Observer Zinc headlines - April 23
WHO'D have thought that in this day and age people are still having trouble with mobile phone reception?
SMS texts are not being received, phone calls are dropping out and in some cases the phone doesn't even ring.
I doubt there are many people without a mobile phone these days and for those with them they are an important conduit to family, friends and work.
In the case of Dr Stephen Rigby, he's given his number to patients to be able to contact him.
What a fantastic gesture. It's hard enough getting an appointment with a doctor, let alone one giving you their mobile number.
While it sounds ideal, what is not so great is the technology that is supposed to support this.
Patients are calling Dr Rigby and can't get hold of him.
What is worse is that the patients probably think they are being ignored or something more important is going on.
Meanwhile, poor Dr Rigby's phone hasn't even rung or he is getting messages hours after they are sent.
Imagine having a phone which holds only one or two bars of reception? It makes it almost a waste of time having a mobile phone in the first place.
Before I came to Gladstone I was living in Brisbane and a house that we built had absolutely no reception.
We had to venture out onto the driveway to even make a phone call.
We eventually changed service providers as it become such a joke to have to stand out the front of your house to ring anyone.
While my experience with mobile phone reception in Gladstone has been positive, I know others are constantly having difficulties. Surely it's not hard to provide a service that people are willing to pay for?
