IPcelerate.com

Customer: Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center

About the Customer

Heart of the Rockies Regional Medical Center (HRRMC) is a 25-bed, 85,000 square-foot Critical Access hospital located in Salida, Colorado. The facility serves the 16,000 residents of the Upper Arkansas Valley and provides a full range of medical services from complete family care to surgery. HRRMC’s vision to be a world-class, rural healthcare organization is supported by a new facility offering state-of-the-art diagnostic technology, private patient rooms and a full-time staff of physicians experienced in all facets of medicine.

Initial Expectations from VoIP

HRRMC transitioned to VoIP when they built their new facility, which opened its doors on April 1, 2008. The hospital’s IT department wanted a unified infrastructure for voice and data which could be maintained in-house, thus eliminating the inconvenience and expense of outside IT vendors. Their new IP environment is easy to internally maintain and update, and gives the hospital complete control to manage their own technology needs and respond quickly when needed.

Addressing Primary Business Challenges

HRRMC’s old facility managed paging at the front desk from which someone would make an announcement throughout the entire hospital over a stand-alone microphone. The hospital wanted a more efficient and effective way to page at the new facility, and also wanted to take advantage of the many options available through their new IP infrastructure. In addition, they needed the ability to record calls in their billing and human resource departments. After receiving a recommendation for IPcelerate solutions, HRRMC selected both the IPsession and IPstudio platforms to address their business needs.

IPcelerate Solutions

HRRMC utilizes IPsession’s paging capabilities (i.cast) for several critical tasks within the hospital, including emergency notifications. As part of their emergency management protocol, the hospital has pre-recorded 12 different messages, each of which can be easily accessed by entering a specified code into any IP phone in the hospital. Codes are listed on the back of each employee badge, and in the event of an emergency, the audible message sent to every IP phone in the hospital as well as through the overhead speakers.

Paging is also used extensively at the front desk to help workflow and improve customer service and response time. The front desk IP phones have been programmed so employees can hit a single button to send a pre-programmed text message to the admissions employees or other key personnel often needed at the front desk. This process has eliminated the need for employees to walk away from the desk in search of assistance, and now allows them to request assistance using IPcelerate’s paging solution and then quickly move onto the next patient or task.

Pharmacy technicians also use IPcelerate’s paging solution through an innovative method of tapping a foot pedal, which sends an alert to the pharmacist to come check the contents of an IV bag. Often, the technician’s hands are occupied with holding a full IV bag, and the foot pedal allows them to easily request assistance without risking an expensive and messy spill of medicine needed in the cancer unit or in a patient’s room.

In addition to the IPsession server, HRRMC is using IPstudio’s recording solutions in their billing and HR departments. All bill collection calls are automatically recorded and stored in the event that data is needed for future use. Human Resources utilizes on-demand call recording, which allows them to hit a single button to initiate recording at any time during the call, and still record the call in its entirety.

Next Steps/Higher Expectations

HRRMC is very happy with their new IP environment and their IPcelerate solutions, and are still getting used to all the new capabilities. Next steps are still under consideration as the hospital continues to evaluate its needs and explore ways to improve communication and business efficiencies, which may include the deployment of IPcelerate’s Intercom and Conference Calling features.