Sentara provides quality healthcare for 850,000 members with tech innovation

When more than 4.5 million COVID patients filled ERs and ICUs from 2020 to 2022, hospitals were blindsided by their weakest links. Wireless networks, a lifeline for isolated patients, were painfully disappointing and frustrating for all.

“Wireless networks are the biggest problem in healthcare,” says Matthew Douglas, chief enterprise architect at Sentara Healthcare Systems. “COVID showed us how critical Wi-Fi is to patient care and staying in touch with loved ones. Healthcare providers can’t run a successful operation without a modern Wi-Fi network.”

As an IT innovator, Douglas is transforming Sentara’s network.

“Upgrading the Wi-Fi should be every hospital’s priority,” he says. “Medical devices, precision medicine, patient experiences, and frictionless check-ins are all part of providing the best possible care to patients. We can’t do that on traditional, controller-based wireless networks.” 

When Sentara Health relied on a controller-based wireless network, it struggled with outages and performance issues due to network saturation. The IT team no longer deals with those problems.

Automated configuration got the Wi-Fi network into production in minutes. A Juniper network has led to big savings, with Douglas estimating 20% to 30% in OpEx savings and a 20% reduction in CapEx.

“We’re able to cover twice the square feet with Juniper that we could with traditional Wi-Fi technology,” he says.

Douglas is proud of the cost savings, but says his biggest wins are innovation and modernization.

“Juniper supports Wi-Fi 6, which is what the nurses’ handhelds use,” he says. “Juniper has asset tracking that works, which means wheelchairs and infusion pumps won’t go missing. We can also start planning for wayfinding and contact-free registration to enhance patient experiences.”

Douglas continues: “Juniper technology modernizes our patient care, enabling precision medicine and telehealth, and hopefully extending human life.”