Medisch Centrum St.-Jozef enjoys a high-performance and secure wireless network

Today, patients, residents, visitors, and healthcare professionals want to be able to use a robust mobile network with good coverage. Therefore, the campuses of St. Joseph's Medical Center have been equipped with a high-performance and well-secured network thanks to Aruba Networks.

To better control access to the network, Aruba ClearPass, the network access control solution, is used.

As a mental healthcare institution, St. Joseph's Medical Center offers its patients responsible, comprehensive care, with a strong focus on an individual approach. The healthcare institution includes a psychiatric hospital in Bilzen, a psychiatric care home in Tongeren for patients who require support, and a geriatric psychiatry department in Maaseik.

Need for a robust and secure wireless network

"Today, patients, residents, visitors, and healthcare professionals want to be able to use a robust mobile network with good coverage," begins Linda Nulmans, IT Manager at St. Joseph's Medical Center. "It's high time to provide our campuses in Bilzen and Tongeren with a high-performance and well-secured network."

WiFi in every corner

Nulmans: "The existing Wi-Fi environment no longer met user needs. Many buildings lacked the necessary cabling to offer Wi-Fi via various access points, even in the smallest corners. Moreover, the buildings' architecture wasn't particularly Wi-Fi-friendly. Their complex layout made it difficult to determine the number of required Wi-Fi access points and their ideal placement."

A wireless site survey provided clear insight into Wi-Fi needs.

"Implementing a wireless network involves a lot," Nulmans continues. "Numerous choices were made. What about sizing, choosing network switches and Wi-Fi access points, Wi-Fi coverage, cabling, and security?"

"To ensure we made the right choices, we consulted AXI." Through an independent wireless site survey, the network experts developed a plan that clearly indicated the exact number of access points needed for an optimal wireless network. AXI was able to pinpoint exactly where these access points should be placed to achieve perfect wireless network coverage on our campuses in Bilzen and Tongeren.

Why HPE Aruba Networks?

Nulmans: "The IT team at St. Joseph's Medical Center had the final say in choosing HPE Aruba Networks. They were looking for a solution that would highly automate management tasks and elevate network security."

To provide Wi-Fi to all buildings and rooms on the Bilzen and Tongeren campuses, over 400 HPE Aruba AP-303 access points were installed. The HPE Aruba Mobility Master management tool significantly simplifies the configuration and management of the mobile network. Aruba Mobility Controllers, combined with Airwave, are used for the configuration, control, and management of the access points.
Nulmans: "Aruba ClearPass is used to better control network access. This network access control solution allows us to effectively separate the wireless network traffic of patients, residents, and visitors from that of healthcare staff.

Together with AXI

"The daily management of the wireless network is carried out by our internal IT team," says Nulmans. "For the proactive monitoring of updates and patches and reactive incident management, we have a service level agreement with AXI. We have already completed several IT projects with AXI in the past, which has established a strong relationship of trust. To benefit from the best conditions, we completed the entire project under the 'Samenaankoop' framework agreement with Koopkoepel."

Mission accomplished

Nulmans: "With the new wireless network solution, our employees have the ability to use their mobile devices anywhere on the campuses. For our residents and patients, access to Wi-Fi provides additional opportunities for reintegration into society."