Optimize the care pathway with a resilient, secure network

Daniel Faurlin

April 17, 2018

A hospital’s network is the foundation for the critical applications that run on it, where most of those applications are related to the hospital’s core businesses.

The return on the investments made in electronic medical records (EMR), 图片存档和通信系统, 车轮上的临床成像系统和工作站, can only be truly realized if those assets are always available to the people in need in a reliable, 安全和高度优化的方式, 当处于固定位置或移动时.

In addition, the hospital’s network is under constant pressure from new requirements driven by emerging technologies and digital social behavior. Clinicians need access to information on their mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets, patients and visitors demand internet connectivity for social networking and entertainment, while secure onboarding and connectivity of a multitude of IoT devices and sensors, 用来创建“智能”医院, are just some of features that would heavily influence clinicians and patients experience in a hospital. 

到处都是独立的网络
Today, many hospitals still have separate network infrastructures for every department to provide the security and performance they expect. 单独的可以存在: 
  - Bio medical devices, such as infusion pumps and meters
  - Security, covering video cameras and secure access to buildings
  - Facilities, 包括洗衣, 厨房和暖通空调供暖, 通风和空调系统
  - 病人娱乐，如看电视和上网
  - Clinicians, for their communication and EMR access system

Each network infrastructure includes its own networking and management equipment, 所有连接到服务器, 网关和其他平台.

Is this optimal?
Most vendors would be happy to sell hospitals networking equipment to build out multiple, disparate networks. This would provide some level of security by preventing a hacker who accesses one network from accessing another. Unfortunately, this is not the most business savvy approach. With the cost of managing and supporting each network separately, the burden on IT and the hospital would not be sustainable in the long term.

有没有更好的办法? 
Fortunately, there is a better way to gain efficiency and be cost effective without losing security. 一种方法是部署高性能的, 具有安全的单一网络基础设施, automated, efficient, 每个部门的VPN (virtual private network). High performance would be delivered by leveraging the latest wire-speed (LAN) and Wave 2 (Wi-Fi) technologies. You would be able to secure the network by providing a layered approach – securing the edge of the network to the core – including the network switches’ operating system. The solution could be automated by using an award-winning technology called iFab to help deploy, configure and manage moves, adds, and changes in the network. This solution is efficient because it uses 最短路径桥接(SPB) to optimize the network performance and uses all links in the network.

The networks would still be virtual since each department would be segmented in essence, separated from another department by using VPN and IoT containment. So, just like the multiple physical networks are separated, IoT containment secures the VPN from access breaches should they occur in other parts of the network. 

Now that you only have one network infrastructure, you only need one network management system.

你在哪里可以找到这样的解决方案?
阿尔卡特朗讯企业(ALE) has been providing the technologies described above to healthcare providers around the world, helping them keep their patients data private yet delivering the information to care providers as needed, 没有安全漏洞.

ALE provides OmniVista 2500，一个网络管理系统 (NMS)与智能分析, that knows which applications are running in your network so you can optimize and secure at the app level, and 主动生命周期管理 (PALM), to automate keeping your network up to date with software updates and maintenance plans. If cloud management is your desire, OmniVista Cirrus provides the same capabilities as OmniVista 2500 with a platform that provides zero footprint, 零部署和零维护.

当医院改善他们的网络基础设施, 它们为临床医生提供了更好的服务, 患者和行政人员, which ultimately helps optimize the patient care pathway.

To learn more about how to develop an ideal network infrastructure, download the 医院联网指南.