Managing Higher Visitor Volumes in Cold and Flu Season with EntrySign

As winter arrives and cold and flu season takes hold, organisations face a dual challenge: increased visitor traffic and heightened infection risk. Hospitals, care homes, schools, corporate offices and other institutions must maintain a smooth flow of visitors without compromising health, safety or security.

That is where EntrySign can play a vital role. EntrySign’s visitor management and sign-in system offers tools that help organisations cope with surges in visitor volume while supporting infection control and operational efficiency.

Below is how organisations can manage higher visitor volumes in cold and flu season using EntrySign, and some practical tips to get the best from it.

The challenge: balancing flow and infection control

Cold and flu season brings predictable pressures:

More visitors want appointments, meetings, deliveries, and inspections.
Additional screening or health checks to reduce the risk of contagion.
Longer queues or bottlenecks at reception or entry points.
The need to avoid congregations (crowds) in waiting areas.
Ensuring traceability, contact data, and compliance with health policy.

If left unmanaged, increased visitor volumes can lead to delays, crowding, and frustration, especially in environments where infection risk is top of mind.

To tackle this, you need a system that supports scalability, automation, contactless processes, screening and good data handling.

How EntrySign helps manage higher visitor volumes

Here are key features of EntrySign that can ease the burden during cold and flu season:

1. Pre-booking visitors and scheduling

One of EntrySign’s core features is the ability to pre-book visitors (and contractors). Visitors can schedule their arrival in advance, including time windows. This helps smooth demand and prevent sudden spikes of arrivals at reception.

By distributing arrivals over time, you avoid crowding, reduce waiting times, and give staff breathing room to process each arrival.

2. Self-service and contactless sign-in

EntrySign supports self-service kiosks and contactless sign-in options. Visitors can sign themselves in with minimal interaction from staff. Touchless check-in (for example, via QR codes) reduces physical contact and exposure risk.

During peak seasons, this lowers the workload on reception, speeds up throughput, and helps maintain distancing protocols.

3. Visitor screening and infection control

EntrySign includes visitor screening capabilities as part of its infection control features. Organisations can set health questionnaires, display disclaimers or warnings, require temperature checks or symptom attestations.

By filtering or flagging visitors before full access, you reduce the likelihood of infectious individuals entering busy areas.

4. Secure and Temporary Access with EntryCodes

Enhance security and convenience with EntryCodes, which generate unique PIN or QR codes during sign-in for visitors and contractors. These temporary access codes allow controlled entry to designated areas and automatically expire upon sign-out, ensuring security at all times.

Once visitors receive their code, they can proceed directly to their specific meeting locations with temporary access, rather than gathering in lobbies or waiting for assistance.

5. Real-time data, reporting and capacity monitoring

With higher visitor volumes, it becomes crucial to monitor in real time how many people are inside, waiting or in transit. EntrySign captures data and reporting, giving insights into peak times, visitor loads, durations and movement.

These analytics allow managers to adjust staffing, open extra entry points, or stagger appointments based on observed demand.

6. Evacuation and safety features under pressure

In emergencies (fire, health event, etc.), knowing exactly who is in the building is critical. EntrySign supports automated evacuation reports that list all signed-in visitors and staff. During busier periods, this feature ensures safety compliance even when volumes are high.

7. Integration with existing systems

EntrySign is designed to integrate with access control systems, staff databases (e.g. HR or school MIS), and identity systems. This avoids duplication, speeds sign-in, and helps continuity. Integration means less friction when volumes are heavy and fewer manual steps.

Best practices for using EntrySign in peak seasons

Having the tool is one thing; using it well is another. Below are practical tips to get the most out of EntrySign during times of heavy visitor traffic and infection risk

PRACTICE

Encourage pre-booking and communication in advance

Stagger arrivals/buffer windows

Use multiple kiosks or entry points

Display signage and instructions clearly

Enable the screening questionnaire

Train staff to monitor queues and redirect flow

Monitor dashboard metrics live

Communicate internal protocol changes

Review data each week

BENEFIT/RATIONALE

Prevent last-minute walk-ins from clustering

Avoid overlapping groups arriving together

Spread arrivals rather than forcing them through one point

Help visitors self-navigate the sign-in process correctly

Catch potential symptoms or risk before full access

Quick interventions prevent bottlenecks

Spot surges or delays and respond dynamically

Let staff and visitors know about health checks

Use reports to refine scheduling, staffing, or capacity

Use cases: sectors that benefit most

While many organisations benefit, some sectors face particular challenges in the cold and flu season:

Healthcare and clinics: Controlling patient, visitor, and contractor flow while protecting vulnerable populations.
Care homes and residential care: Avoiding cross-infection in high-risk resident communities.
Schools and colleges: Balancing parental or external visitors with school safety.
Office or commercial environments: Maintaining business continuity while safeguarding staff and guests.
Leisure, events or public sector facilities: Managing many arrivals in a controlled way.

In each case, the combination of pre-booking, seamless check-in, screening and data visibility is powerful

Conclusion

Cold and flu season inevitably brings higher visitor volumes and heightened health risk. Organisations that do not plan will struggle with queues, infection control failures, delays, and unhappy visitors.

EntrySign offers a robust platform that supports pre-booking, self-service check-ins, screening, notifications, integration and reporting, precisely the tools needed to manage volume and protect health simultaneously.

By combining smart processes, data monitoring and staff readiness, organisations can ride out the busiest seasons with confidence.