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Partners
Strategic Network Consulting
The Dermatology Group, PC
Client: The Dermatology Group is a thriving New Jersey based Dermatology practice that offers the expertise and state-of-the-art equipment usually found at university health centers. They provide specialized skin care for patients of all ages, treating everything from the most severe skin diseases to cosmetic problems. The Dermatology Group is a high-tech paperless medical practice in which all patient information and clinical history is stored in advanced database driven computer applications.
Problem: The practice was rapidly expanding both within the original office and through the addition of several new offices to serve patients throughout Northern New Jersey. Their patients’ medical records, billing, scheduling, digital photography, and lab reports were all accessed in real time by the doctors via a PC in every exam room. These mission critical systems required 100% uptime and 24x7 support, but the practice administrator could not keep up with the demands of the growing practice and the ever expanding network.
Challenge: The primary challenge for this project was to successfully transfer the support from one individual to the capable team at Braveline Technology. In addition, Braveline needed to develop a scalable solution that would support the increasing number of users and addition of new locations. These changes needed to be made to effectively empower the rapid growth of the practice while seamlessly maintaining their original office. Considering their large dependence on technology, it was crucial for Braveline to conduct the expansion of the practice throughout Northern New Jersey without causing any disruption to the current medical staff. Finally, the solution that was devised need to be fault tolerant, easy to support, and able to accommodate future growth plans.
Solution:First, Braveline introduced a high-availability solution for the database backend through clustered Microsoft SQL and Oracle database servers. Braveline then built a Citrix server farm to host the mission-critical applications required by the staff in every office. To connect the offices and systems together, Braveline engineers developed a completely redundant, fully meshed VPN network utilizing local Internet links in each office. To make sure that all systems were well maintained and stable, Braveline introduced a comprehensive monitoring and systems management service. Braveline is now engaged in strategic technology planning for the entire practice and in the process of converting most PCs to a completely thin client solution using HP thin clients. The combination of the thin clients and Internet based VPN network will save The Dermatology Group up to 50% over three years on new PC purchases and recurring connectivity fees. It will also provide up to a 25% onetime cost savings on future expansion projects.