NHS Foundation Trust
King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust covers five sites, WiFi SPARK’s solution is deployed in all of them
WiFi - 2005, Media and Patient engagement - 2021
King’s College Hospital Charity were looking to update their patient engagement offering in a way that appealed to their diverse range of patients and streamlined digital transformation for the benefit of staff as well. Aiming to install a buildable solution that was able to grow and expand over the coming years, King’s College Hospital Charity came to WiFi SPARK to guarantee they received an entirely managed and tailored solution.
The King’s College Hospital Crown Fund enables investment in smaller-scale innovations that have the potential to make a big difference to patient outcomes.
The Hospital was featured in Channel 4’s documentary 24 Hours in A&E
The King’s Stars recognition programme is funded by King’s College Hospital Charity as a means to celebrate the outstanding delivery of care, boost morale and improve staff retention generating a supportive staff environment.
Provide free, round-the-clock entertainment for all patients
Accessible patient engagement platform on both patient-owned devices and Trust-owned tablets
Provide reliable coverage across every site
Increase charity exposure
Facilitate easy access to NHS digital services
Create a buildable solution that can be added to over time
Provide free, round-the-clock entertainment for all patients
Accessible patient engagement platform on both patient-owned devices and Trust-owned tablets
Provide reliable coverage across every site
Increase charity exposure
Facilitate easy access to NHS digital services
Create a buildable solution that can be added to over time
“We’re delighted to have been able to support this project as part of our work to improve patient experience at King’s. We know that patients can struggle with boredom - especially when admitted to hospital for days or weeks at a time, or while waiting for outpatient appointments – and we hope that providing some entertainment to pass the time will help alleviate frustration, whilst also easing some of the pressure on staff. We are thrilled to be collaborating with the Trust on this project and with so much scope for development, look forward to working together to enhance services in the future.”
Iona Joy
Director of Grants
King’s College Hospital Charity
Back in 2005, WiFi SPARK began its first NHS contract with King’s College Hospital. Originally facilitating a guest-access WiFi solution that utilised the existing WiFi infrastructure in place, WiFi SPARK ensured the delivery of a reliable, configurable, and secure network for patients to use as well as the staff. The flexible nature of the solution meant that King’s College Hospital was provided with bandwidth control, content filtering, comprehensive usage reports and a branded user experience (UX) portal to promote Trust branding and engage with the user.
“The key to the success and take up of the system was the ease of use and overall customer experience. The SPARK® system was customised and enhanced in such a way that we could just plug our server into their existing infrastructure and then start generating revenue for the Charity.” - Matt O’Donovan, CEO WiFi SPARK
After 16 years of friendship and the provision of a guest-access WiFi solution that has kept patients connected without having to use their data, King’s College Hospital Charity began looking into ways it could upgrade the patient engagement platform provided to Trust visitors, which at the time offered TV and film services at a cost. Across the NHS there has been a renewed investment in digital transformation, innovations in the field of health-tech now mean that integrations can be made between clinical and facilities capabilities to produce one platform for all. Looking to their old friend WiFi SPARK, the two began developing a tailored solution that brought the latest innovation to five King’s College sites.
Opting for WiFi SPARK’s full SPARK® Media: Entertain package, King’s College Hospital Charity helped fund the sites including Denmark Hill, Princess Royal University Hospital and Orpington and outfitted them with unlimited Freeview and catch-up TV, radio, streaming links, and games. On top of this, King’s College Hospital Charity chose to add the SPARK® Media: Print package which includes a virtual newsstand of renowned magazine titles that range from National Geographic to Top Gear. Available to patients, staff and visitors, SPARK® Media: Entertain ensures that everyone on site can relax and recuperate with a variety of entertainment offerings available on their own personal devices after logging in to the WiFi.
To cater to London’s diverse population, WiFi SPARK worked with the Trust and Charity to provide a selection of international radio links. The comfort given by hearing your first language or listening to news from your country of origin is unrivalled and WiFi SPARK hopes the links will provide solace to patient during a worrying time in hospital.
Building on top of the guest-access WiFi solution installed 16 years prior, WiFi SPARK was able to adapt to the Trust’s changing needs and install a patient entertainment system available to any WiFi-enabled device with a web browser. For patients who perhaps don’t have their own device, King’s College Hospital Charity purchased 365 Samsung tablets to loan to patients. These tablets are managed by The Trust’s Volunteer team, who deliver a fully charged, ready-to-use tablet and headphones on request. Enabling anyone without access to their own technology to enjoy the SPARK® Media platform experience and all of its additions. The devices are wiped clean of all patient data at the touch of a button after use, ensuring total security.
Other features of the platform include tailored dementia links such as the BBC Reminiscence and Music Memories service and UNICEF's communication by pictures programme which enables those who struggle to communicate to converse through an image-based application.
One of the original goals back in 2005 was to ensure that any digital adoption did not add administrative or maintenance duties to staff. This is why WiFi SPARK guarantees its entire managed service. With the network being monitored by WiFi SPARK engineers, any issue will often be spotted before the customer or end-user even knows it’s there. To directly support the customer or the end-user with any queries or difficulties, WiFi SPARK has an active 24/7/ 365 UK-based Service Desk on hand, wrapping up the solution.
To download a copy of the King's College case study as a PDF, simply click the link below.
