Immigration Medical Toronto decreases wait times with WaitWell
Busy Toronto medical practice reduces in-office waiting by 75%
Immigration Medical Clinic in Toronto struggled to manage capacity in its waiting area, especially during the height of the pandemic. They were looking for a solution that would help reduce in-clinic wait times and provide patients with a better experience. They also needed a way for front desk staff to collect and review COVID waivers and medical intake forms and to share that information with doctors in a secure and paperless manner. WaitWell met all of the needs of this medical clinic and exponentially increased service efficiency.
Overview
With two locations in downtown Toronto, both easily accessible by public transportation, Immigration Medical Toronto offers services from six panel appointed Physicians as patients complete their steps towards becoming Canadian citizens. These busy clinics offer services in many languages and their services include physical exams, blood collection, and x-rays, all completed within a single visit in the same building.
Appointments can be booked through their website, but Immigration Medical Toronto understands that there may be barriers to booking online as newcomers may not yet have internet access, or perhaps there are language barriers. As such, walk-in visits comprise a large number of patients to Immigration Medical’s two locations.
busy medical clinics
less in-office waiting
medical physicians
Business Challenge
Like so many businesses, Immigration Medical Toronto was faced with limiting the capacity in their waiting room at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant fewer people in the reception area and more people having to wait outside on very hot and humid days, and on very cold and snowy ones. A solution was needed to alleviate the lines outside. Immigration Medical Toronto turned to the internet for help and found WaitWell.
Solution
Dr. Danny Chan, Panel Physician at Immigration Medical Toronto reached out to WaitWell in the winter of 2021 for help. WaitWell quickly helped Dr. Chan create a solution that would alleviate the pain of lines outside both of the clinics.
By scanning the QR code on the clinic door, or texting the number listed, patients were placed in the virtual queue and free to wait in their warm cars or go grab a coffee until their turn was called. “Because of COVID, we needed a way to control our patient flow in accordance with social distancing protocols. Our reception was forced to limit capacity and people had to wait outside. WaitWell gave us that solution,” says Dr. Chan.
WaitWell allows staff to increase or decrease the priority of patients
While Immigration Medical Toronto initially chose WaitWell to manage the walk-in queues, staff discovered that other features have proven to be very helpful. The ability to increase or decrease the priority of a patient in line has proven very beneficial. Another unexpectedly helpful feature is the ability to place someone on hold. Sometimes people just need a few more minutes, or perhaps they have forgotten a document.
A click of a button puts them on hold and then back at the top of the line when they are ready so they don’t have to wait all over again. Staff at the clinic don’t have to add the extra task of screening for COVID to their workload. WaitWell’s COVID waiver feature collects the information in the form of a questionnaire developed by Immigration Medical Toronto. Staff can see at a glance if the waiver has been collected and if there are any problems with the answers. “I like that staff can see at a glance, what room a patient is in, whether they have arrived or not, and if their COVID waiver has been completed”, says Dr. Chan.
WaitWell is making it easier on staff and patients
Although the days of reduced capacity due to COVID restrictions may be waning, lineups are not going to go away. The need to have COVID waivers will be around for the foreseeable future, people not liking to stand in line is also a guaranteed fact.
At Immigration Medical Toronto, providing newcomers with a way to wait comfortably and safely seems very welcoming and ultra-Canadian. WaitWell has provided the perfect solution to tackle their problem.
Because of Covid, we needed a way to control our patient flow in accordance with social distancing protocols. Our reception was forced to limit capacity and people had to wait outside. WaitWell gave us that solution.
–Dr. Danny Chan, Panel Physician at Immigration Medical Toronto
