Prototyping an Online Elective Surgery Waitlist Management System

Excessive waiting time for elective surgery and a lack of information regarding patient´s status in the waiting list have left the patients upset and unsatisfied while waiting for their turn to receive the treatment. The situation was made worse by inefficient waitlist management that possibly results in unexpected delay and negative impacts on the health condition of the patients. In this paper, we investigate current waitlist management systems implemented in Australia´s five states and suggest a design prototype that could better address patient needs and empower them by providing personalised information about their waitlist status and decision support on implications of changing their preferences.