Long-term Care and Retirement Villages Implement Aruba Mobile-First Network to Provide Critical 24 x 7 Connectivity for Physicians and Team Members and Improve Resident Experience
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company (NYSE: HPE), today announced
that Canadian-owned and operated Schlegel Villages, which operates 19
long-term care and retirement villages across Ontario, Canada, has
deployed a high-performance Aruba Gigabit wireless network to deliver
top-notch care and amenities to its residents and improve efficiencies
for its 4,800 full-time and part-time team members.
Schlegel Villages’ previous wireless network was comprised of outdated
equipment that could no longer meet the increasing demands of Schlegel’s
team members and residents. Schlegel’s team members utilize Wi-Fi
phones, and both team members and doctors require fast, efficient
communications and access to clinical information in real-time.
Schlegel’s IT team knew they needed a more robust, 24/7 network that
could accommodate these requirements, as well as host their clinical
software and new applications like PointClickCare
to provide point-of-care services to residents. In addition, the IT team
wanted a network that could be managed centrally and automatically,
rather than necessitating manual updating of each access point.
Working with leading IT solutions provider CDW
Canada, Schlegel Villages considered solutions from several vendors
including Cisco before selecting Aruba to deliver their new network.
Schlegel Villages was already an HPE switching customer and had been
using Aruba wireless solutions in their corporate offices, so according
to Chris Carde, Director of Information Technologies for Schlegel
Villages, the decision to go with Aruba was an easy one.
“Having a pervasive and secure Wi-Fi network that could accommodate both
existing and new applications was the top priority for our Villages,”
said Carde. “We were already familiar with Aruba and knew that they
could provide a solid foundation for the kinds of applications our care
team members and doctors need to improve efficiency and productivity. We
also liked Aruba’s ability to provide centralized management and
visibility into the network with tools like AirWave that help our IT
team automate previously manual processes.”
Schlegel’s deployment will take place in two phases, with the pervasive
Wi-Fi network installation already complete and Schlegel’s new
PointClickCare application fully deployed by mid-2018. Schlegel has
already installed Aruba 7200 Series controllers and 900+ Aruba 310
Series APs which deliver 802.11ac Wave 2 and include built-in Bluetooth
Low Energy (BLE) beacons that the retirement village can leverage in the
future for location-based services like mobile engagement and asset
tracking. In phase two, Schlegel will deploy another 600+ APs, Aruba
AirWave for network management and Aruba 270 Series APs to extend Wi-Fi
coverage outdoors in Schlegel’s parking garages. The garage coverage
will enable team members and guests to connect quickly when arriving at
Schlegel’s Villages and will provide connectivity for maintenance
employees.
One of the top priorities for Schlegel’s Wi-Fi network is enabling new
applications. PointClickCare will allow Schlegel’s care team members to
collect information about residents on the spot, immediately enter it
into their mobile devices, and upload that information so it can be
shared with other team members and doctors. This eliminates the
previously manual process that team members would have to undertake,
writing notes on paper and then going back to fixed stations to enter
that information.
With its new wireless network, Schlegel Villages can benefit from these
new applications and from an improved, mobile-first environment.
Equipped with Wi-Fi phones and tablets, Schlegel’s care team members are
now untethered from their stations and can receive calls from anywhere
in their Village, allowing them to respond to residents’ requests
quickly and share information with other team members and doctors
immediately. The bottom line, as Carde notes, is a better experience for
Schlegel residents.
“Deploying a solid wireless foundation with these new applications will
definitely result in less support calls and time savings for our IT
team, but more importantly, it will allow our team members and doctors
to provide better care, resulting in an improved resident experience,”
Carde said.
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
.
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
Pavel Radda, +1-408-419-0294
pavel.radda@hpe.com
or
Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company
Lori Hultin, +1-818-879-4651
lori.hultin@hpe.com