Jeff Lowney

When operating a network of more than 100 hospitals and clinics located in rural areas of Kentucky and West Virginia, Appalachian Regional Healthcare (ARH) faced inconsistent internet connectivity and lacked the bandwidth needed to maintain uninterrupted experiences for physicians and patients. 

The organization needed a network that would guarantee high-speed connectivity and zero downtime. A network that would ensure its ability to provide unparalleled care for patients — after all, around 400,000 lives depend on this not-for-profit health system. 

It’s not only hospitals and clinics that rely on high-speed connectivity to provide care in today’s digital world. Long-term care and nursing home facilities have also shifted the way they operate because of the digital transformation in the healthcare industry over the last two years. 

Administrators, physicians, nurses, physical therapists, nursing assistants and residents alike were quickly thrown into unknown territory when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. A Healthcare IT article revealed that in 2020, healthcare organizations saw resident behaviors radically shift and virtual care explode. Today, many facilities are continuing to make giant leaps toward a more resident-centric healthcare system.

Equipping facilities with the solutions needed to maximize resident, physician and staff satisfaction will become a crucial piece in the ever-changing healthcare environment. Selecting a business partner who delivers highly secure, high-bandwidth connectivity solutions to support telemedicine, digital medical records and fast Wi-Fi for their facility will be imperative.

Finding the right digital solutions partner

Since administering a strong, reliable network foundation through a software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN), ARH has experienced a significant reduction in outages across their locations nestled amongst the Appalachian Mountains. When any circuit goes down at any of the locations, the second circuit kicks in to keep the location running and prevent disruption. A collaborative partnership is a crucial piece to the healthcare puzzle.

Connected care is a beautiful thing, but in reality, the concept is only as good as the network that enables it. The long-term care and nursing home industry is facing an uphill battle in continuing to become more digitally connected, especially in rural areas. We have seen facilities strive to improve the virtual experience between residents and their loved ones for the last two years. This presented many challenges and stretched facilities’ broadband capacity. 

Embracing telehealth for the long haul

A reliable network will be crucial to these facilities, whether they are updating patient files or in the midst of virtual family visits. The ability to maintain a strong connection can maximize resident care and satisfaction while also reducing operational stress, offering staff peace of mind that there will not be an unexpected interruption or drop in connection. 

Investing in the right tools is key to achieving success with telehealth visits and maintaining mental health. A reliable internet connection has proven to be valuable in today’s world, and healthcare is no exception. Partnering with a reliable internet provider to support multiple devices being connected simultaneously without a lag in speed is crucial to streamlining operations.

Protecting confidentiality at all costs

Long-term care and nursing home facilities nationwide recognize the costs associated with HIPAA-related confidentiality breaches that can occur due to a lack of the right network protection. It is vital to the success of each system to ensure digital security at all times.

Over the last two years, it has become even more essential for facilities to find a service partner who can deliver a robust security system to satisfy compliance mandates. SD-WAN might be just the answer. 

This solution not only improves network performance but, more importantly, it ensures that sensitive data — including massive imaging files — are transferred securely while virtually eliminating downtime with active/active failover.

Even better, SD-WAN technology can reduce costs and allow facility operators and managers to monitor network traffic, ensuring security at all times and protecting confidential resident data. 

Healthcare IT solutions should fuel innovations like telemedicine to empower facilities and maximize resident experiences. For more tips on finding business solutions to meet your needs, tune into the Connecting Business Podcast to hear business experts discuss real solutions in a post-COVID-19 environment. 

Jeff Lowney is the president of the Kinetic Strategic Accounts Division at Windstream.

The opinions expressed in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News guest submissions are the author’s and are not necessarily those of McKnight’s Long-Term Care News or its editors.