Online Check-in Launched at Commonwealth Health Facilities

12/12/2016

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. (Dec. 13, 2016) – Patients seeking emergency or urgent care for non-life threatening conditions have a convenient new option to consider: Wait at home instead of the waiting room.

The emergency department at three Commonwealth Health hospitals and two walk-in clinics are now offering Online Check-in, a service intended to enhance the patients’ overall experience by giving them more control of the process.

The service was launched this week at Moses Taylor Hospital and Regional Hospital in Scranton; Wilkes-Barre General Hospital; the Mid Valley Walk-In Clinic in Blakely, and the Mountain Top Walk-In Clinic.

“Online Check-in is for individuals whose injuries and illnesses are not life-threatening or debilitating,” Cor Catena, CEO of Commonwealth Health, said. “We never know when the emergency department is going to have multiple, critical emergencies arriving at once, or when a walk-in clinic will experience a spike in volume that results in a longer-than-usual wait time. Online Check-in helps individuals know what to expect from the outset, and offers them the flexibility of waiting at home until closer to their projected treatment time, if needed.”

Online Check-in is accessed through the hospital’s website, www.commonwealthhealth.net. Individuals then select the type of care they are seeking, and a location, to receive a projected treatment time.

The service can be extremely helpful for a parent with a small child, or for someone bringing in an elderly relative who is concerned about exposure to germs and viruses in the waiting room. The service is expected to be especially popular during flu season or when there is a high incidence of contagious viruses.

Here’s how Online Check-in works:

• Visit www.commonwealthhealth.net and click on “Online Check-in.” 
• Select “urgent” or “emergency” care, and a location.
• Choose a projected treatment time based on current wait time, and complete a brief online form.
• Staff will review your information, and let you know if you should come in sooner than planned.
• When you arrive at the emergency department or walk-in clinic, staff will be expecting you, and strive to see you within 15 minutes of your projected treatment time.
• If there is a spike in patient traffic, staff will notify you via email or automated phone call with a new projected treatment time.

Individuals who use Online Check-in are not seen ahead of patients already in the waiting room; rather, their names are added to the treatment list based on the time they checked in online.  Unless an individual’s illness or injury requires expedited care, patients are treated in the order they registered.

Online Check-in does not allow patients whose symptoms indicate a life-threatening or debilitating medical condition to use the service; key words such as “chest pain” trigger a directive to call 911 or to go to the nearest emergency department immediately.

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