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New Study Highlights Increasing Role of Mobile Communications in Public Sector

A new report* from iReach commissioned by O2 Ireland has found that many Government departments and public sector organisations are embracing mobile communications in innovative and cost effective ways. The study states that the three key drivers behind the development of m-Government programmes are: cost savings to Government agencies; streamlining of internal processes for administrative tasks; and the facilitation of better access to public services for citizens.

'This report suggests that mobile communications has a positive role to play in boosting efficiencies in the public sector and allowing staff to maximise their time and talents rather than getting preoccupied with administrative tasks,' comments  Billy D’Arcy, Head of Corporate and Business Sales, O2 Ireland.

O2 also welcomed the new national framework agreement for the supply of mobile, voice and data services and products to the public sector, which came into effect earlier this year. O2, Vodafone and Meteor will participate in the new mobile framework which has been signed by the Department of Finance.

A feature of the new framework is that smaller public sector agencies will benefit from the same price plans as large departments. 'This agreement will help drive down mobile costs across the public sector, and boost service and service delivery,' added Billy D’Arcy of O2.

Commenting on the mGovernment report Oisin Byrne, Managing Director, iReach states, 'Our third annual review of mobile communications in the public sector suggests a lot of positive developments are happening under the radar.'

The report finds that the rollout over the last twelve months of Mobile Broadband has the potential to deliver much richer content on the move at higher speeds, making it an attractive proposition for public sector workers who need to stay connected when they are out of the office.

Examples of mobile communications benefits cited in the iReach study include Teagasc which successfully implemented a new SMS (texting) service to farmers that enables mass communications relatively cheaply and allowed employees to cut down on the amount of letters and phone calls to farmers. This cut internal costs but more importantly enabled staff to concentrate on more value added activities.

The study also highlights how mobile communications can reduce administrative tasks for doctors. iReach says that Bedside Hospital Information Systems (Bedside HIS) are slowly beginning to be rolled out as the benefits become more evident.

Utilising a PDA or tablet device, clinicians can now gain access to information at the point-of-care for more efficient decision making. In making bedside decisions, the ability to call up the patient history, allergies and case progress is invaluable. Instead of flicking through charts or leaving the patient’s bed-side to print off reports, the clinician can access all this information through a portable handheld device.

This results in less administrative work for doctors in terms of paperwork and seamless changeover between doctors’ shifts. 'With bedside HIS in place and armed with a portable device, there are no hold-ups in terms of clerical work and the focus can be on treating patients,' commented Oisin Byrne. 

The Department of Education and Children has also experienced efficiencies by adopting mobile communications. The report states that a recent decision to allow remote access by senior management through PDAs (Personal Digital Assistants) to internal networks was enabling a much more efficient working environment.