Hospital patients can now stay in touch

Covid-19 patients at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley are now able to stay in touch with loved ones thanks to the swift action of three kind-hearted businesses.

Tin Can Comms Ltd, which has offices in Albrighton and Walsall, responded to a tweet by Staff Nurse Sallyann Wright to help fill a ‘communications blackhole’ in the wards that was preventing patients from being able to call or message their family while undergoing initial treatment and assessment.

Led by founder Amy Mitchell, the company enlisted the support of rugged CAT phones and its EE supplier Mdee to identify the right phones that could be sanitised and securely connected to the hospital’s WiFi connection which is something the general public aren’t allowed to do.

It took the trio of businesses just two weeks to source the right equipment and meet the technical requirements of the NHS’ IT system, delivering 10 Cat S52 mobiles for exclusive use on the emergency department and resuscitation wards.

“The NHS and key workers are doing an amazing job and, when we saw the request for help on social media, we knew we had to get involved to try and find a solution,” said Amy. 

“We quickly got in touch with our EE supplier, who advised on Cat phones that would deliver the connection, but importantly are able to be washed, sanitised and even bleached. This makes them perfect for use in hospital and for passing around between users.

“All of the phones have been supplied with unlimited minutes and texts and are WiFi enabled. It is so important that patients, who are ill and extremely worried, can get some comfort and reassurance by being able to speak to their families.”

Staff Nurse Sallyann Wright was really pleased with the support her social plea received: “Being alone in a COVID isolation area, surrounded by staff wearing full PPE and with family not allowed to visit you when you are sick, can be a frightening and unsettling experience.

“Our isolation bays are notoriously bad for telephone signal, making it near impossible for sick patients to speak to their loved ones and give vital updates or reassurance. We put out a message for help on social media and this was kindly answered by Amy at Tin Can Comms, who supplied us with Cat phones that we could clean after every use and that would work on WiFi connection.

“This gave our patients precious contact with those closest to them before they were taken to COVID wards or, in some unfortunate cases, intensive care. An unprecedented time was met by unprecedented kindness and we are incredibly grateful for the support.”

Founded in 2016, Tin Can Comms delivers telecoms services to hundreds of companies to fulfil their telephone systems, broadband services, cloud solutions and video conferencing requirements.