SAYNOTO0870.COM - "Patientline in Critical condition.."

pw4 Full Member Offline Posts: 130	Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.." Reply #45 - Dec 7^th, 2007 at 4:55pm Well, thank you (I think). But I keep telling you: I'm not a manager!
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werdies

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #46 - Dec 8^th, 2007 at 5:30pm

NGMsGhost wrote on Dec 7^th, 2007 at 10:30am:

DonQuixote wrote on Dec 7^th, 2007 at 9:00am:

In any case the banning of mobiles from hospitals on safety grounds is based on an urban myth. They are not banned in Europe e.g. Austria or in UK BUPA hospitals. Eventually the NHS will catch up. So Patientline is doomed.

It is not an Urban Myth but a carefully calculated and deliberate lie invented by cynical and stupid NHS management who signed the contract with Patientline and Patientline executives and turned what you call an Urban Myth in to official signs in NHS hospitals.

That is not an Urban Myth but an act of despicable and cynical commercial connivance designed to cut off patients from communicating with their relatives by affordable means in order to keep the leaky Patientline ship above the waterline.

It's not stipulated in the contract, which is why Patientline aren't challenging it very aggressviely - all the contracts are differnet, and refer to mobile use, but I'm sure none actually say it much be enforced as a ban, they just suggest it

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werdies

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #47 - Dec 8^th, 2007 at 5:42pm

However, a major flaw in the arrangement is that when Patientline is breach of a contract there's virtually nothing that can be done about it.

Well the contracts have been breached so often by all parties that they are pretty much redundant now.

That's easy to say, but how could they have been less expensive? You can't buy hospital bedside TV/phone/internet terminals off the shelf in Dixons. The current price of a flat screen monitor is irrelevant - it doesn't include the PC, the tuner, the phone, the card reader, and the custom software to drive it all. As with all electronic equipment the costs were much higher when the system was first developed a decade and a half ago, and they had to use the technology and materials available at that time. And terminals didn't just plug into handy mains sockets - the hospital had to be cabled up to connect the whole system together, with a control room for the phone exchange and all the other control apparatus, and each terminal installed on the wall along with its PC, and power distribution provided for them all. Even compared to consumer electronics of the time, bedside terminals were a very low volume production item, and they had to be custom designed and developed especially for the hospital enviroment. Newer terminals have been developed and deployed since then, no doubt at lower cost, but development costs are themselves high, so whilst technical advances are rapid, the costs of incoporating them can exceed the savings if changes are made too frequently.

There are far too many of them though, the vast majority at any one time are not being used at all. The future will see most wards lose all the units, and the remaining wards lose most of them. The operation will be much smaller, and some of these will replace older units elsewhere.

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NGMsGhost

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #48 - Dec 8^th, 2007 at 6:11pm

werdies wrote on Dec 8^th, 2007 at 5:42pm:

There are far too many of them though, the vast majority at any one time are not being used at all. The future will see most wards lose all the units, and the remaining wards lose most of them. The operation will be much smaller, and some of these will replace older units elsewhere.

It sounds like if you are geriatric (due to immobility and physical ailments) but have not lost your marbles you will now have to take a stock of good books on the ward rather than watching the telly.

Of course I suppose you may be able to watch tv on your mobile phone instead except that this has also not been a rip roaring success and may be in danger of being withdrawn on some mobile platforms (those using DAB radio network broadcasting spectrum to transmit the signal). Also the eyesight of the elderly may not be up to a picture that small.

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werdies Newbie Offline Posts: 21	Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.." Reply #49 - Dec 8^th, 2007 at 7:25pm Very very very very very few geriatrics use it, marbles or no marbles
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Stoday

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #50 - Dec 9^th, 2007 at 12:26am

Patientline is failing because its management can't get its tariff right. If Ryanair had the same pricing policy there wouldn't be a Ryanair now.

The cost structure is much the same - high capital cost that requires high useage to provide a profitable service. The competition is not the same however. So Patientline hasn't even thought of how to react to competition and doesn't have a driver to get its price tariff right.

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NGMsGhost

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #51 - Dec 9^th, 2007 at 12:44am

Here, here, here.

I think Patientline in its lack of commercial acumen and stubborn inability to respond to market conditions is very similar to another company I am a customer of known as www.worldspace.com

This company was planning to leave all its customers living in Europe with no radio service at all for over a year while it upgraded its audio encoding method from MP3 to AAC+. Now with 3 days to go they have changed their mind.

Also they try charging 60 quid a year for listening to a range of 40 stations and when it doesn't work just ignore all the advice they get that advertising is thew way to generate revenue on radio.

Sounds like Patientline all over again doesn't it.

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« Last Edit: Dec 13^th, 2007 at 12:27am by DaveM »

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loddon

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #52 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:13am

A report in todays local news on BBC 1 tv "Breakfast" shows a patient who was in Brightom Hospital and took in his own small screen TV.

He was spotted by a Patientline representative who told him to switch it off. The mystified patient said he didn't understand and he was doing nothing wrong. The nurses had not said anything to him about watching his own TV. The Patientline police told him to switch it off or he would be prosecuted.

Brighton Hospital Trust have issued a statement that says, in effect, Patientline should be careful how they speak to patients. They also say that using a battery TV is OK but you may not plug in your own TV.

If you watch BBC 1 South News at about 8.35 and 8.55 you may see the story repeated.

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« Last Edit: Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:15am by loddon »

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NGMsGhost

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #53 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 10:45am

loddon wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:13am:

Brighton Hospital Trust have issued a statement that says, in effect, Patientline should be careful how they speak to patients. They also say that using a battery TV is OK but you may not plug in your own TV..

Why ever not! Are we led to believe that the extra trivial electricity cost is likely to bankrupt the NHS. Would they let you bring in your own car battery weekly and consider this safer than using the mains electricity?

Also it shows the utterly abusive mentality of Patientline personnel towards patients that they would try to pull such a stunt as its already clear that anyone who goes to the lengths of getting their own tv is violenty unhappy with Patientline charges so for Patientline to challenge this is like pouring oil on the fire.

Far better to ignore it knowing that Mr and Mrs Average will still carry on using the Patientline tv service.

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« Last Edit: Dec 11^th, 2007 at 10:46am by NGMsGhost »

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crabtree Junior Member Offline Posts: 74 Wigan	Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.." Reply #54 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 3:16pm More http://www.theargus.co.uk/display.var.1890228.0.0.php?act=complaint&cid=856048
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idb

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #55 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 4:18pm

Which includes:

<<
Then one afternoon I was watching a programme about nuclear explosions when the Patientline woman appeared. She came over and told me to switch it off. She said I wasn't allowed my own TV because it was a breach of the contract her company has with the hospital to supply TVs. She said if I kept watching I could be prosecuted.
>>

One wonders exactly on what grounds a prosecution could take place. Perhaps the offence is something along the lines of 'walking on the cracks in the pavement' or 'walking around with an offensive wife'. Call in Constable Savage.

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« Last Edit: Dec 13^th, 2007 at 12:29am by DaveM »

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Dave

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #56 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 7:40pm

NGMsGhost wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 10:45am:

loddon wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:13am:

Brighton Hospital Trust have issued a statement that says, in effect, Patientline should be careful how they speak to patients. They also say that using a battery TV is OK but you may not plug in your own TV..

Why ever not! ...

Would this not be for electrical safety reasons and the fact that all appliances need to be PAT tested (portable appliance test) in a hospital?

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« Last Edit: Dec 11^th, 2007 at 7:41pm by Dave »

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bbb_uk

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #57 - Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:01pm

Dave wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 7:40pm:

Would this not be for electrical safety reasons and the fact that all appliances need to be PAT tested (portable appliance test) in a hospital?

I agree with Dave here. I believe all electrical appliances need to be tested (earth faults, etc). This is probably due to the fact that they don't want someone plugging something in and a fuse going in the ward or something. Back-up generators would kick-in but there are only certain sockets which would benefit from back-up generators.

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Stoday Newbie Offline Posts: 29 East Anglia Gender:	Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.." Reply #58 - Dec 12^th, 2007 at 2:28am My local hospital allows you to plug appliances such as a TV or radio into bedside sockets, provided thay have tested it first. Testing takes a week. I've had three one week sessions in the last 3 years but never saw anyone taking advantage of this provision.
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pw4

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Re: "Patientline in Critical condition.."
Reply #59 - Dec 12^th, 2007 at 2:43pm

Dave wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 7:40pm:

NGMsGhost wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 10:45am:

loddon wrote on Dec 11^th, 2007 at 8:13am:

They also say that using a battery TV is OK but you may not plug in your own TV..

Why ever not! ...

Would this not be for electrical safety reasons and the fact that all appliances need to be PAT tested (portable appliance test) in a hospital?

Yes of course, it is for safety reasons. A safety inspection is required - not just a PAT test.

Stoday wrote on Dec 12^th, 2007 at 2:28am:

Testing takes a week.

Wow, that must be thorough! The inspection - including the PAT test - actually takes minutes, but hospital electricians - many of whom are contractors who visit weekly and for call-outs - have higher priorities, as you would hope in a hospital. Some hospitals charge for the service - which may sound like extortion but the hospital has to pay the contractor for his time and services.

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