Dallas Medical Center

Transcription

1 Success Story Dallas Medical Center Acute-care hospital upgrades IT network rapidly and cost-effectively with Allied Telesis healthcare network solutions and ongoing services

2 Patient care, an efficient staff and effective healthcare operations make a medical business. Reliable network operations to support those efforts is Allied Telesis business. Allied Telesis and Dallas Medical Center focused on their core competencies to improve healthcare. Originally built in 1973, RHD Memorial Medical Center had languished in terms of both public perception and the overall efficiency of its operation. A full-service, 155-bed acute-care hospital, it had enjoyed the support of the community and a dedicated staff of employees, but many physicians felt unsupported by hospital management and many were severing their ties with the facility. When Physicians Synergy Group (PSG) took over the operations of RHD Medical Center in early 2010, they were losing money, patient satisfaction was at an all-time low and employee morale was even lower. The four professional medical buildings on their ten-acre Dallas campus were nearly deserted. The new executive team knew it would have to make many changes to return the Center to profitability and that these changes would have to happen quickly. An experienced, bold leadership team from PSG and a commitment from top management to upgrade and use newer technology along with a team approach to offer the best value and experience to both the staff and patient was the major focus from day one. One of the first and biggest changes was the introduction of the new facility name and brand: Dallas Medical Center (DMC). Not unlike many hospitals today, the medical center had inherited an expensive and outdated legacy IT network infrastructure that was not well integrated and was draining more than 11% a month from an already tight budget. The system needed a major overhaul to ensure its ongoing reliability and critical 24/7 performance and availability. Compounding the issue were the Federal Meaningful Use requirements and the lack of basic systems, such as PACS and pharmacology, that all needed to be working and compliant and would involve making an even larger investment to support. 2 Allied Telesis Success Story

3 Fast forward 3 months: the impossible happened. The DMC team was able to replace their outdated technology and network, outsource the network management and add new, integrated systems, including an EMR/EHR, PACS, pharmacology, OR scheduling, automated back-up and a HIS system that simplified admitting new patients. Following is some perspective and insight from key players at Dallas Medical Center and Allied Telesis, who were instrumental in installing this high-value network and managed service plan that continues to deliver tremendous productivity gains for Dallas Medical Center at less than 3% operating cost. Dallas Medical Center today is viewed by the community as a leading, full-service, acute medical facility at the forefront of health and patient care. It is profitable, and employee morale and patient satisfaction is rising. The IT spend is now under 3% and offers many more services. Regarded as one of the best surgical centers in the area, the 150-bed Dallas Medical Center provides in-patient and outpatient surgery, 24-hour emergency care, diagnostic radiology and laboratory, internal medicine and family practice. The professional campus no longer resembles a ghost town, and is connected to the overall hospital infrastructure. The team at Dallas Medical is not done yet and remains focused on its core competencies leveraging new governmental healthcare initiatives, investigating new technology to provide better healthcare, enhancing the patient experience and continuing to offer best-of-class services while remaining profitable. Dallas Medical Center knows that its new network implementation was a key component to its short- term and long-term growth and success, and is looking at ways to monetize it to eventually offer Triple Play services to its patients and access to patient information by physicians and staff at a patient s bedside. DMC believes the network should just be there and work like any utility service. Dallas Medical Center 3

4 When I joined Dallas Medical Center back in 2009, we were behind the eight ball in our technical and network capabilities. The facility had a legacy system in place with a limiting backbone, and a vendor contract that had no growth path and made equipment repairs and upgrades cost prohibitive. I knew we had to take a different course if Dallas Medical Center wanted to stay competitive as a leading healthcare facility. We needed a reliable, secure network that was highly scalable for growth, but not held hostage to high operating and maintenance costs. We put out an RFP and met with several leading hardware and wireless vendors as well as our current vendor. However, after we met with the Allied Telesis team who fully understood our challenges and were committed to helping us we have never looked back. From a service and cost perspective, Allied Telesis offered the best solution. They were able to provide the whole package, including the ability to work with our existing equipment, upgrade the backbone, supply any new equipment needed and manage the network. So far it has been an unbelievably good relationship. Allied Telesis is very proactive and helps provide another set of IT eyes, so there is a great ITIL-based plan of implementation, evaluatation, maintenance and change management, as well as a simple check and balance system. The Allied Telesis team troubleshoots problems before they become unruly and disruptive to our business. The implementation process went smoothly, as Allied Telesis did all the heavy work and systems checks in advance. There was one minor issue with a switch, but since Allied Telesis had supplied that piece of equipment, there was a replacement in place within hours. Previously, it would have taken days to fix the switch, resulting in productivity and monetary losses. We now have a lot fewer calls to the helpdesk, and everyone is working with faster connections and less overloaded systems. The staff at Dallas Medical Center is able to work more efficiently and be more productive in their roles. Having such a proactive and trusted partner as Allied Telesis has helped me be more forward-thinking in my job function. I know that I am working with smart people and good equipment. I am not bogged down with the day-to-day troubleshooting, which gives me more time to plan for Dallas Medical Center s future and help keep it at the forefront of healthcare initiatives. I can now focus on what we do best: provide high quality patient care. Dallas Medical Center is operating with a stable, mission-critical network and has an excellent, 24/7 support team to ensure that there is minimal downtime. When patient care and well-being is your business, you can t afford to have an ill-fitting network. I am looking forward to a long partnership with Allied Telesis and exploring more options and capabilities. Jack Medford IS Director, Dallas Medical Center 4 Allied Telesis Success Story

5 I have been in the technology business for more than 25 years, and this engagement with Dallas Medical Center has been one of the most aggressive, interesting and rewarding experiences for me. I ve talked about return on investment for years, but this is the first time I witnessed it firsthand as I saw the hospital parking lot become increasingly more crowded and the culture of the staff change to more of a family atmosphere basically overnight! At the end of three months, I looked back and asked, Did we really do all that? It s a testament to Raji Kumar s leadership and Jack Medford s industry experience and expertise. Jack is the real hero in my opinion in the middle of this project, he and his wife gave birth to a baby girl! Alphie Kilgus Regional Sales Manager, Allied Telesis When Allied Telesis first met with Dallas Medical Center, their current network service contractor had them in a stronghold. It was a very expensive platform and offered no plans for improvement, and no flexibility to make changes. After a walk-through of their existing network and an extensive audit, it was decided that the best course of action was for Allied Telesis to provide a network upgrade and managed services package, utilizing as much of DMC s existing infrastructure as possible to minimize additional cost. The company was able to add dual-function boxes that would give DMC both data and video functionality. Allied Telesis designs and builds much of the equipment that it installs, which gives it an operational edge. Allied Telesis is strong in video, where industry demand is headed something not many other vendors can claim. Once Allied Telesis entered into agreement with Dallas Medical Center, it put extra care into the implementation plan, since it was critical for DMC as a healthcare facility to have minimal to no network downtime. The implementation, and now on-going network management, is a true team effort. No one works in a vacuum there is incredible trust and communication. Allied Telesis operates as a virtual extension of the DMC staff and is constantly bouncing ideas off of one another, looking for ways to make things better. The bottom line: Allied Telesis was able to help Dallas Medical Center save money on their operating costs, while at the same time giving them a robust network with minimal risk. This allowed the DMC IT team to focus on their core strengths and grow their business. Dallas Medical Center 5

6 At Allied Telesis, when we enter an engagement, we ask: How can we reduce cost, save time and add business value? Todd Trenasty Vice President, North America Network Service Provider Sales, Allied Telesis Dallas Medical Center was in need of a complete turnaround. Their technology and network infrastructure was far behind what was required to keep up with the delivery of quality care. Their current vendor was not meeting their needs for a fullymanaged network. Allied Telesis was able to provide a lower cost solution that delivered a much more capable network than what they could install or operate on their own. Allied Telesis implemented a three-pronged approach: helping DMC recover from what the previous vendor had installed by keeping the equipment that worked and replacing what didn t with better capabilities; developing a management plan to sustain the network and keep all the wheels running; and then creating a network enterprise that allows them to grow and focus on areas that offer huge value to their patients and business. With Dallas Medical Center, Allied Telesis created a symbiotic contract keeping their business objectives front and center, designing a network installation and managed service plan with higher performance and lower operational costs. We worked hard to win Dallas Medical Center s business, and we work harder every day to maintain their trust and demonstrate our value throughout the organization. Todd Trenasty Vice President, North America Network Service Provider Sales, Allied Telesis 6 Allied Telesis Success Story

7 For a number of years, DMC had a networking service contract with a well-known vendor that was very costly, but did not offer the service or capabilities that were needed to grow as a leading healthcare provider. With the healthcare landscape changing so much, DMC knew that this project was complex and that it couldn t afford the consequences of it not being done right. Allied Telesis came in with a fresh way of thinking about the network. Having success in the security and entertainment fields, they were able to adopt what worked well in those industries and apply it to the particular needs of Dallas Medical Center. Allied Telesis by far offered us the best solutions at the right price point. They were able to change the IT infrastructure and add monitoring and back-up services. It wasn t just a stopgap plan, but took into account future needs and opportunities for growth. They also provided thorough planning and implementation. The new network was installed within 48 hours, and our day-to-day operation was not interrupted or affected during the transition. The Allied Telesis networking solutions provided for a far superior clinical, hospital, patient and workflow experience for our entire facility. They are a great partnership for Dallas Medical Center. Raji Kumar CEO, Dallas Medical Center Dallas Medical Center 7

8 About Allied Telesis, Inc. Founded in Japan in 1987 and with offices worldwide, Allied Telesis is a leading provider of networking infrastructure and flexible, interoperable network solutions. The company provides reliable video, voice and data network solutions to clients in multiple markets including government, healthcare, defense, education, retail, hospitality and network service providers. Allied Telesis is committed to innovating the way in which services and applications are delivered and managed, resulting in increased value and lower operating costs. Visit us online at alliedtelesis.com. North America Headquarters North Creek Parkway Suite 100 Bothell WA USA T: F: Asia-Pacific Headquarters 11 Tai Seng Link Singapore T: F: EMEA & CSA Operations Incheonweg EK Rozenburg The Netherlands T: F: alliedtelesis.com 2013 Allied Telesis, Inc. All rights reserved. Information in this document is subject to change without notice. All company names, logos, and product designs that are trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. US4853