Mary Stevens Hospice
Case Study
Based in Stourbridge, Mary Stevens Hospice has been taking care of families with incurable or life limiting illnesses since 1991.
/01 CONTEXT
One of the core services Mary Stevens Hospice delivers is their Day Services Unit which allows patients with life limiting illnesses to visit the Hospice to receive care, therapy and support in order to enhance their quality of life. Most patients would visit the Hospice up to one day a week, depending on their needs.
This allowed them to access support with advanced care planning, symptom control, physical care needs, improving quality of life and also support for family members.
/02 CHALLENGES
When COVID-19 hit, government measures meant that the Day Unit was forced to close and face to face contact moved to online and telephone support. Some patients wanted to be able to access online support but did not have the technology available to them. Mary Stevens Hospice were looking for a secure solution to enable their all of their Day Services Unit patients, and their carers, to be able to communicate with the Hospice during this time.
Gerry Crow is Director of Operations and Support at the Hospice and he recognised that they needed to provide ‘a simple way for us to communicate with some of our patients and carers, that cannot currently visit the Day Services Unit due to Covid-19 restrictions.’
/03 SOLUTION
Gerry engaged MFM-IT as a local company who had previously looked at IT projects with the Hospice. The goal was to provide a way of keeping in contact with Day Services Unit patients and carers, in an informal manner, to assist in providing the ongoing support that the service offers. MFM-IT worked with Gerry and the Hospice to understand the technical solution and the requirements of Mary Stevens Hospice.
Gerry explains ‘The team advised us on a suitable tablet and associated software and prepared each of the tablets for us to ensure they are very simple for patients or carers to use’. MFM-IT provided a solution using Sophos Mobile Control a Cloud Based system to remotely install the required applications, secure the devices as well as providing location tracking and remote wipe functions all driven from a Cloud portal.
All of this is enabled by simply scanning a QR code on the device when it starts up for the very first time, enrolling it in the device management as well as the Android Enterprise Platform. This means that the IT team don’t have to spend long periods of time setting up devices ready and the users see exactly what they need to when they use the Tablets.
/04 THE EXPERIENCE
Connecting patients
Gerry says ‘With COVID-19 being an ongoing problem, this is something we plan to continue to keep in contact with our Day Services Unit patients and is potentially something we see growing in the future’.
And now, by utilising Zoom video conferencing on the Tablets, Hospice staff are able to have video calls with Day Unit Service patients and / or their carers and offer the much needed support which the service offers.
MFM-IT are proud to work with Mary Stevens Hospice and to play a small part in the exceptional work by all at the Hospice during the pandemic and every other day.
And now, by utilising Zoom video conferencing on the Tablets, Hospice staff are able to have video calls with Day Unit Service patients and / or their carers and offer the much needed support which the service offers.
MFM-IT are proud to work with Mary Stevens Hospice and to play a small part in the exceptional work by all at the Hospice during the pandemic and every other day.
