The bring-your-own-device (BYOD) phenomenon is pervasive in the technology sector, and many vertical markets are changing the way they manage their IT infrastructures in an effort to accommodate a growing number of mobile devices. The healthcare market, with its diverse types of personnel and massive distributed campuses, presents an ideal opportunity for BYOD and mobility solutions.
Miami Children’s Hospital is on the cutting edge when it comes to mobility solutions, and is the first hospital in the world to offer a GPS navigation app to guide visitors through its campus. Ed Martinez, SVP & CIO of the hospital, and Bryan Davis, director of operations at Cisco, spoke with TMC’s Rachel Ramsey at ITEXPO Miami about how they are working together to enable BYOD solutions at the hospital. They also participated in a case study panel at the show about BYOD and its benefits for the healthcare sector.
According to Martinez, BYOD has always been somewhat of a disruptive trend, particularly from an IT perspective. Opening up networks to an array of mobile devices creates extra work for IT departments, forcing them to up security measures and be more careful about monitoring and managing devices and networks. The prevalence of BYOD has created a paradigm in which end users’ wants and needs are driving the technology and the necessary action for IT departments.
“The opposite of that is doing nothing, and that creates a situation where end users find ways to do what they have to do, especially when they have access to portable computers at their hands,” said Martinez. And that can create a dangerous and vulnerable situation for IT departments and the data and networks they are tasked with protecting.
Miami Children’s Hospital set up their own BYOD policy and infrastructure about four years ago and Martinez said that while it has created challenges, the staff has benefited tremendously. The hospital is working with Cisco on its mobile initiatives, and Davis said the organization is at the forefront of mobile device management (MDM). He added that Cisco’s mobile technology easily integrates with the hospital’s data center strategy, offering an ideal and secure platform for BYOD solutions and even application creation.
“It’s not just about providing the infrastructure or the network,” said Martinez. “Now we’re able to provide apps that work off that infrastructure to provide a richer patient experience.” The hospital’s groundbreaking GPS app guides users from door to door as they walk through the campus, using Wi-Fi triangulation technology from Cisco. Cisco’s wireless solutions have also been instrumental in expanding wireless access throughout the campus, ultimately giving the IT department a granular level of control over what it happening throughout the facilities and grounds.
Edited by
Cassandra Tucker
