Case Study: Wayfinding

The Challenge

With more than 12 million square feet of patient-accessible areas in more than 200 locations, the Houston Methodist Center for Innovation team knew that wayfinding at Houston Methodist could be a problem. 

Houston Methodist sought to remove the anxiety that being lost or disoriented can add to the patient experience. We were also concerned that patients could have a great clinical experience, yet the only thing they would remember is the difficulty of finding their way out of the building.

The Solution

The Center for Innovation team worked with Phunware, a mobile development company with scalable technology that was perfect for hospital wayfinding. Phunware was able to work with Houston Methodist’s existing technology and mobile app infrastructure, which streamlined development and minimized costs.

The Pilot

Wayfinding was part of the MyMethodist app version 1.0 launch. Turn-by-turn instructions and visual maps help patients find their destination from anywhere within a Houston Methodist location. 

What's Next?

The gold standard of in-building wayfinding is “blue dot” locating via an indoor positioning system (IPS). Houston Methodist continues to push toward offering the most accurate and patient-friendly wayfinding systems available.