''Hospital patients are being targeted by sales teams working the wards selling premium rate phone cards and TV. Patientline is already under fire for the cost of its services, and is now facing allegations that it is pushing its products on vulnerable people. The company insists it is doing nothing wrong.''Graham Satchell, BBC News.
Many will no doubt wish to comment on Patientline's performance and prices.
The BBC Breakfast Time piece is linked below:
The BBC Breakfast Time piece is linked below:
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How to protest about Patientline:
To obtain a petition form Email pt@patientsinneed.org.uk or call Peter Troy on 01740 629433
Call Patientline - that will be very effective - on 0800 959 3100 - the call is free (at the moment)!
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17 comments:
We were surprised to see you on TV this morning – well done, national TV and taking on a very good cause.
Hope to see you soon,
Susan and Brian
Nice one - very well done!
Well done Peter. It was a pity they didn't show more of you but the message is now definitely getting accross.
well Petre, where to start, possibly with your horrendous appeal in a newspaper article, urging people to phone the freephone number, for the sole purpose of complaining! did you ever think at all that may be there were with real problems attempting to call the freephone numbers. almost taking the service away from the relatives of those calling that number to find out the bedside number of a patient. did you ever think of that whilst on your own personal vendetta? probably not all you wanted was your five minutes of fame.
maybe you should give that some thought!
Well, where indeed to start with Anonymous's comments; perhaps with some with some basic facts.
Judging by the vast number of adverse comments on the BBC web site when Patientline first announced the new price structure in April there was a huge public critisism of Patientline. The volume of comments was far greater than any other issue posted on the BBC site in recent times. Clearly the matter of the cost, operational methods and reliabilty of Patientline's products is of considerable public interest
There is no vendetta on my part against Patientline it is a question of their commercial policy against a background of corporate over-expansion and government policy failure which impacts adversly on sick people, as I have outlined in detail in my postings.
As for clogging up the help lines at the expense of friends and family of Patients that need help , I doubt that is a major issue other than in the mind of a few Patientline employees. Some inconveniece is inevitable in the fight to win a better deal. If the action is successful and forces a rethink in Patientline's pricing policy - the justification is obvious.
A protest call to Patientline at their own expense has, I feel, a certain irony about it.
As to the rather silly comment about my five minuits of fame the anonymous author rather misses the point. It is the issue that has received the media attention not any one personality.
Perhaps Anonymous should give some thought as to why people put time, effort and their own money into raising issues in the pubilc domain that have no possible gain for themselves.
Please my I defend your protest to Anonymous( not that it needs defending)
Anonymous, phoning the free phone number is not tying up the number for relatives to make contact with people in hospital. The reason being that: more then likely the phone system by their bedside doesn't work anyway, and is so exspensive, most people can't afford to pay for the system in the first place.
Anonymous that is the point of the protest.
May I make a suggestion?
If you want to get in contact with anyone unfortunate to be in hospital, contact the hospital direct. You will have far more joy in being able to speak to the person you are concerned about.
But do not take my word for it, ask anyone of the people who have put there names to the petition form that I have got, everyone has had a bad experience of the communication system failing them.
That is why, they have all signed the petition, and we all live in sussex.
Or ask my mum, she will be only to pleased to tell you how anxous she was, at not being able to phone me because: 1.She didn't have enough money to pay for the system.
2.When she did, the system didn't work anyway.
That really helped her to get better after her heart attack. My mum is 83 years old.
This is what the protest is all about,Anonymous, but this seems to have completely gone over your head.
Thank god for people like Peter Troy who is not afraid to speak out, or put his name to what he believes is wrong, UNLIKE SOME PEOPLE.
Oh by the way, my name is Valerie Tibbles and I live in sussex.
If you want to reply to me, or if you like, I will send you a copy of all the names of the people who also share the view of Mr Troys, who are only to willing to sign their names in protest, which is far more than you have done.
The free to view TVs that were located in hospitals wards were removed by Patientline at the time they installed their equipment. Just to make sure at the James Cook Hospital in Middlesbrough the Patientline site manager toured the wards last year removing any community TV had had been donated. I well remember that he dids so with pleasure.
If that is true that a Patientline manager removed TV,s from wards that is stealing and he should be prosecuted. As an ex ward sister I know that many of those TV,s were bought through donations fom grateful patients. I hope hospital staff will act if they see this sort of thing happening!
Re the stupid, ill informed comments of anonymous he just has,nt a clue what he is talking about-- or you could say he is talking out of his ar-mpit!
He cant even spell your name Peter!
Also his use of English is very poor and he needs to learn how to construct a sentence.
June
Peter Troy, you utter cretin.
Deleting my previous post.
Did i hit a nerve there?
No - Peter did not delete your comment - I did. Diane. This blog does not tolerate abusive personal comments, especially from those who hide behide an alias. Debate is always welcome but diatribe such as yours is not.
OK' ilovepatientline'.
One last comment to you to put the record straight. Should you wish the facts to be known, with the consent of Patientline, Douglas Magee, Andy Kavanagh and Emma West at James Cook I will publish all the papers appertaining to the detail of the facts of the abuse I suffered by a patient upon which I based a complaint for lack of duty of care by a Patientline manager. My complaint was upheld by Patientline following a detailed investigation.
Furthermore, your comment on 'bad sickness record', readers of this Blog are fully aware that on 5 February 2007 I broke my leg in two places, was in hospital for 8 days, had a plate fitted and was unable to walk unaided for 8 weeks. As a result of this accident further complications mean that it will be at least another 6 to 8 months before the condition is fully recovered. I was not the subject of any disciplinary proceedings from Patientline due to my periods of illness. I could have continued to remain a recipient of Statutory Sick pay and indeed an employee of Patientline, that would have been the easy option. However I resigned on a point of principle.
I am aware that you are a Patientline employee who is taking notice of misinformation and repeating it in the public domain. Any more of your defamatory comments and I will make a formal complaint to Patientline without further recourse to yourself.
I trust I make my self clear.
Peter, I don't think it is a good idea to post names of patientline employees on this forum as they may not want to be talked about on here. If they wanted there names here they would be posting.
I agree anonymous. The reason I did so was to disswade that unpleasant Anonymous from posting inacurate information.
every comment posted on these blog sites regarding pateintline that differs in opinion to peter troy is removed. thats how pathetic he is. scared of the facts and of debate.
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