Halle (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – AZ Sint-Maria Halle launched a crowd monitoring tool, showing real-time emergency department activity. Kris Malefason highlights Mondays as the busiest. The tool helps patients plan visits and aids staff efficiency.
As VRT News reported, AZ Sint-Maria Halle has launched a new crowd monitoring tool on its website. They mentioned that the system shows in real time how busy the emergency department is. Patients can check the tool before coming to the hospital.
According to Kris Malefason of AZ Sint-Maria Halle, Mondays are the busiest days in the emergency department. People with non-urgent medical needs are advised to visit at other times. The hospital says the tool will help reduce waiting times.
What is AZ Sint-Maria Halle’s new crowd monitor doing for ER wait times?
The tool also benefits doctors, nurses, and other hospital staff. It helps the hospital see when the emergency department will be crowded.
“We deploy the same number of nurses and doctors every day. The more patients there are, the less time we have for them, and the longer they have to wait in the waiting room. That’s why it’s important to better distribute patients,”
says Kris Malefason of AZ Sint-Maria Halle.
“We are the third hospital in Flanders with a crowd meter. I got the idea from AZ Damian in Ostend, where they have a similar system,”
says Malefason. The crowd monitor can be accessed on the homepage of www.sintmaria.be and on the Emergency Service page. Patients can see current waiting times from home.
Similar crowd monitoring systems have been used in other hospitals in Belgium and Europe. AZ Monica in Antwerp has a display showing real-time waiting times in the emergency department. CHU Liège offers an online tool for patients to check occupancy before visiting. Hospitals in the Netherlands and Germany also provide live updates through websites or apps.
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