If you have lone working staff that spend the majority of their time visiting the public in their own homes, or dealing with potentially volatile or vulnerable members of the public, you will be fully aware of the risks they may encounter on a daily basis. Social workers, care workers and healthcare providers, charity workers and district nurses are among many employees who have to carry out home visits, travel in remote, unknown locations, deal with unknown people and situations involving domestic violence or drug abuse and may also be working when fewer people are around either on a weekend or through the night.
Real attention needs to be paid to the best way to offer them suitable protection in any of the potentially dangerous situations they could face.
And as official guidance from the UK Department of Health recommends healthcare workers wear clear identifiers, such as a name badge, to clearly identify themselves to patients and the public as part of their daily working roles, the Identification Card lone worker solution could prove to be the perfect solution.
As the device itself is concealed within an identification badge holder, lone workers continue to wear their ID as they normally would - just with the added peace of mind that should an incident occur, they can call for help and it will be sent to their exact location.
Lone workers in these community-based industries are aware that the potentially volatile situations they find themselves in could escalate much quicker if they drew attention to a call for help, which is why this discreet design is crucial.
Picture the scene of a home as a single female social worker visits a family with complex alcohol issues being put under observation due to the protection of young children living there. Imagine it is the job of this relatively inexperienced worker to break this news - and what angry reaction could potentially meet her.
Instead of having to pull out a mobile phone to make a call for support, or reach into her bag for a heavy dedicated panic alarm, which would draw extra unwanted attention and possibly an even angrier reaction, a simple push on a hidden panic button on the back of the ID Badge Card holder is all it takes for a pre-designed escalation plan to be triggered immediately, without the aggressor even knowing that a response procedure is under way.
And as the device conforms with BS8484, the British Standard for lone worker protection, she knows that help will arrive to her exact location as soon as that button is pressed.
Other features have also been built in to the device, including a rip cord/silent alarm, which immediately triggers the escalation procedure if it is disconnected by an attacker by pulling on the lanyard to which it is attached, a two-way voice call feature that allows wearers to communicate directly with the Alarm Receiving Centre, and in-built GPS so help can be sent to the lone worker’s exact location.
For lone workers who spend their days in the community, every day can feature a different destination or dealings with unknown demands and reactions from the people they meet. Giving them a lone worker protection solution that suits their diverse circumstances is imperative, and why the ID Card could just be the best option for them all.
