O2 breaking into the world of healthcare

Managing Director Keith Nurcombe discusses why O2 is set to help revolutionise health and social care with the birth of O2 Health:

Although on the face of it the idea of a mobile network moving to offer healthcare solutions may seem incongruous, I believe that O2’s capabilities in connecting people to one another in their day-to-day lives can extend naturally and successfully to connecting people to the healthcare support and services they may need.

There is a real demand in the health and social care market for products and services that can offer tangible benefits to customers, and O2’s heritage as a leading mobile network provides a natural foundation for such services.  This is why in 2010 O2’s parent company, Telefonica, launched O2 Health to specialise in developing innovative healthcare technology.

Since then, we at O2 Health and Telefonica have put together a team of leading industry experts, almost all with backgrounds in healthcare or assistive technology. I myself have over 20 years experience in the health sector prior to my current role. We believe that this knowledge, combined with the communications expertise of O2, will help us to revolutionise the way people receive care.

Our products and services are geared towards helping patients to feel more in control of their health by giving them a more active role in their own care. We also look to find new ways of working that will free up time and money for providers to better serve their patients; making health and social care organisations both more efficient and more effective.

Put simply, our main drive at O2 Health is to help organisations find better ways to deliver healthcare and to help customers to live as independently as possible while still being able to access the care and support that they need. The health and social care landscape in the UK is changing rapidly – more people require long term care, resources are under pressure and providers are being asked to do a lot more with a lot less – and at the same time we as consumers are becoming much more discerning, rightly demanding that we have more choice and more say in how we receive care.

In partnership with providers of care and support services, our team at O2 Health aim to be a powerful driving force for positive change in the way care is delivered, with fresh, innovative and cost-effective solutions for hospitals and the community, both inside and outside the home.