The Nightingale – Simplier User Experience for staff, patients & vistors.

The need for speed.
Nightingale Hospitals were conceived in a crisis. They had to be built in a matter of weeks ready to deal with an unpredictable and dangerous pandemic. The Hospital required a comprehensive, reliable wired and wireless network across the site within weeks. The ability to deploy a major IT solution so quickly could be genuinely lifesaving.

The challenge of wi-fi connectivity in a medical environment.
There was a clear need for fast, reliable wi-fi throughout the new hospital as well as outside in the area where ambulances arrive. The presence of state-of-the-art wireless and wired medical equipment throughout the site also posed a challenge to the network designers. A high level of tailoring and flexibility was essential. 

The need for a user-centred experience.
The solution had to meet the diverse needs of many different users, accessing both their own and NHS-owned devices. This could range from medical staff using wi-fi enabled medical equipment to families talking to their loved ones by video (to avoid close contact). Simple, empathetic experience design – tailored to the individual user’s needs – was therefore key to this project’s success.

Security an absolute priority.
With so many different users in such a data-sensitive medical setting, robust network security was a must. A solution was required that would allow both registered and guest users fast, easy access on any device – while offering a high level of security across the network.

Creating a reliable user-centred experience.
Qolcom, together with HPE Aruba, worked in collaboration with Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, to deliver a robust, user-centred network solution in a very short timescale. The solution was a tailored design based on a physical and logical extension of the Royal Devon & Exeter LAN and WLAN to the new Nightingale Hospital