Self-rooming preferred by primary care clinical staff and patients during COVID-19 pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, clinic staff have had to adjust the ways in which they see patients in person so that they remain safe.

Researchers conducted a study to determine patient and staff perceptions of a process that allowed patients, after check-in, to find their own exam rooms. Most of the 1,561 patients surveyed in this study preferred self-rooming, especially among patients aged 65 years and younger and in family medicine clinics.

Few patients said they felt less welcomed, less cared about, more isolated, more lost or confused, or more frustrated with self-rooming compared to escorted-rooming. Over half of staff preferred self-rooming and thought most patients did as well.