Mackenzie Health launched a new, free mobile wayfinding application (app) to help patients and visitors navigate their way around Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital or navigate to any of Mackenzie Health’s community locations.
The Mackenzie Health wayfinding app was developed to assist our visitors find their way through the Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital and our community based locations. The wayfinding app can be easily installed on a personal device and is now available through the Apple Store or Google Play.
The app can direct a patient to Patient Registration, where they will be prompted to register or check in. The app also can also be used to navigate to a clinic or appointment, the food court or the closest washroom. The user’s current location is indicated on the map with a blue dot showing exactly where they are while navigating to their destination. The app also includes hours of operation for clinics and other locations.
The Mackenzie Health Wayfinding is another tool Mackenzie Health provides to assist people while at the hospital and complements signage as well as the staff and volunteers available to help visitors find a location.
This new innovation for patients and visitors was led by Mackenzie Health’s information, communications, and automation technology (ICAT) team. The app uses MediNav™, a technology developed by Connexient.
QUOTES:
"Mackenzie Health has a proud history of innovation with technology, combined with a sharp focus on delivering an outstanding patient experience. With the significant growth of smartphone usage, we wanted to be among the first community hospitals to embrace the innovation of mobile wayfinding. With Connexient’s MediNav™, we are providing patients and visitors with user-friendly interactive indoor maps and turn-by-turn navigation to any destination inside the hospital.”
Richard Tam, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, Mackenzie Health
“Mackenzie Health’s new wayfinding app is yet another evolution in the organization’s commitment to creating a world-class health experience for our community. This free, easy to use tool will provide patients and visitors with another medium to help them get to any location within the hospital such as a clinic appointment or visit a patient in hospital, all for a much better patient and family experience.”
Cindy Draycott, Executive Director, MIS (Managed ICAT Services), Mackenzie Health
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Quick Facts at a Glance:
About Mackenzie Health:
- Mackenzie Health is a regional health care provider which includes the existing Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital, the future Mackenzie Vaughan Hospital, as well as a comprehensive network of community-based services.
- Guided by a vision to create a world-class health experience, Mackenzie Health has an unrelenting focus on the patient and is dedicated to patient needs now and in the future. With over 500,000 residents in Southwest York Region, Mackenzie Health is proud to serve one of the fastest growing and most diverse communities in Canada.
- In July 2017, Mackenzie Health launched a new electronic medical record (EMR) that transforms the way care is delivered in this community. The new EMR implemented in collaboration with software developer Epic, is the first full-suite Epic EMR to be installed in a Canadian hospital.
- Upon completion in 2020, Mackenzie Vaughan Hospital will be the first hospital in Canada to feature fully integrated “smart” technology systems and medical devices that speak directly to one another to maximize information exchange. The smart hospital vision will be applied at the existing Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital as well as the new Mackenzie Vaughan Hospital for a seamless care experience.
About ICAT at Mackenzie Health:
ICAT is helping to enable an exceptional care experience for patients with:
- Integrated care delivery customized to individual patient needs;
- Enhanced bed-side care as clinicians can better interact with patients with the technology; and
- Enhanced communications for patients with special needs such as built-in language translation services and touch screen technology for patients with limited mobility.
Mackenzie Health’s ICAT strategy is also enabling our staff and physicians to:
- Spend more time at the bedside to care for their patients;
- Have better communication and tools at their fingertips;
- Experience faster response times; and
- Help reduce human error with the help of supporting technologies.
Editor's Note: The Mackenzie Health Wayfinding app, described in this article, has been discontinued. Visitors are encouraged to rely on alternative resources such as on-site signage and volunteers located at our information desks for navigation assistance at either Mackenzie Richmond Hill Hospital or Cortellucci Vaughan Hospital.