitigate transmission risks.
• Managing essential visits and medical appointments became a significant logistical challenge for healthcare institutions.
• Unauthorized access posed a continuous threat to patient and staff safety within hospital environments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate the ExpectingU app, a digital solution designed to manage hospital access.
• To assess the app's effectiveness in facilitating patient authorizations for appointments and visitor entry.
• To analyze the impact of the ExpectingU system on hospital accessibility during the pandemic.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of hospital access trends, including medical appointments and visitor data.
• Evaluation of support staff hiring patterns in relation to hospital access management.
• Correlation of COVID-19 hospitalization rates with the implementation of the ExpectingU system.
• Assessment of system performance in preventing logistical bottlenecks.

Main Results:

• The ExpectingU app successfully facilitated patient authorizations for medical appointments and visitor access.
• Implementation of the system maintained hospital accessibility for essential services and visits.
• No significant bottlenecks were observed in hospital operations post-app implementation.
• The system demonstrated efficiency in managing high-risk hospital entry during a pandemic.

Conclusions:

• The ExpectingU app proved effective in maintaining hospital accessibility during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The system successfully addressed the logistical challenges of restricted hospital access.
• ExpectingU offers a scalable solution for managing patient and visitor flow in healthcare settings.