Easing the feeling of waiting too long: five ways that do not rely on video
In hospitals, clinics and salons, some waiting is unavoidable. Reducing the wait itself is the best remedy, but often it is not quick to do. Meanwhile, the same wait can feel short to one person and long to another. This article looks at ways to ease that feeling of being kept waiting.
How long a wait feels depends on how it is felt
A preliminary study of medical-welfare students in Japan (Kawasaki Journal of Medical Welfare, 2016, in Japanese) reported that people who saw waiting time as "wasted" tended to be more dissatisfied. It is a small study, but it suggests that how people spend and perceive the wait, not just its length, is tied to dissatisfaction.
Five ways to ease the feeling of waiting
- Show what is next. Simply knowing "how many people are ahead of me" or "which appointment time is being seen now" lets people plan. A nursing-department report from one hospital (Asahikawa Red Cross Hospital, 2018, in Japanese) suggests that posting the appointment time currently being seen lets patients predict when they will be called, and even step away from the waiting room for a while.
- Let people leave the waiting room. A call buzzer or a smartphone notification lets them wait in their car or a nearby shop.
- Comfort and space. Comfortable chairs, distance from neighbors, temperature and brightness. A comfortable body probably changes the sense of time.
- Reduce idle moments. Magazines, picture books, a seat with a charger, Wi-Fi: things people can do while they wait.
- A calm screen. Instead of news or shows, calm scenery keeps the room quiet (what to show).
A screen is only one of the five. No video can fix the frustration of waiting without knowing how long. Tell people what to expect first, then make the place where they wait comfortable, in that order.
keensense, for comparison
keensense is a service run by the people who wrote this article. It shows natural scenery in a web browser. Calm scenes such as a forest, a beach or a campfire can be shown on the waiting-room screen, and the sound can be muted so that it does not get in the way of calling names.
- Setup: open a dedicated URL in the browser of a TV, tablet or PC you already have. No account, sign-up, installation or special hardware (an internet connection is required).
- Scenes: campfire, candle, forest (five times of day), beach, park (cherry blossoms in spring, autumn leaves), night sky and a sea of clouds. A venue can choose one, or let the scene change automatically every 15, 30 or 60 minutes.
- Price: $69 per month or $690 per year. One license covers one location, with any number of screens inside that facility. A 7-day money-back guarantee applies if it doesn't work on your equipment or network.