Getting connected

Chatswood Private Hospital (CPH), part of Presmed Australia and the largest eye, ear, nose, throat and face specialist day surgery in Australia, has partnered with Wavelink for better communication and an improved patient experience in its new facility. The deal includes a Fortinet wireless network and Spectralink wireless phones.

As the only private hospital of its kind in Sydney, CPH experiences high levels of demand. In January 2016, the hospital moved from its original two-theatre location to a new, custom-built, state-of-the-art facility that was much larger and spread across two levels. This created communication challenges for the team, so Presmed decided to equip key staff with wireless handheld phones that used the Wi-Fi network.

Roger Cronin, chief executive officer, Presmed Australia, said, “Reliability was the most important factor for the hospital and we were happy to be guided by our consultant engineer regarding what technology to use. He recommended Wavelink to deliver an end-to-end solution comprising a wireless network and wireless handsets that met our complete needs. Wavelink’s Health Practice worked with us to design a solution consisting of a Fortinet wireless network combined with Spectralink wireless phones, all of which were delivered by Wavelink partner Quorum Systems.”

CPH implemented Spectralink PIVOT phones, as they are ideal for a clinical environment. The phones run on a Fortinet wireless network on a dedicated 5 GHz band. There are no other systems running on the same band, which preserves bandwidth and ensures voice-quality connections every time. The PIVOT handsets use an ergonomic, intuitive touch screen based on the Android platform. This makes them easy to use, while the robust design is strong enough to withstand the hospital environment. The hospital has also integrated its fire alarm panel onto the phones.

The facility also implemented a Fortinet wireless network, which lets the hospital set up guest access to free Wi-Fi on separate bands to the wireless phones. This prevents interference with the phones while giving patients the connectivity they expect.

“Patients assume they’ll have access to Wi-Fi while they’re waiting for their surgery or in recovery, so it’s a service we need to provide. However, we couldn’t have patients’ use of the network affecting the phones’ performance, so they were set up on two separate bands,” Cronin said.

Presmed’s key goal for the project was to ensure strong communication across the team, regardless of their location in the hospital. The Spectralink PIVOT phones have delivered: team members get the information they need immediately. They don’t have to leave their patient to get information, which leads to better patient care overall.

“The Spectralink phones have delivered increased efficiency and productivity. There would be a lot of time wasted if we didn’t have them or couldn’t rely on them. The Spectralink phones have also streamlined aspects of patient service. Waiting times have reduced, since team members stay in constant contact with each other so they know exactly when to move a patient to the next stage of their journey. Consequently, patients can wait longer in the lounge with their family members before being moved into pre-operative areas,” Cronin said.

Further, the Fortinet solution has delivered the reliability and functionality that the hospital required and provided a platform for future growth.

“Using a wireless platform that’s reliable means we can add new technologies to improve the way the hospital works. As a smaller organisation, having a futureproof system was important and the Fortinet wireless network has delivered that.

“Our relationship with Wavelink has been an important part of this project. Wavelink has kept the hospital team educated and informed about capabilities that exist that we may not even have known could benefit us. The key goals were to provide a platform to enable seamless, reliable communication between staff members and to provide guest internet access for patients. On all counts, the solution delivered by Wavelink has fulfilled these requirements,” Cronin said.