Smart hospital rooms might look like something out of the future, but they are slowly bringing a modernized patient experience to the present.
When Alpa Vyas first asked patients at Stanford Health Care what they would like in a smart hospital room, she was almost certain they’d want to see a digitized care itinerary.
“You can imagine if you’re an inpatient and you have an itinerary that says, ‘physical therapy will be by at two o’clock, you will go for your x-ray at four o’clock,’ that’s pretty nice to be able to know when things are happening,” Vyas, who is vice president of patient experience at Stanford Health Care, told PatientEngagementHIT in an interview.
But that wasn’t exactly the case, she recounted.
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After consulting patients through the health system’s patient advisory council (PAC), Vyas and her team learned that smart hospital room tech that could improve the patient experience was in fact much simpler.
Patients at Stanford Health Care really just wanted to know who their care team was and what they needed to get back home, she recounted. “So, the word we started using was ‘guidance.’ How can we create an experience that offers personalized guidance for patients and family members?”
Many PAC meetings and considerations about patient guidance later, Stanford Health Care was able to open its doors on the new Stanford Hospital last November.
Built with California’s infamous earthquakes, innovations in health technology, and the patient in mind, this newest hospital boasts numerous in-room entertainment options, complete with pillow speakers and patient-operated controls. On the television, patients can watch their favorite shows or movies, access educational materials, and learn more about their own medical records or care team.
Source: Patient Engagement Hit