Midwest Medical Education Institution Upgrades Infrastructure and Implements Data Center
When a Midwest-based medical school and its health system counterpart decided to adopt a new electronic medical records (EMR) system, it was clear that new infrastructure would be needed as well. The joint leadership team, comprising members from both organizations, turned to Burwood Group to architect a solution—and realized an opportunity to revamp the data center as well.
The Challenge: Drive Organizational Alignment With Advanced Infrastructure
The sister organizations were operating as separate entities with their own IT departments. To better support roughly 300 medical students and 500 clinical staff spread across multiple sites, the two organizations wanted to implement a single EMR system, shared via Citrix XenApp, for better alignment with partner institutions. Burwood Group consultants were tasked with delivery of the new EMR and creating the infrastructure for access from both mobile and desktop devices. Demonstrating smooth implementation was critical from an internal standpoint, as IT consulting projects had been burdensome in years past.
The Solution: Improve User Experience With Robust Communications
Burwood’s work began with a Citrix XenApp deployment to provide EMR access to clinical workers. The consulting team earned the trust of the IT departments early on, navigating a complex business environment that invited expertise, but limited tactical deployment. By facilitating discussions of high-level information with multiple stakeholders, Burwood leaders helped the two IT teams identify new areas of opportunity in data center automation. The scope of the project was expanded to revamp the data center, bringing in a Cisco Unified Computing System with Nimble storage for efficient processing and VMware for fluid and secure communications. Citrix XenMobile was recommended and deployed for mobile application management, and a single sign-on process was structured to improve user-friendliness. Meanwhile, Burwood Group also supported the university’s email system conversion with IronPort encryption.
“We knew that uniting our internal divisions would enable us to pool resources to invest in the best possible shared technology—and ultimately improve end-user experiences for students, clinicians, educators, and patients. With Burwood’s partnership, we achieved even more than we had initially thought possible, as they not only met our initial needs but also identified new areas of opportunity.”
The Outcome: IT that Supports Innovation and Agility
Today, personnel from the medical school and its health system have the convenient, reliable EMR tools they need, thanks to more robust infrastructure and improved mobility.
Burwood Group Services:
Infrastructure Development
Data Center Design & Automation
Data Center Architecture
Project Leadership
Mobile Networking
Technology Strategy