Hospital Bedside Phones - Patientline

[mattpark]

Currently three of my friends and family are in hospital with various illnesses and injuries!

In the James Cook University hospital Middlesbrough, most of the wards have an singing and dancing bedside system from a company called "Patientline". This device enables bed bound patients to browse the internet, watch TV, play games, and make and receive phone calls. Excellent idea, well implemented, very handy.

However, last time i went in, i counted the number of "topup" cards, which are used to add funds to your account, on the window ledge. 12 cards in total, ranging in value from £5 - £20.

Hangman, at £0.50 a game, isn't a necessity, so cut that out and your saving plenty already... but with the majority of calls costing £0.40 per minute, in a building where mobile phones aren't allowed, surely is preying on the sick!?!?!

Is this angering anyone else?! Maybe it's time these people look at VoIP to start lowering costs for the end user?

Matt

Nine in ten patients say the cost of using bedside phone systems in hospital are "extortionate" and that prices must come down.

While many of the patients quizzed welcomed the convenience of the system, many said the charges for incoming calls were "exorbitant".

A survey of 1,200 patients and visitors found deep resentment to the high cost of using bedside phones in hospital with some people running up bills of hundreds of pounds to stay in touch.

In other cases patients were left isolated while in hospital because people were reluctant to call them due to high charges.

Eighty-eight per cent of those surveyed believed the cost of calling was either expensive or very expensive and called on NHS Trusts to slash costs.

The most expensive charges - which apply to more than 100 hospitals where Patientline operates its services - cost 39p a minute for off peak calls and 49p a minute at all other times for inbound calls.

The survey was carried out by the Commission for Patient and Public Involvement in Health (CPPIH), which was set up in 2003 to ensure that people are involved in decision making about health and health services in England.

Sharon Grant, head of the CPPIH, said the findings provide evidence to back up what patients have been saying for some time.

"They (patients) want to see the cost of incoming charges reduced and more areas opened up in hospitals for them to use their mobile phones. This information can't be ignored and the public will expect ministers to respond to the concerns we are raising on behalf of patients. "

Earlier this year telecoms regulator Ofcom called on the Department of Health (DoH) to carry out a review into the cost of phoning patients in hospital. The review stems from an investigation launched by Ofcom last summer, amid allegations that people were being ripped off for telephoning patients in hospital.

Closing its probe into whether these charges were "excessive", Ofcom said that its investigation had "identified that high call prices are a result of a complex web of government policy and agreements between the providers, the NHS and individual NHS Trusts" and called on the DoH to carry out a review of charges.

The CPPIH hopes that the results of its patient survey will be used as part of that review.

In a statement, Patientline said that it "fully acknowledges concerns raised about our incoming call charges".

"We have long wanted to reduce the cost of incoming charges, which are currently being reviewed by the review group set up by Department of Health. Outgoing calls from the bedside cost much less - 10p per minute," it said.

[JamesLovett]

Hi Matt,

I have to say I completely agree with you. I have an uncle in rehabilitation after brain surgery and he has a similar system available. The rates are exorbitant and he uses it as rarely as possible (but he has little else to do!)

Purely on the phone side of things, not only would the call rates be far less but you could assign a geographical number to the bedside phone if it were VoIP (well you could with the DEVIL7 ones anyway). This would be great for patients such as my Uncle who aside from a workaholic would like to be contactED, not just be able to contact others.

Home numbers, work DDIs, at the patients bedside? Sounds like a good plan to me.

Question is, how does one convince the NHS of this? They are very set in their ways and Comms decision makers within the NHS are far to 'know it all' to be open to such useful suggestions.

I guess we'll just have to hope that someone in the NHS notices the technology which is staring them in the face!

[mattpark]

James,

Patentline is a PLC, http://www.londonstockexchange.com/e...SEAQ3022108PTL

So the NHS at the end of the day only has the choice have these devices, or not.

All call prices are set by patientline themselves, and any profit made, presumably goes straight back in to the company - NOT the NHS. So not only are patients paying a fortune for calls, their money doesn't even benefit the NHS on the whole. I don't actually know if this is the case, but i'd be highly surprised if it isn't. This is another issue all together though!

I'm glad this frustrates someone else. Wonder how many more people out there feel the same?!

Matt

[Crumb]

I agree patient line is a complete rip off but I think you'll be surprised to know that they are actually using VOIP.

They use their own GUI to the standard windows H323 client linked back to a Cisco unit.

There is another company that make these too called Hospicom and they are a bit cheaper.

I also believe Patient line are currently under investigation.

These companies give the NHS the whole unit for free (games, TV and Phone) for free and operate completely on the profit from their charges

[JamesLovett]

I think that the fact they are using VoIP makes the charges to the patient even more unjustifiably extortionate.

I would happily provide the whole service for free if it meant the NHS rolled out a DEVIL7 branded VoIP service to all patients. The return in other business would more than compensate.

If only the NHS looked at alternatives...