Innovations in mobile wayfinding are transforming the patient experience at hospitals across the country. Using the latest smartphone and tablet capabilities, branded hospital mobile apps can help improve patient satisfaction, reduce late arrivals and missed appointments, and empower hospital staff to work more efficiently.
A “clinical trial” is the easiest and most affordable way to evaluate the potential of mobile wayfinding for your facilities—as Dignity Health is finding out. The fifth-largest health system in the U.S., Dignity Health serves communities in 21 states. Last week, Dignity Health’s French Hospital Medical Center launched a free patient wayfinding app for patients in San Luis Obispo, California. The new app (called FrenchWay) is part of a 90-day pilot program for Dignity Health.
A Mobile App “Clinical Trial” Lets You Test Key Features
The FrenchWay app offers patients and visitors:
- Instant directions from home or office, right to the hospital
- Navigational tools, including an indoor GPS to guide patients within the facility
- Information on French Hospital physicians and department services
- “Find a physician” capabilities
- A link to the patient portal to check appointments and medical history
- Up-to-date news, events, and promotional information—with built-in alerts
- Construction and modernization updates
- Special discounts and promotions at the hospital gift shop and cafeteria
Because each hospital in the Dignity Health system has its own identity, the pilot app is branded as “FrenchWay,” with French Hospital branding overlaid on the Dignity Health app.
Here’s an overview of the app’s functionality from the French Medical Center website (where you can also download and test out the app):
French Hospital Execs See Real Promise in Mobility
According to Alan Iftiniuk, French Hospital President/CEO, “The addition of the FrenchWay app here at French Hospital provides another resource with which we can continue to improve our patient and visitor experience. This app will not only make navigating the hospital easier, it will also ensure our patients and visitors have access to the latest French Hospital news, information on services, and even the newest promotions in our gift shop.”
Developed by Phunware, the FrenchWay pilot program offers a strategic and cost-effective way for Dignity Health to explore mobile wayfinding. Working closely with Phunware’s expert Solutions Architects and Software Engineers, Dignity Health can also optimize the pilot app for eventual rollout across all facilities in the system. Patient and visitor feedback is captured via simple surveys within the app. As Carla Adams, French Hospital COO and Chief Nurse Executive, says: “We definitely have a very savvy community and we feel that this is something that will benefit (it), but we need to know that, we need to validate that, so the feedback we get will be incredibly helpful.”
Interested in Discussing Your Own “Clinical Trial”?
Contact us to set one up.
Check out this video and article from KEYT.com about the Dignity Health Mobile FrenchWay App:
