The subject of 0844 premium rate numbers being used by some NHS surgeries has been in the news again. Both the Sunday Mirror and the Mail Online have featured articles this week about how much some patients were being charged whilst waiting to speak to their local surgery.
The Mail Online article starts:
“Calls from mobile phones to NHS surgeries using 0844 or 0855 numbers are costing patients a fortune, it emerged today.
An investigation has found patients trying to book an appointment with their GP can be left on hold for 30 minutes and charged as much as £12.
Callers are not warned that they are spending up to 41p a minute from a mobile, while phoning a normal landline number is as little as 2p a minute.
An estimated six million patients across the UK are affected by the scheme which is making huge profits for companies who provide the numbers….”
The Sunday Mirror also surveyed 80 surgeries to see how long it took to answer the telephone and one South London surgery took over 28 minutes.
If you need help addressing either of these issues, the award-winning specialist Healthcare Communications team at Opus would love to hear from you on 0800 316 7566.
To read the full Mail Online article click here.
To see a bigger version of the Sunday Mirror article click here.
The Opus Healthcare Communications team is hosting a stand at this year’s Healthcare Commissioning exhibition and conference at London’s Excel convention centre.
The event boasts over 100 practical workshops, regional meetings and keynote speaker session along with over 250 exhibitors.
The Opus team will be demonstrating their surgery, clinic and hospital communication solutions and sponsored and supported by industry leading IP communications manufacturer Mitel at the event.
Talking about the event healthcare specialist Mark Sanderson said, “We have attended the Management in Practice conference for 3 years and are doing so again this October but we are hoping the Commissioning event will give us the opportunity to talk to buyers in other sectors of the healthcare industry.”
You can visit the Opus Healthcare Communications team on the 12th and 13th June at stand L60.
To book a meeting with one of the team during the event call 0800 316 7566.
Mitel’s Unified Communication solutions received high praise from international business consulting firm Frost & Sullivan who offer market analysis, market research and reports.
Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents an award to the company that demonstrates innovation in product features and functionality that provides enhanced quality and higher value to customers. The award recognises the rapid acceptance such innovation finds in the marketplace.
Talking about Mitel, Frost & Sullivan Senior Analyst, Robert Arnold “While Mitel has used its first-to-market advantages optimally, it has also regularly improved its single software stream to provide the same features, quality of service, warranty and software assurance programs, no matter how customers choose to deploy its solutions.” He went on to say, “The company has streamlined development, sales, training and support, to provide a consistent user experience across private cloud or customer-premises equipment, hosted or public cloud configurations.”
Mitel is considered one of a select few manufacturers that can address customers of nearly any type and size. Mitel offers a well-rounded cloud ready portfolio of virtual UC server solutions. The company’s virtual MCD (vMCD) virtual call control server, developed in partnership with VMware, earned Mitel its first-mover status in the deployment of call control solutions.
Commenting on the press release, Opus sales director John Wright said, “This news further supports our decision to partner with Mitel for complete Unified Communications that offer value, flexibility and a future proof solution for any sized organisation.”
For more information about our Mitel Unified Communication solutions please call 0800 716 7566.
The keen eyed amongst you may be able to spot the Opus Healthcare Communications Team for split second as they were climbing the stage to collect their Communications Provider of the Year Award at the General Practice Awards in 2012. The clip is about 2 minutes 30 seconds in – honest!
For more information about this or any of our news stories please call 0800 316 7566.
The Opus Healthcare Communications Team featured on the Management in Practice website being mentioned as winners in the GP Awards for the communications provider category.
According to the article, “The General Practice Awards 2012 saw hundreds of the best healthcare professionals and suppliers at a glamorous black tie dinner at the Hilton Park Lane. Recognising the achievements of people in healthcare across the UK, the Awards celebrated GPs, nurses, practices and service providers who work tirelessly to improve patient care.”
Opus were awarded the Communications Provider of the Year award.
Click here to see the full listing on the Management in Practice website.
For more information about our Healthcare Communications Solutions, please call the Healthcare team directly on 0800 019 6590.
The Opus engineering team has further strengthened its Healthcare Communication Solutions by completing the rigorous NHS IGSoC (Information Governance Statement of Compliance) process to gain the official status of being an ‘Assured Commercial Third Party’ to the NHS.
This means that we are approved by the NHS Connecting for Health, part of the Department of Health Informatics Directorate, to carry out any communications or IT related works as a Third party commercial partner to the NHS and to Install, connect and support Opus supplied Telecommunications and CTI solutions hardware and software to any NHS organisation’s LAN and/or WAN.
We are now able to work even more closely with NHS IT support organisations that look after every NHS organisation in the UK at the point of sale, at Project Management stage or from an on-going support perspective.
Along with this new increased status being granted, Opus now has the authority to connect directly to the NHS intranet remotely. This enables Opus support engineers to access the hardware and software telecommunications solutions installed within each NHS organisations private networks via the NHS intranet, rather than other commonly used methods involving public Internet hosted services based outside the EU, thus breaking the latest NHS Information Governance rules and regulations.
This gives Opus the means to continue to offer first class support to NHS organisations remotely, whilst closely observing NHS IG (Information Governance) rules, unlike many of our competitors who currently use unapproved remote access solutions jeopardising the integrity of the NHS Intranet.
Commenting on being an approved supplier to the NHS, Opus Healthcare Specialist Mark Sanderson said, “Having this approval provides healthcare clients with complete peace of mind when it comes to dealing with Opus rather than having a non NHS approved supplier working on their communications and networks.”
For more information about our Healthcare Communication Solutions please call 0800 716 7566
Our thanks go out to Helen Anslow of Hatton Garden jewelers Lionel J Wiffen Ltd, who kindly sent us the following letter after recently having a new telephone system from Opus.
“John Wright and Opus Business Systems provided us with an excellent service when we recently upgraded our telephone system. It was tailored to the needs of our small company. They gave us several options and explained the differences clearly so we could make an informed choice. I am happy to to say that everything happened when it was scheduled to do so and the staff are a pleasure to deal with.”
Helen Anslow
Lionel J Wiffen Ltd
For more information about this or any news item please call 0800 716 7566
While the Opus Education team were at the NASBM (National Association of School Business Management) annual conference recently, they took the opportunity to gain some feedback from the many visitors to their stand. Attendee’s were asked what were the most important considerations in relation to telephone systems and general communication strategy, they then ranked them in order of importance.
The results were weighted and unsurprisingly ‘cost’ came top of the list as the as the main concern for school Business Managers but this was soon followed by ‘Integration with the SIMS database’. The SIMS database is important for keeping in touch with parents, the ability to quickly check incoming caller details and make call notes. This was great news for Opus as they always base their quotations on competitive pricing as they understand the BM’s need to be prudent with school funds but also balance this with useful technology.
Opus are experts at harnessing the technology already in place, which means a more economic solution and an easier transition. A good example is the existing IP connections using the JANET Network to make considerable savings on line costs.
Contacting mobile staff was a great concern, whether in the school campus or representing the school off premises and again Opus provides help with this too. A full range of DECT cordless systems and the integration of Mobile phones which include unique benefits created a great deal of interest with the attendee’s. These products would certainly help with communication with key staff like IT, Caretakers and Heads of Department which was also highlighted as important considerations.
The Survey Results
1. New methods for controlling and cutting costs 27%
2. SIMS integration 22%
3. Mobile/non desk bound staff 19%
4. Collaboration and remote learning 17%
5. VoIP and Network Considerations 15%
Click her to find out more about our Education Communication solutions.
For more information about reducing costs, integrating with SIMS and mobile solutions, call the Opus Education team directly on 0800 288 8133
The Opus Education team was once again at the NASBM (The National Association of School Business Management) annual conference at the Hinckley Island Hotel in Leicestershire.
The event was a chance to demonstrate the even broader portfolio of school communication solutions available, which now include mobile communications and IT services as well as the fixed line communications and telephone systems.
They were joined this year by Aastra Sales Manager Kelly Swindon who helped demonstrate the innovative Aastra telephone systems, which boast industry leading DECT cordless solutions for flexible wireless communications within a school campus.
The Opus team were presenting exciting offers for integrated fixed and mobile services which can drastically cut telephone call charges and offer breaks from mobile rental charges during the school summer holidays, reducing mobile costs during the closed period.
A prize draw was also held for an Amazon Kindle which was associated with a survey on the communications issues facing schools at the moment, the results of which we will post shortly.
For more information about the Opus education solutions please call the team directly on
0800 288 8133
Following the recent commendation at the Comms National Awards, the Opus Medical Team was last night presented with the Communications Provider of the Year award, at the 2012 General Practice Awards.
In the largest healthcare industry event of the year, Opus joined winners of the General Practitioner of the Year, Nurse of the Year, Medical Practice of the Year and a host of industry awards the Park Lane Hilton in London.
Chosen by a large panel of independent judges from across the healthcare industry, the award was in recognition of the outstanding work that the Opus Medical Team had done in providing communication solutions to surgeries, healthcare clinics and hospitals throughout 2012.
The award also recognises the continuing support that Opus provides NHS Primary Care Trusts (PCTs), Regional Commissioning Groups (RCGs) and practices from the Londonwide, Essex, Kent, Surrey and Sussex and Wessex Local Medical Committees.
Commenting on the award, Mark Sanderson of the Opus Medical Team said, “Winning an award, voted for effectively by our customers, means a lot to us having focused on providing reliable ethical advice and support to surgeries and healthcare practices for over six years. We look forward to continuing the relationships we have with LMC’s and PCT’s over the coming years.”
For more information about this or any of our news items please call us on 0800 316 7566.
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