• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

3Com Wireless Solution Provides Underwood-Memorial Hospital Staff With Secure Access to Patient Information Anytime, Anywhere

Posted on: Monday, 19 September 2005, 12:00 CDT

Southern New Jersey Non-Profit Speeds Patient Data to Point of

Care with Secure 3Com(R) Wireless LAN Mobility System and Redundant

Gigabit Ethernet Network

Underwood-Memorial Hospital of Woodbury, N.J, a 305-bed community non-profit medical facility, upgraded its patient care using a hospital-wide, secure high-speed wireless network from 3Com Corporation. The 3Com(R) Wireless LAN Mobility System extends high-speed network availability throughout the hospital, particularly to points of care, where doctors and nurses check and update patient records with maximum accuracy, efficiency, and security.

"In an acute care hospital, the ability to access clinical data promptly, reliably and securely is critical," said Mike Baker, director of information for Underwood-Memorial Hospital. "By using advanced 3Com technology, we can guarantee our clinicians have accurate, secure access to the information they need when they need it most: at the point of care."

The hospital's 3Com solution, which also includes a redundant 3Com-based Ethernet network, powers virtually every aspect of its day-to-day functioning, from scheduling to payroll, and supports applications directly affecting quality of care. Chief among these applications is the hospital's new Cerner Millennium clinical system, which hospital staff can now access via mobile computers at patients' bedsides. This sophisticated and bandwidth-intensive application connects laboratory, radiology, pharmacy, and clinical records, allowing hospital staff to check and update medical information at bedsides for maximum accuracy and timeliness. The application's wireless-enabled Mobile Millennium component also keeps doctors' PDAs updated with patient locations and treatment updates, helping them schedule their time more effectively and alerting them to situations needing immediate attention.

Another crucial wireless application the hospital uses is iBEX PulseCheck, a server-based application the ER will use to streamline emergency care through a series of multiple-choice menus leading to the most likely diagnosis and treatment. The 3Com Wireless LAN Mobility System enables doctors to roll PulseCheck swiftly to the patient's side, for faster healthcare decisions in situations where every second counts. It also supports McKesson Series' registration, billing, and scheduling system.

It uses 3Com's innovative Identity-Based Networking, which is based on user identity instead of ports or devices, to provide Underwood-Memorial's doctors and nurses with secure data access and entry. These point-of-care practitioners thus deploy a single Mobility Domain network; users are associated with user databases that can be authenticated. This optimizes user mobility throughout the network without dropping connections or compromising security, further ensuring compliance with government privacy regulations.

"Our 3Com wired and wireless solution delivers all the performance, flexibility and ease of use we need, at a remarkably low total cost of ownership," Baker said. "With ample capacity to support our needs both today and well into the future, we're confident of our ability to prepare proactively to meet our community's ongoing healthcare needs."

The demands of 21st-century medicine require a high-bandwidth, always-available infrastructure. The 3Com wireless access points are extraordinarily simple to install and use, mounting on ceilings throughout Underwood-Memorial for ubiquitous access in areas too busy or crowded to accommodate wiring. Moreover, the Gigabit Ethernet backbone is designed for total redundancy, protecting medical records and patient safety with continuous network availability.

In total, the 3Com solution includes the following products: -- 3Com Wireless LAN Mobility System -- 3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX4400 -- 3Com Wireless LAN Managed Access Point 2750 -- 3Com OfficeConnect(R) Wireless 11g USB Adapter -- 3Com Switch 40x0 Family -- 3Com 3 Switch 4200 and 4400 Families -- XRN(R) (eXpandable Resilient Networking) Interconnect Kit -- 3Com Guardian (SM) Service -- 3Com Network Supervisor

The 3Com Wireless LAN Managed Access Points (MAPs) provide 802.11a and 802.11 b/g wireless connectivity of 54 Mbps throughout the seven-story facility. Instead of waiting for the handful of wired terminals at nursing stations, medical staff visit patient rooms and work in the ER with laptops on rolling carts, equipped with 3Com OfficeConnect Wireless 11g USB Adapters.

Advanced security features built into the wireless MAPs protect the confidentiality of patient information, as required by federal law, and keep unauthorized users from interfering with critical applications. Underwood-Memorial's IT staff also utilizes the 3Com Wireless LAN Controller WX4400 system to manage their 3Com wireless LAN MAPs from any network location. Authorized users control MAP configuration and optimize RF coverage and performance. With a few keystrokes, they can change parameters for multiple MAPs, eliminating the time-consuming task of individually configuring each device, which lowers the cost of ownership.

The 3Com family of switches, combined with patented XRN technology, provide redundancy, availability, security, and ease of deployment and management. Featuring QoS and traffic prioritization, the 3Com switches ensure the hospital has the bandwidth it needs to run its sophisticated medical and operational operations. VLANs segregate traffic to further promote only authorized access to sensitive data.

The overall functionality and security of the network helps ensure the hospital's compliance with the patient privacy requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).

About 3Com Corporation

3Com Corporation (NASDAQ: COMS) is a leading provider of secure, converged voice and data networking solutions for enterprises of all sizes. 3Com offers a broad line of innovative products backed by world class sales, service and support, which excel at delivering business value for its customers. Through its TippingPoint division, 3Com is the leading provider of network-based intrusion prevention systems that deliver in-depth application protection, infrastructure protection, and performance protection for corporate enterprises, government agencies, service providers and academic institutions. For further information, please visit www.3com.com, or the press site www.3com.com/pressbox.

Copyright (C) 2005. 3Com Corporation. 3Com, OfficeConnect, XRN and the 3Com logo are registered trademarks, Identity-Based Networking and Mobility Domain are trademarks, and Guardian is a service mark of 3Com Corporation. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective holders.

Source: Business Wire

More News in this Category