Re-opening Economies with High Capacity Scheduling

The 2020 global economic shutdown has been historic. New information is presented every day, but one fact remains true: COVID-19 is unpredictable and continues to spread. City centers, polling locations, theaters and stadiums are susceptible to disorganization, crowding, and unhealthy conditions.

As economic planners and public health officials balance risk and weigh options for reopening, they must find controlled and effective methods to avoid crowding and solve for social distancing at scale. This requires a deliberate balance between the need to organize and deliver services, public health, events and gatherings at scale, with extreme levels of organization and safety.

Introducing a New Way Forward: High Capacity Scheduling

High Capacity Scheduling is safe, secure, hands-free scheduling and appointment setting for the masses that can be quickly deployed regionally or nationally to ensure public health. Built on the Skedulo Deskless Productivity Cloud, it’s uniquely designed to address the complexities of scheduling, appointments and site throughput with the high degree of flexibility necessary during this time of change and uncertainty.

Use cases include:

• COVID-19 testing at scale (residents, government employees) 
• Vaccination administration
• Voting and elections
• Large scale entertainment events (concerts, sports, theaters)
• Economic re-opening and “get back to work” programs

How it Works

Rather than allowing unstructured crowds to randomly swarm test sites, polling places or football stadiums at their will, high capacity scheduling allows participants to use their phone or web browser to select specific appointment times for entry, thus ensuring social distancing and governing crowd control.

After a window of time is selected, participants receive their arrival time, crystal clear appointment details and instructions, and what to expect when they arrive. Throughout the process, participants stay informed by email or SMS with reminders and any changes/modifications. To keep participants safe, avoid unnecessary paperwork, and speed entry, the contactless appointment is confirmed via a QR code that will be used for check-in.  This contactless check-in also ensures the safety of staff, allowing them to focus on monitoring arrival time accuracy and scanning entrants. 

One of the main advantages of high capacity scheduling is that the all-digital system continually tracks demand and capacity in real-time to avoid overbooking.  As soon as capacity is reached at one testing or polling site, the dynamic scheduling solution will intelligently re-route new appointment requests to the nearest available site.  

High Capacity Scheduling Success: COVID-19 Testing

Back in March, New York was the epicenter of the virus spread and quickly became the worldwide eye of the COVID storm. Panicked residents flooded regional testing centers not knowing if they had already contracted the disease. Unmasked, they also dangerously interacted with other residents. A new way forward was needed, and BioReference Laboratories, Inc. found High Capacity Scheduling.

In the first four months of deploying the high capacity scheduling solution, BioReference has conducted hundreds of thousands contactless COVID-19 tests, including helping Major League Soccer (MLS), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Football League (NFL) with their player testing. Even the Mass Transit Authority (MTA) in New York used BioReference Lab to help get New York moving again.  

“By using Skedulo, testing that normally took 10 minutes was cut in half to 5 or 6 minutes in and out. With our QR code system linking to the initial booking, there was also no need for manual data entry by staff at the facilities. The amount of data entry went down, and data accuracy went up.”

High Capacity Scheduling Use Case: Vaccine Administration

As the world anxiously awaits a vaccine for COVID-19, public health officials are already planning for the rollout of the vaccine worldwide. While flu vaccine participation rates typically range between 30-40% in the United States, COVID-19 vaccine participation is expected to be significantly higher.

Vaccination administrators are mindful of the surging interest in COVID-19 vaccination and should take steps today to deploy safe, controlled, proven high capacity scheduling to administer the vaccination at a grand scale.  

As with COVID testing, the solution would allow individuals receiving the vaccination to arrive at specific appointment times, avoiding crowding and ensuring social distancing. If capacity has been reached at vaccination site A, appointment requests can be routed to vaccination site B right down the road. The solution can be integrated with existing vaccination administration systems to provide a streamlined technical experience as well.

High Capacity Scheduling Use Case: Voting and Elections

Details for voting in the United States national presidential election in November are still coming together, but regardless of how events take shape here and around the world, polling places are another obvious crowding scenario that must be solved for in a COVID world.  

High Capacity Scheduling is an ideal option for regional or national elections.  City and Federal officials can ensure citizens arrive on time without crowding, streamlining the voting process and ensuring the safety polling administrators. Polling workers can simply and safely scan voters as they arrive to optimize the overall experience.

High Capacity Scheduling Use Case: Large Scale Entertainment such as Sports and Concerts

Do you miss seeing your favorite artist perform or sports team play? Safety considerations have plagued the restart plans for the arts and major league sports across the globe.

High Capacity Scheduling from Skedulo is already helping major league sports with their restart plans in the United States, starting with assuring each and every athlete for Major League Soccer (MLS), The National Basketball Association (NBA), and most recently the National Football League (NFL) are regularly tested.  

The next opportunity for High Capacity Scheduling is with fans or concert goers themselves, providing event attendees a chance to select specific entry times to reduce crowding at the gates and streamline event entry. With crowding avoided, ticketing agents can focus on scanning QR codes while maintaining a safe distance.

High Capacity Scheduling Use Case: Economic Re-opening & “Get Back to Work” Programs

As many downtown business districts remain vacant, city officials are looking for modern ways to manage ingress and egress to corporate headquarters and large multi-use buildings. High Capacity Scheduling can be used for the reopening of city business districts by staggering when workers are scheduled to arrive, avoiding unnecessary crowding in building lobbies and elevators. Workers can have the confidence their corporate headquarters won’t be overwhelmed with fellow commuters all arriving at once.

Human beings are inherently social, and COVID-19 has presented a real challenge as we yearn to reconnect with one another. As disruptive as COVID-19 has been, it is forcing innovation and change. 

At Skedulo, we believe the future of our economies will depend on High Capacity Scheduling.  We invite all customers, partners, investors, and prospective customers to join us as we look to solve these far reaching problems and allow us to get back together once again.