Project Introduction
Patientline installs bedside units in NHS hospital wards throughout the UK and allows patients to access a variety of services including a telephone, the best of TV and radio entertainment, video games and internet and email. Digital Marmalade was commissioned to produce two shows to promote the Patientline services. The first, a sign on module, appears prior to a patient registering to use the unit and displays the benefits of signing on and shows the initial activation steps. The second promotional show is instruction based and helps the user get to grips with operating the unit's controls and handsets. Both modules were designed to be eye catching, arouse the curiosity of the patient and get them interacting with the bedside unit.
Project Build
Patientline previously used PowerPoint slide presentations to convey messages and promotions across their hospital networks and relied on the software's modest graphic design and animation capabilities. After seeing DM's In-store TV packages, presentations and adverts they were convinced that our experience in producing video content would be extremely beneficial to the proposed channel facelift/shake up/overhaul.
Digital Marmalade's approach to the channel's development was to produce the program in stages, splitting new and existing messages into stings, promos and instructions. These elements form the building blocks of the channel and comprise of standalone video clips that can be played in any order, allowing flexible control of the broadcast program. As well as affording easy updates, the modular deployment also allows easy repurposing of content for other methods of marketing (i.e. sales conferences, website promotions, print material).
Patientline bedside units are designed and built to be accessible to all patients so all content had to follow suit and take into consideration young and old patients as well as the hard of hearing and people with impaired sight. Animation was suitably paced and featured legible type and distinct imagery at all times. Clear animated instructions on using the unit combine with polished stings to demonstrate the unit's ease of use and the benefits that the users can enjoy. The ultimate intention of the channel is be informative and useful and encourage patients, family and friends to take advantage of the free services and gently introduce the paying services.
Since its appointment, Digital Marmalade has developed a welcome channel, not only infinitely slicker and more engaging, but one that also considers the constraints of broadcasting within a hospital environment. The content was also redesigned during the project for an older, smaller version of the bedside units and DM effectively produced a second version of the channel to accommodate these markedly different terminals.
The Patientline channel currently reaches an audience of up to 9 million viewers, through 64,000 units across 133 hospitals in the UK.
