CommuniCare makes Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospital NHS Foundation Trust lone workers feel safer

(23/07/2007)

Argyll is providing Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospital NHS Foundation Trust with a total solutions package that includes CommuniCare, operator response, tracking, training, configuration with the mobile network and ongoing support.

A winner of the Top 40 Hospitals Award for the seventh year running, Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospital NHS Foundation Trust comprises of three hospital sites, Doncaster Royal Infirmary, Bassetlaw Hospital and Montagu Hospital. These serve a population of 410,000 in Bassetlaw and Doncaster, and employ over 5,500 staff.

Initially supplied to 15 physiotherapists, Argyll’s CommuniCare service has now been extended to 165 units and is now being used by Community Midwives and is soon to be rolled out to the Estates Department and Facilities staff.

“The need for lone worker support was identified by our Physiotherapy Department”, says Ian Soulsby, Heath & Safety Manager at Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospital Foundation NHS Trust. “We arranged for a number of companies to give us presentations and the physiotherapists felt most comfortable with the CommuniCare service”.

Argyll’s CommuniCare service enables lone workers to summon assistance from a mobile phone or specialist device should they find themselves in a potentially hazardous situation. The system is monitored by Argyll’s integrated control room through which the Trust manages and monitors the locations of its physiotherapists and community midwives, time at risk and provides them with effective escalation procedures 24/7.

Chosen by the Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for its technology and total solutions package, the CommuniCaresystem provides the lone worker with reassurance knowing he or she is just a single button press away from quickly and discreetly summoning assistance should they feel at risk. Using a pre-configured button on their mobile phone, they can issue a duress signal, which instantly alerts Argyll’s 24/7 staffed control centre and simultaneously opens a voice channel enabling operators to listen in.

When an alert is received, Argyll’s trained operators put into effect an agreed incident management procedure, and if required, use existing links with the police to ensure a swift response. Sophisticated voice recording ensures that every incident is captured and can be produced as evidence if required.

“The major benefits from our trial of CommuniCare was its ease of use and ability to make staff feel safer knowing that someone was there if needed”, concluded Ian Soulsby. “We don’t want our staff to be attacked or put in any kind of danger which is why we are rolling out a further 150 CommuniCare systems to our most vulnerable staff members”.

Over 17,000 users successfully operate Argyll lone worker solutions across the UK in a diverse range of organisations that includes the NHS, charities, local authorities, housing associations and commercial organisations. The service is suitable for anyone working remotely from their office base and facing potential safety risks during the course of their normal working day. It enables employers to meet the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which specifies that employers must identify potential hazards, assess the risks involved and put measures in place to avoid or control the risks associated with lone workers.

Related topics:  Health & Safety legislation   Lone worker protection   Monitoring systems   Safety and protection systems 

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