Some 1100 Fujitsu tablets are in use by staff and contractors to send patient reports back to a central repository and access the Medical Information Management Systems (MIMS) drug information database which assists with the drug administration.

RDNS information services general manager Ian Cash said the upgrade from 2G services to Telstra's 3G will allow the company to use more data intensive applications.

“We are everywhere in the field and you could never guarantee connectivity with GPRS and [the now defunct] CDMA," Cash said. “We don't consider that we have an always-on network but we are confident we will have access within most homes. There has been a gradual growth in the number of transactions and the next step is to take advantage of new technology. Our use of mobile computing is built to make life easier for our nurses.”

Cash said the natural progression of mobile computing will extend the reach of RDNS into more remote areas.

“People say you won't get terrestrial broadband throughput in wireless, but the more eggs you put in the mobile basket, the better your capabilities will become,” he said.