Safe digital access and online shopping for patients in Scotland's high secure hospital
Before Made Purple, patients in The State Hospital's Transitions Service had little safe digital access and relied on staff and paper forms to shop. A proof of concept replaced that with secure digital access and online shopping through MPoS, and patients are still using it today. The hospital's own evaluation found the platform safe, usable and valued by patients and staff.
392
Patient shopping orders in six months
4,723
Patient logins in nine months
Zero
Major patient related security incidents reported
The Challenge
Patients at The State Hospital were becoming more digitally excluded as technology moved on in the outside world. The hospital had researched digital inclusion options and produced a roadmap in 2024, but there was no funding to deliver it.
Everyday life depended on staff and paper. Patients relied on staff for things like shopping, finding information, music and sport. The shopping tablets offered a small number of browse only sites, so patients had to ask staff to look for anything else and fill in a paper form to place an order. Procurement staff then had to search for products and interpret vague descriptions, which led to ambiguity and ordering errors.
Learning was tied to the Patient Learning Centre, and on days of daytime confinement there was little to do on the ward. Any answer had to work in a high secure setting: no open internet, clinical oversight of content, staff approval of every purchase and controls that security colleagues could trust.
What We Did
Made Purple supplied the hardware and the software for a proof of concept. Procurement screened it and the Corporate Management Team approved it. It went live in the Transitions Service on 13 October 2025 for six months, followed by a three month extension, and is still in use in the Transitions Service.
We installed standalone PCs running MPoS, our locked down operating system for custodial and healthcare settings. Patients could use Encyclopaedia Britannica, games, radio, video, wellbeing apps and the NHS Scotland, NHS Inform and Mental Welfare Commission websites, all inside the MPoS environment with no access to the wider internet.
Patients could also shop online from a selected set of retailers. They added items to a digital basket and submitted the order, which went through an electronic approval route to procurement with a direct link to the exact item. Some retailers were added during the pilot at patients' request, and the old shopping tablets were withdrawn.
Content filtering, blocked word controls, removal of external links and mobile device management let the hospital enable or disable content and monitor access. Clinical and security staff reviewed content before release, and an in-system feedback form gave patients a direct route to report issues and suggest content.
Problems We Solved
| Before Made Purple | With Made Purple | What the pilot showed |
|---|---|---|
| Browse only tablets, paper forms and asking staff to find items | Patients browse selected retailers, build a basket and submit their own orders, with staff approval kept in place | Made Purple became an established ordering route and the old tablets were withdrawn |
| Paper requisitions with vague item descriptions | Every order reaches procurement electronically with a direct link to the exact item | Ordering was more accurate, less ambiguous and quicker than paper, with less paperwork for staff |
| Reliance on staff for everyday choices | Patients browse, compare and decide for themselves | Patients reported more autonomy, privacy, control and a sense of normal life |
| Learning tied to the Patient Learning Centre | Britannica, NHS Inform, NHS Scotland and Mental Welfare Commission content on the ward | Patients used education, health and wellbeing resources from the ward |
| Restricted days with little to do | Games, radio, video and sport on demand | Patients returned to the system during the day, including on confinement days, and staff saw less boredom |
| Digital access in a high secure setting | A contained MPoS environment with filtering, blocked words, no external links and device management | Security found the controls effective and no major patient related security incidents were reported |
- Before Made Purple
- Browse only tablets, paper forms and asking staff to find items
- With Made Purple
- Patients browse selected retailers, build a basket and submit their own orders, with staff approval kept in place
- What the pilot showed
- Made Purple became an established ordering route and the old tablets were withdrawn
- Before Made Purple
- Paper requisitions with vague item descriptions
- With Made Purple
- Every order reaches procurement electronically with a direct link to the exact item
- What the pilot showed
- Ordering was more accurate, less ambiguous and quicker than paper, with less paperwork for staff
- Before Made Purple
- Reliance on staff for everyday choices
- With Made Purple
- Patients browse, compare and decide for themselves
- What the pilot showed
- Patients reported more autonomy, privacy, control and a sense of normal life
- Before Made Purple
- Learning tied to the Patient Learning Centre
- With Made Purple
- Britannica, NHS Inform, NHS Scotland and Mental Welfare Commission content on the ward
- What the pilot showed
- Patients used education, health and wellbeing resources from the ward
- Before Made Purple
- Restricted days with little to do
- With Made Purple
- Games, radio, video and sport on demand
- What the pilot showed
- Patients returned to the system during the day, including on confinement days, and staff saw less boredom
- Before Made Purple
- Digital access in a high secure setting
- With Made Purple
- A contained MPoS environment with filtering, blocked words, no external links and device management
- What the pilot showed
- Security found the controls effective and no major patient related security incidents were reported
The Results
The hospital's evaluation concluded that the proof of concept "demonstrates that a managed digital inclusion platform can be delivered safely and meaningfully within high-secure care".
- 392 patient shopping orders placed through Made Purple between October 2025 and March 2026, with steady volumes of 53 to 84 orders a month
- Procurement found ordering more accurate, less ambiguous and quicker than paper requisitions, thanks to a direct link to the exact item
- 4,723 logins (2,169 individual) between October 2025 and June 2026, with patients returning during the day and using the system on days of daytime confinement
- Patients reported more autonomy, choice, privacy and confidence, and a stronger connection with life outside hospital
- Shopping and sport brought patients together, with patients helping each other use the system and talking through purchases
- Clinical staff reported less boredom, more meaningful activity and gains in confidence, self esteem and social interaction, along with less paperwork and fewer unclear shopping requests
- Security colleagues found content filtering, blocked word controls, removal of external links and restricted internet access effective and appropriate for a high secure setting
- More than 200 videos assessed before release and no major patient related security incidents reported during the pilot
- 28 patient feedback, issue and suggestion items actioned, with patients saying they felt listened to and part of shaping the system
In Their Words
“Rather than relying on someone and having to ask permission, it feels like normal life again.”
Patient
Transitions Service
“We help each other make decisions around purchases which makes us feel good.”
Patient
Transitions Service
“It's a massive benefit that Procurement staff know exactly which items the patient is requesting as there is a link to the exact item.”
Procurement team
The State Hospital
“Any concerns that we have had have been very easily rectified through discussions with the project team and Made Purple.”
Security team
The State Hospital
“The system reduced boredom by providing meaningful activities and increasing autonomy, allowing patients to browse and select items independently.”
Clinical staff
The State Hospital
Bringing This to Your Service
The same approach can work in any secure hospital, prison or youth custody setting that needs safe digital access without the open internet. Each site chooses its own content, retailers and controls with its clinical and security teams, and starts with a proof of concept in a single ward or service.
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