By Tim Ferguson, 9 July 2008 10:49
The NHS celebrated its 60th birthday on 5 July. BT has been providing technology to the service since 1948 and has released some photographs showcasing its efforts.
What is now BT was part of the General Post Office when the NHS started in 1948. The first piece of tech to benefit the NHS was the Medresco (Medical Research Council) hearing aid which was an NHS staple well into the 1970s. By 1959 around 750,000 of the devices had been issued.
The hearing aids (above) used thermionic valves which were a miniaturised version of what was being used in the UK telephone exchanges at the time.
Photo credit: BT
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1. Julian Nicholls
Because of the particular deafness he had, my father had a hearing aid that connected exactly like the picture, up until he died in 1990. Presumably, the body worn part was a bit more sophisticated than the 1948 original.
2. Richard
Photo2: Those trolley phones and the later cordless phones are sadly missed. Their purchase and rental were often funded by charities.
These days, patients - and their callers - have to pay very high charges to expensive private phone contractors.
That seems to be the main reason that mobile phones are banned from NHS hospitals - even from day-rooms & waiting rooms.