Newbury for Healthcare

HIPAA Compliant WLAN Management, Security and Asset Tracking

Capabilities stemming from WLANs offer healthcare organizations the power to provide a mobile "officeless" workforce with "point-of-care" access to patient records, clinical documentation, prescription services, admissions systems, and other critical applications while they are on the floor.

The result is faster and more responsive patient-care, more complete documentation of procedures, improved accuracy and efficiency at lower costs than possible with traditional paper and pen-based systems and while also reducing infrastructure costs.

However before healthcare organizations can benefit from WLAN efficiencies they require HIPAA-compliant information security to safeguard the privacy of all patient records. Additionally, healthcare institutions require WLAN management tools to guarantee WLAN access and coverage and to optimize WLAN performance.

Newbury Networks delivers solutions encompassing the three critical WLAN concerns of healthcare organizations:

Point-of-Care Solutions
WLAN Security
WLAN Management

WLANs Drive Point-of-Care Healthcare Applications

With the ability to real-time track the physical location of all Wi-Fi devices and 802.11-signal traffic, Newbury Networks WLAN solutions make possible many new point-of-care healthcare applications.

Point-of-care applications using Wi-Fi networks can provide mobile medical personnel with critical data while enabling faster diagnoses to administer patient care more effectively.

Here are a few real-world examples of point-of-care applications using Newbury's WLAN solutions:

• Registration Systems - patient admissions and registrations systems using wireless tablets for improved efficiency and speed, especially in emergency room situations. 
• Patient Record Access - up-to-date patient records following the patient by location (patient room, emergency room area, etc.) 
• Electronic Charting - bedside documentation systems to save time, improve accuracy, and provide information views relevant for each caregiver's role (Doctor, Nurse, Technician, Specialist, etc.) 
• Prescriptions - authorizing, ordering, distribution, drug interaction checking, and safe dosage monitoring of patient prescriptions via handheld wireless devices and bar-coded (or RFID-tagged) medicines 
• Case Management - case managers can review and process insurance authorizations while mobile, reducing redundant data entry cycles and paperwork flows 
• Patient Monitoring - wireless monitoring systems provide real-time telemetry and improved monitoring, while giving patients more freedom and mobility 
• Equipment Monitoring - locating the whereabouts of expensive and critical-care equipment through location-based detection and tracking

WLAN Security for Healthcare

However, before efficient point-of-care applications can be brought on-line in healthcare settings, WLAN security needs to in place that meets applicable HIPAA information security compliance standards.

The proposed HIPAA Security Rule Overview outlines four categories to guard data integrity, confidentiality and availability:

• Administrative Procedures 
• Physical Safeguards 
• Technical Security Services 
• Technical Security Mechanisms

Newbury Networks' WLAN security policy management and intrusion denial capabilities address critical requirements within each HIPAA security category.

For wireless security, simple "detection" is not enough - you need to real-time locate and track all wireless devices in your area.

Newbury Networks' security solutions allow you to precisely physically locate the following: - WLAN rogues devices and APs

• Any WLAN devices sending unencrypted traffic
• Personnel operating in "ad-hoc mode"
• Personnel free-associating with any neighboring WLAN APs
• Neighboring employees and businesses associating with your facilities WLAN APs

Additionally, Newbury Networks' security solutions allow you to identify & deny the following:

• Man-in-the middle attacks 
• ASLEAP / dictionary attacks 
• Connection hijacking & DoS attacks 
• MAC storms & MAC spoofs

And when any of these situations are identified Newbury's security solutions allow you to disconnect offenders remotely without needing to "sniff" them out.

WLAN Management for Healthcare

Wireless LANs are fast becoming a part of the IT infrastructure in many healthcare environments. As with wired networks, wireless networks must be secure, scalable and cost-effective requiring tools and techniques to optimize overall network performance. However, there are some critical differences.

At the highest level, WLAN management capabilities must:

• Identify when and where WLAN activity is occurring and analyze the quality and type of network associations being established facility-wide;
• Seamlessly integrate with existing network infrastructure technologies; and 
• Enhance and facilitate the fundamental mobility that 802.11 wireless networks provide.

Newbury Networks provides comprehensive WLAN management capabilities so you can:

• Centrally define & control WLAN access policies, WLAN groups & sub-nets 
• Real-time, 24x7 locate & track all 802.11 devices and WLAN traffic in and around your facilities 
• Dynamically optimize WLAN performance 
• Dynamically tune AP coverage, capacity and throughput 
• Locate, diagnose & resolve end-user problems 
• Generate flexible RF maps and management reporting 
• Create actionable alerts & notifications 
• Enable location-based network provisioning

To be effective WLAN management systems must track and monitor the location of all WLAN traffic and devices so as to successfully administer WLAN policies and control the locations where various point-of-care network services are accessible. Newbury Networks gives healthcare institutions this capability.

Some of Newbury's healthcare customers include Excellus BlueCross BlueShield of NY, MCA  and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.

Which of Newbury's WLAN solutions is right for you?

Active Asset™ - Real-time Asset Tracking and Management

Active Asset empowers enterprises to locate, track, manage, secure and analyze critical point-of-need and time-of-need mobile assets for maximum return on investment. Active Asset is a powerful real-time asset tracking solution that delivers critical, real-time information necessary to improve enterprise cost efficiencies and employee productivity.

Download Newbury Active Asset literature

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