Tag Archive for: techs

How Mobile Techs Enhance EMS Response, from Dispatch to On Scene

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The widespread adoption of mobile technology in EMS will transform how emergency professionals respond to 911 calls and reduce costs for EMS providers. Similar programs can help with better resource allocation, lowering costs for patients and emergency medical services overall.
The widespread adoption of mobile technology in EMS will transform how emergency professionals respond to 911 calls and reduce costs for EMS providers.
Similar programs can help with better resource allocation, lowering costs for patients and emergency medical services overall.

Guest Editorial by Scott Morris, Senior Account Manager, Panasonic Connect North America

Can you imagine a world where laptops didn’t exist for EMS workers? Yet, as late as 2011, states, including Georgia were just beginning to require that all EMS reporting be done electronically.

Besides storing all patient records in one place, mobile technology can enhance EMS response by improving communication and response times. Specific device features such as cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity help EMS workers determine the next steps for patient care, dispatch the required information to hospital networks, and deliver services more efficiently.

Mobile devices and portable laptops provide a level of flexibility not previously available for emergency services. As a first responder, the job requires workers to be on-call and ready at a moment’s notice.

First responders can now have wireless Class of Service (CoS) for mission-critical applications on the Verizon 4G LTE Private Network. (Courtesy of Verizon)
First responders need a wireless Class of Service (CoS) for mission-critical applications. (Courtesy of Verizon)

Features such as long battery life and durability ensure that first responders can be ready to go whenever a call comes in – and the device retains the power to last throughout the shift. Furthermore, having devices that allow hot-swapping provides the assurance of not losing work or connectivity while swapping in a new battery during an emergency call.

EMTs and paramedics often transition to-and-from office or desk environments to vehicles, and then to patient homes and other environments.

When it comes to their mobile devices, the emphasis for these workers now lies in blending functionality and portability with reliability and durability. Device usability should be the last thing on an EMT’s mind while they are racing to serve patients and save lives.

These devices should be able to survive drops and spills, and also be built for use outdoors, whether in extreme sunlight, rain, or snow – without screens…

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China’s assault on Big Tech’s ‘walled gardens’

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China’s months-long regulatory campaign targeting the tech sector is taking aim at a common practice that leading industry players deploy to foil rivals — blocking external links, which regulators consider anti-competitive.

For years, large Chinese internet companies from e-commerce behemoth Alibaba Group to social media giant Tencent Holdings have used various means to block their users from sharing links to posts and products on other companies’ platforms. These techniques set up what are known as “walled gardens” to protect the creators’ own digital ecosystems, stymie rivals’ growth and prevent users from spending their cash elsewhere.

Now authorities vow to tear down the walls to promote connectivity among different internet platforms, a move to protect users’ rights and market competition. But it may shake the tech giants’ long-valued growth models.

At the same time, there is no unanimity among Chinese regulators on how the walls should be dismantled, as some are concerned that completely open connectivity will increase the difficulty of supervision, one industry source said. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) wants healthy growth of the internet industry, while the cybersecurity regulator focuses on content security, and the public security department is concerned about online fraud, another person close to the matter said.

At a Sept. 9 meeting, the MIIT pressed executives from leading tech titans including Tencent, Alibaba, ByteDance and Baidu to dismantle link blockades. Companies were ordered to submit plans by Sept. 17. The ministry has been pursuing a campaign since July to crack down on online misconduct including pop-ups, data collection and link blocking.

“We will urge related companies to follow requirements and open up links to each other’s instant messaging platforms step by step,” Zhao Zhiguo, the general director of MIIT’s Information and Communication Management Bureau, said at a press conference shortly after the meeting. Blocking links “messes up users’ experience, harms their rights, and disrupts the market,” Zhao said.

How the three largest internet platform operators — Tencent, Alibaba and ByteDance — will open their system is the…

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Instead of COVID-19 Hazard Pay, Spectrum Is Giving Its Repair Techs $25 Gift Cards To Closed Restaurants

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Despite its obvious reputational problems, Comcast has actually been stepping up for its workers during the COVID-19 crisis, paying its employees hazard pay, allowing unnecessary personnel to work at home, and closing at least some of its retail locations.

Charter Spectrum, the nation’s second biggest cable provider, is another story entirely.

The company spent much of last week dealing with a backlash among employees who say the company is putting both its employees and local customers at risk. Charter initially refused to let employees who didn’t need to be in the company’s offices to work from home, despite having the capability. Even in instances where there were positive COVID-19 tests at Charter offices, the company still initially refused to let employees work from home. Only when the press got involved did Charter begin to bend, and even then it’s still not letting all non-essential workers work remotely.

Charter employees say they’re not getting hazard pay or adequate protective gear to do installs in customer homes. Instead, the company apparently thought it would be a good idea to give them a gift card. Not just any gift card, mind you, but a $ 25 gift card to a restaurant they probably can’t visit anyway:

“Spectrum technicians connecting cable and internet for customers during the coronavirus outbreak will receive a $ 25 gift card for a local restaurant as a “token of our appreciation” from management, after staff called for hazard pay and protective equipment.

“These gift cards never expire, so if you choose a restaurant that is currently not open, the card will remain valid for future use,” read the Monday night internal staff email from Tom Adams, the executive vice president of field operations. “Please take some time out of your busy day to enjoy a meal and recharge.”

How generous. Needless to say, employees aren’t particularly impressed:

“Would you do it for $ 25?” asked a field technician from Irwindale, California, who asked to remain anonymous, along with the other technicians quoted in this story, to protect his employment. He called Spectrum management “vultures.”

While most experts believe the internet should largely hold up under the strain of widespread COVID-19 quarantines, it’s going to be hard to keep many residential broadband connections operational with management displaying such an incredible knack for incompetence and penny pinching.

Techdirt.