Healthcare Provider Projects Savings of Up to $1 Million in Operating Costs Over the Next Five Years
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company (NYSE: HPE), today announced
that Tahoe Forest Health System is replacing its existing Cisco network
with an Aruba Mobile-First network to enable a new and improved
generation of patient care. By standardizing on Aruba for its two
critical access hospitals and six specialty clinics, Tahoe Forest
expects to save between $750,000 and $1 Million in operational costs
over the next five years, while also improving network performance and
simplifying IT management.
Serving nearly 150,000 patients annually, Tahoe Forest Health System
manages Incline Village Community Hospital in Incline Village, Nevada
and Tahoe Forest Hospital in Truckee, California. The Health System was
awarded one of the first-ever five-star ratings for patient satisfaction
from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The Hospital
Compare star ratings relate to a patient’s experience of care and are
based on data from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare
Providers and Systems Survey (HCAHPS). Tahoe Forest operates six
specialty clinics including the Gene Upshaw Memorial Tahoe Forest Cancer
Center, which, in partnership with UC Davis, provides world-class cancer
treatment in a rural setting including a virtual tumor board that relies
heavily on the provider’s network infrastructure for communication
between sites.
Patient care and experience is Tahoe Forest’s top priority and a key
driver for the network infrastructure refresh. In addition, the
provider’s existing Cisco network was too expensive to maintain and
according to Chief Information and Innovation Officer, Jake Dorst, it
was clear the organization needed to simplify and right-size its
infrastructure.
“We want to put every dollar we spend towards patient care,” Dorst said.
“We realized that if we could save on network infrastructure costs,
those dollars could be put back into new construction and improving
services for the community and our patients.”
Dorst and his team began to look at alternative network vendors and
Aruba rose to the top of the pack.
Working with partner WrightCore
of Nashville, Tennessee, Tahoe Forest deployed Aruba Access
Points and Mobility
Controllers, Aruba Access
Switches, AirWave
for network management and ClearPass
for full wireless and wired Network Access Control (NAC). The
organization is also using ArubaOS
8 and is particularly impressed with the Live Upgrade feature which
enables it to upgrade the entire network in real time without affecting
users or medical devices.
“In a healthcare or hospital environment, ensuring we have zero downtime
is critical to patient care and safety, so the ability to upgrade to the
latest and greatest software without bringing any part of our network
down or affecting users is extremely valuable for us,” Dorst noted. He
added that Aruba OS 8’s AI-powered AirMatch feature also delivers
significant benefits to the IT team, saving them time and effort by
making adjustments to the network automatically.
The new Aruba Wi-Fi network is vital to the successful and
cost-effective operation of both the primary Tahoe Forest Hospital and
the Incline Village Community Hospital, which sees primarily ER patients
for outdoor activity-related injuries like skiing, mountain biking and
hiking. The network is critical for keeping Incline Village tied into
Tahoe Forest’s Epic Electronic Health Record (EHR) system so doctors can
access patient records and view imaging. X-ray, CT and MRI imaging can
be performed at the main campus, then shared with other facilities over
the network. The Aruba network allows doctors and nurses to quickly
access information that is essential to accurate patient diagnosis and
treatment, resulting in better patient care.
To access the network, the staff at Tahoe Forest’s facilities use a mix
of corporate-issued and personal devices as well as some mobile devices
like Haiku and Canto that are specific to the medical applications that
run over them. In addition, Dorst noted that the number of devices on
the guest network has been steadily growing and he expects to see a
continued increase in usage amongst patients, family members and
visitors.
“With the addition of ClearPass, we can provide BYOD and guest access
with increased levels of network security, and begin rolling out more
mobile applications that are specific to our operations,” he noted. “For
example, we’re improving and promoting our patient portal, and looking
at kiosks and mobile devices in our clinics to allow patients to access
forms and information that speeds their registration process. Our hope
is that the easier and smoother we can make these processes, the more
people will use our services.”
Moving forward, Dorst also expects to see more IoT devices connecting to
the new network. While Tahoe Forest currently uses a smattering of IoT
devices such as temperature monitors for refrigerators, Dorst said he’s
confident that the organization can move forward with a more robust IoT
deployment in the future, now that they have the Aruba network and
ClearPass in place.
“Security around IoT is always a big concern for healthcare systems, but
by combining ClearPass with our Palo Alto infrastructure and Extra Hop
software, I think we can be ready to deploy more IoT devices in the near
future,” he said.
“The bottom line for us is that a best-in-class network that is also
cost-effective and easy to manage, allows us to reach our number one
goal of providing excellent patient care and services.”
About Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company, is a leading provider of
next-generation networking solutions for enterprises of all sizes
worldwide. The company delivers IT solutions that empower organizations
to serve the latest generation of mobile-savvy users who rely on
cloud-based business apps for every aspect of their work and personal
lives.
To learn more, visit Aruba at
http://www.arubanetworks.com
.
For real-time news updates follow Aruba on Twitter and Facebook,
and for the latest technical discussions on mobility and Aruba products
visit Airheads Social at
http://community.arubanetworks.com
.
Kathleen Keith
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
+1-707-529-4507
kathleen.keith@hpe.com
Sarah Goodwin
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
+1 650-236-7233
sarah.goodwin@hpe.com