Know what's happening in your emergency visit

At registration, staff give you a visit card. Scan its QR code with your phone's camera and your visit opens in the browser: no app, no account, no password. If you can't scan it, enter your last name, your date of birth and the visit code printed on the card. EDFlow connects you to today's visit only, not to your health record.

If the card doesn't work, or you'd rather have help, ask any nurse or the registration desk. They can pair your phone for you.

Your visit screen answers four questions, in this order: where you are in your visit, who is looking after you, what's happening now and what you can do.

• The stage of your visit, from checked in to going home or staying in hospital, with a sentence about what usually happens next.
• Your care team: the names and roles of the doctor and nurse looking after you, updated when they change shifts.
• Your tests, as a process: ordered, collected, in the lab, back. Each shows how long it usually takes at this time of day.
• Things you can do, like handing a sample to your nurse, with a button that lets them know.

Research shows that people who are told what's happening and why feel better about their wait, even when the wait is the same length.^[1][2] So every estimate says what it's based on, like "Based on past Tuesdays around 7 p.m. at this hospital".

Estimates are a range, plus the time most people (9 in 10) are done within. They are never a countdown. If a step is taking longer than usual, the screen says so and suggests checking with a nurse.

When a very sick patient needs the team's attention, you may see a calm notice that waits may be longer. It never says who, or why in detail: only that the team is caring for someone who needs urgent care.

The requests screen has tiles for the things people most often need in an emergency department: water, food, a blanket, help to the washroom, an interpreter, or letting the team know you're stepping out. Your request goes to the right person, and you see when it's sent and when someone has seen it.

The first tile is always I feel worse. It tells you to tell a nurse or staff member in person right away, and it alerts your care team at the same time, with no extra step. It is never a replacement for talking to someone.

• English and French everywhere, and safety messages in more languages.
• Plain language, large text up to 200%, screen readers, high contrast and reduced motion.
• Notifications on your lock screen never say what hospital you're in or anything about your health.