InfoSystems, a technology, communications and software solutions provider in the Southeast, partnered with Knoxville-based regional healthcare system Covenant Health to provide a data center virtualization and optimization solution to meet the growing demands on their electronic medical records (EMR) system.
The comprehensive healthcare provider, which comprises eight hospitals and other healthcare facilities, was ready to update its EMR system, but lacked the data center capacity to accommodate additional hardware. “We wanted to expand our EMR capabilities and meet the needs of our growing health system without exceeding the power in our existing data center,” said Ken Boyd, senior systems analyst, Covenant Health.
InfoSystems employed its IT infrastructure and optimization expertise to help Covenant Health establish a flexible platform for supporting continued growth. Virtualization technology was used to create a new server environment that allowed the healthcare provider to increase its compute capacity while at the same time shrink its data center footprint and its power and cooling requirements. With a smaller footprint and lower energy demands, Covenant Health has avoided significant costs and simplified its infrastructure to reduce the burden on IT administration.
“As a long-term partner with Covenant Health, InfoSystems had a vested interest in helping them achieve their business goals,” said InfoSystems Chief Operating Officer, Tim Phelan. “Our team integrates with our customers to the point that we feel more like a member of their team than a vendor. We focus on creating dynamic technology solutions that will allow for changes and growth, both of which happen very quickly in technology and in healthcare, not just selling hardware and products.”
Boyd added, “Virtualization helped us save the dollars that would have been required for things like providing additional power to the building, additional switch gear, panels to distribute the power, and cooling capacity. While there were other factors involved, virtualization was a big factor in cost avoidance, and will help us continue to provide excellent support for our member organizations while preparing for the EMR environment.”
Covenant Health Highlights:
Challenges
- Data center needed additional power and cooling capacity
- Industry regulations demanding system updates
Solutions
- InfoSystems IT Infrastructure and Server Optimization services
- IBM Power 770 servers with capacity upgrade on demand
Key Benefits
- Gained dynamic server capacity to support growth and workload spikes
- Shrunk server footprint and energy demand
- Significant cost avoidance achieved
- Simplified administration, avoiding need for additional FTEs
“With 16 percent of our business in the healthcare industry, we have gained tremendous expertise working with our healthcare partners and the unique technology challenges they have faced over the years. Covenant’s solution is a great example of how technology can empower business, not complicate it,” said Mr. Phelan.