Patient Line is a disgusting disgrace Blog Discussion

littlemissmoney

dmg24 wrote:

littlemissmoney,

5hreek is correct, I can see what you mean by the way they have presented the figures as a double negative, but they are definitely representing a loss. I've double checked by doing a quick Google on it and it is definitely a loss.

Oops, ignore me :wall:

MrsFroogle

I went into hospital earlier this year (false alarm when pregnant), my DH would phone and I'd call him back. £5 per day was suficent, for check up calls and tv - I appreciated the contact/service but do agree it was overpriced. I would have benefited more if he could have stayed longer, but thats hospital policy???

max2002ad

I am lucky and that patientline hasn't spread down to where i live. however when my partner made several trips to goodhope hospital it's all over the place. The Best advice i can offer is to get the person in hospital to call you at an arranged time therefore reducing the cost by 30p a minute.

Here are some news items from the bbc if you want further info.

Patientline's financial troubles:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4708072.stm

The review of bedside phone charges:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4623942.stm

The Ofcom investigation - VERY interesting reading
http://www.ofcom.org.uk/bulletins/comp_bull_index/comp_bull_ccases/closed_all/cw_844/case.pdf#xml=http://search.atomz.com/search/pdfhelper.tk?sp_o=2,100000,0

I hope this helps this discussion.

Jaynne

Mobile phones are very dangerous to some types of electronic equipment, particularly those in intensive care. Whilst its safe to use them in certain areas I'd say hospitals are correct to generally blanket ban them as whilst you might not be going into one of these areas you could just be the other side from the wall from them. Not only that but the last thing I'd want in hospital would be to be in the same room as another patient who was constantly getting calls and texts with the noise not turned off, talk about the wrong mood to recouperate in!

Aaaaant

While the costs to phone PatientLine are extraordinarily expensive, the cost of calling out is a lot cheaper at 10p per min. However, if the person you are calling is able to get out of bed then you can speak to them briefly via the main ward phone. All you need to do is phone the hospital switchboard and ask to be put through to the ward, most nurses don't mind if it's only for a few minutes. There are still also a lot of payphones situated around the hospital, which you could phone back.

If the person you are phoning cannot get out of bed, then ten years ago you wouldn't have been able to speak to them! If you want TV then you have to pay for it, but some wards may still have a communal TV available.

The radio on Patientline is free. The only annoying thing is that you have to register to activate the system. You get put through to a call centre, where someone asks for your name, you can refuse this and they will still activate the system. Sometimes they also put a nominal fee of around 20p on the system - I guess so it hooks you in - you can make two minutes of phone calls using this. Breakfast TV is also free.

Patientline is installed without any charge to the hospitals - although they will eventually take a small percentage of profits.

For more detailed reference you might want to look at: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmselect/cmhealth/815/815we25.htm

autumn_3

MSE_Andrea wrote:

This is the discussion to link on the back of Martin's "Patient Line is a disgusting disgrace... judge a nation on how it treats its sick" blog. Please read the blog first, as the discussion follows it.


Read Martin's "Patient Line is a disgusting disgrace... judge a nation on how it treats its sick" Blog

I agree, I think to charge the cost of car parking and phone calls to visit or call the sick is apalling - it reminds me of a trip to Egypt many years ago when the relative of the sick camped out in front of the hospital because they couldn't afford the bribes to visit their loved ones and / or to pay for necessary meds. We don't seem to be that far away, but then there are always the bonus's of hospital acquired infections. What joy, how well we are treated by those that are supposed to be in the caring professions. Human contact is so important and now the hospitals are looking at reducing patient contact with visitors to prevent the infections - perhaps they should keep their own house in order first?

MSE_Martin

Thankfully my father is now out of hospital. And I've calmed down a little (not a lot about this). I've printed out a pile of research to look into the patientline and what is already being done about it (and added car parking to the list).

I haven't read through the stuff yet, but it does seem it has been discussed in parliament and there is already some lobbying. If its being sorted already - wonderful - if not then after research I am to write a balance review of whats on offer and see if a campaign is needed.

martin

iwanttosave_2

A campain would be greatly appreciated

Can I have a placard? :j

rhig

I used patient line a few months ago and thought the phone calls were a bit expensive (when calls are made from outside). I think the main reason for the loss is the cost of the equipment, for one bed Patientline supplies a computer with an LCD screen on a movable arm.

I would guess this costs over £1000 per bed as the screen with phone and integrated keyboard is probably bespoke and the arm is pretty sophisticated, allowing a lot of freedom of movement. This hardware is needed for patientline to be able to provide phone/TV and internet to the patient, internet requiring the most expensive hardware and being by far the least used service.

It would be much cheaper to provide an internal VOIP phone service to each bed with the ability to call in/out giving each patient £1 free credit and allowing top up by debit/credit card. VOIP phones only cost around £100 and would take up less space.

TV is a useful service which reduces boredom and saves staff time, it would be more affordable for a company to provide LCD TV's and charge ~£2 a day or visit for the use of them. The TV's would cost under £150 but would have to be attached to an adjustable arm for comfort and to keep them out of the way when not in use.

Patientlines current system does not take in to account that most hospital patients are over 65 and usually more interested in speaking with relatives on the phone than surfing the internet. The internet service is also pretty useless, with a tiny keyboard and joystick mouse which breaks easily and isnt fixed quickly by the support team.

soolin

Jaynne wrote:

Mobile phones are very dangerous to some types of electronic equipment, particularly those in intensive care. Whilst its safe to use them in certain areas I'd say hospitals are correct to generally blanket ban them as whilst you might not be going into one of these areas you could just be the other side from the wall from them. Not only that but the last thing I'd want in hospital would be to be in the same room as another patient who was constantly getting calls and texts with the noise not turned off, talk about the wrong mood to recouperate in!

I agree about the noise issue but the danger aspect is very over rated. There are very few, if any, machines that can be interfered with by a mobile, and as many consultants are issued with mobiles anyway that are switched on during their full rounds, for emergency contact. If it is safe for doctors and consultants to have them in all wards, why pretend that they are not safe.

Personally I agree with the DOH guidelines that suggest mobiles should be usable in certain patient areas, like day rooms or private rooms at all times, and on general ward areas during certain times only so that the nuisance aspect is kept to a minimum.

Soo