Ascom
Myco

The Ascom Myco (model number: SH1) was a purpose-built smartphone for use by healthcare professionals such as nurses, caregivers, and clinicians. Ascom described it as being “robust, reliable and made to last.” The company felt that healthcare workers deserved their very own companion to assist them in their jobs, which is why they called the product the Ascom Myco, where Myco stood for “My companion”. It had all the standard features of an Android smartphone at the time such as a touch screen, 3G and Wi-Fi, but in addition it had a robust design allowing it to withstand knocks and drops, and also moisture and dust, which was critical to maintaining hygiene. It also had a long battery life as well as a rapid battery swap feature that allowed users to keep the phone powered up without having to wait for the phone to be recharged. The phone’s size and weight was optimised so it could be operated with one hand and it was designed to be comfortable to carry around on long nursing shifts. It could also be clipped onto a tunic or belt using the integrated clip. The Myco had a built-in barcode reader that enabled patient and medicines identification. Uniquely, the device had a top display that could show scrolling messages so users could see important updates without having to touch the phone. Furthermore, it had a coloured-coded LED light to show the priority of the message that had been received (e.g. amber or red).