There’s been lots of discussion around the recent research saying that mobile phones are OK in hospitals. Â
About time.Â
A few years ago when I was writing a book about mobile and text messages I interviewed a whole load of young doctors about this. They said that banning them everywhere was totally unnecessary.
They said that the inefficiencies in the NHS are bad enough, but letting doctors use their mobile phones would transform the lives of patients. They gave me some scary stories about how backward the process of getting blood tests back is for example and relies on the doc having to watch for a slip of paper in a tray, leaving the ward all clogged up. Surely they said, why not send a text?
What lies behind this story is the fact that the medical profession is the last hierarchical organisation in this country and the guys at the top don’t want the guys at the bottom (the patients) to have their numbers, and be contactable. Letting phones in would even the whole thing out, rather as the internet has done to GPs.
Finally here’s a thought for you. The NHS (second or third largest employer in world or whatever it is) is also the last business in europe to operate without the benefits of mobile phones. Imagine any other business without mobiles. Think about that for a second and imagine what introducing them would do for productivity!
Technorati Tags: Rebtel, SMS, Ban Mobile Phones, Disruptive Technology
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