GoodSAM Responder 12+

I had 2 Alert and I only received client location on the map. No Address,No information about client, nothing. I struggle to find the address and I collect the medication for him . I managed to do the job but then I received a text saying “you have not accepted the task”

on my second Alert, again I didn’t receive any information so I just followed the map and. I had to ring people houses and ask them if they called for help. I still couldn’t find it this time. I called customer services , first time they said reinstall your app and it should be sorted , second time they said there is something wrong with your app and she is going to report it.

next day I called again, This time adviser had better information. He said 150 people call him every day with same problem . He said go to “ comms”or “chat” and you will find all the information. He said when you press “comms” then you have to scroll up the page, but I do remember doing that yesterday and still wasn’t working and even chat wasn’t working. I appreciate those people made this App with great intentions but they need upgrades this app to more straight forward like “UBER” or “just Eat” otherwise it waste everyone’s time.

Having clocked up around 340hrs as an NHS volunteer, I’ve found that the app is able to deliver the service as required, however there are various areas which would benefit greatly from some additional development.

One issue I had to investigate was why there was no siren sound when alerts were coming through, which resulted in me missing a couple of alerts. I found that this was due to the app using the media volume level instead of the ringer/notification volume level. So despite my ringer volume being set high, I was getting no sound from the app as my media volume was low.

When an alert come though, it doesn’t give you any indication on what is required until you accept. A brief description may be useful to some at this point. Also, we are advised to use 141 to withhold our phone number, this involves copying the number from the app, then manually typing 141 before pasting it. This could be made simpler by the app automatically adding the 141 to the vulnerable persons number, it would then be a simple click from the app to make the call, and eliminate the risk of someone forgetting to add the 141.

First of all, i think it would be useful to search a but further out for people who need assistance. We don’t all live in built up city areas!
Secondly the payment system is a major obstacle in allowing this to run smoother. I can’t imagine it would be too difficult to set up a wallet that the person who requested assistance pays into, these funds are transferred to the responder when the job is picked up and any funds returned when the call is either dropped or completed. Looking at the options for payment its currently needlessly complicated, considering most of the requests i’ve had are from the elderly who have no idea of the options for payment available. Creating a shared wallet system would speed up jobs and prevent any unnecessary spread of Covid - 19 as there would be less contact. Please integrate something like this as currently its is creating unnecessary contact and sometimes confusion, from my personal experience.