Case Study Charleston Veterinary Referral Center

Transcription

1 OVERVIEW Case Study Charleston Veterinary Referral Center Business Profile: Full-service, 24/7 veterinary care center Opened in February 2011 Serves the Charleston, South Carolina area Size: Approximately 50 employees, including veterinarians and support staff Planning to expand to employees within a year Business Challenges: New building, from the ground up No IT in place Solution: Two clustered, high-end servers Connected to a SAN for performance, reliability and redundancy Repurpose PACS server to a virtual server in the cluster Made the server the domain controller Added several Windows 7 virtual machines to run processes related to EMR software, access control system and credit card processing software Previously would have had to purchase or use dedicated PCs, increasing costs Results: In-house IT person freed up to handle day-to-days duties No major IT issues in first few months of business operation Staff able to concentrate on doing their jobs treating animals

2 Case Study Charleston Veterinary Referral Center BRIEF Charleston Veterinary Referral Center (CVRC) is a Charleston, South Carolina-based veterinary medicine provider specializing in specialty and emergency veterinary care which opened its doors in February, When CVRC was in the initial architectural design phase, Michael Parks, Director of IT at CVRC, decided it was important to include a professional IT firm as part of the design team, in effect having reliable IT input from the ground up, instead of trying to integrate IT into the building post-construction. At this time, CVRC had four employees and Michael invited the Catalyst s team to make recommendations on everything from designing an IT infrastructure to the layout of the server room and other areas around the building. As a brand-new facility, it was important for us to have a scalable, flexible solution Catalyst was instrumental in getting CVRC up and running, and with the equipment it needed from Day One. They utilize the veterinary industry s leading software, StringSoft, which is used for medical record keeping, invoicing and billing, client communication, referring veterinarian communication, inventory, and other industry-specific applications. They also have Microsoft Office, OpenOffice, and digital imaging software (Efilm) a digital imaging server (FusionPACs.) The current 50 or so Charleston VRC employees use approximately 40 desktop computer configurations along with a few laptops. As a brand-new facility, it was important for us to have a scalable, flexible solution that could meet both our initial computing requirements, yet easily grow with us during our businesses adolescent phase, which would likely involve significant increases in number of computers, network load, system users and the like, stated Michael, adding, We also wanted to have a system with a high degree of redundancy, as we are completely dependent on our electronic medical record system for all of our business needs. Catalyst also participated in the process of designing our network layout, jack locations in rooms, our camera and DVR system, access control system, and was involved with our IP-based phone vendor. Catalyst knew it was going to have to go the extra mile to make the proposed CVRC a reality. One

3 advantage was that CVRC brought Catalyst into the process early on, while the company was still in its design phase, before its building was even completed. This enabled them to interject their considerable expertise into the process, effectively solving problems before they ever presented themselves. BACKGROUND Since CVRC was a new, from-the-ground-up business, it was important for the company working on their IT set-up to deliver a high-end system which not only met their initial and intermediate needs, but could also accommodate inevitable growth in both the number of customers and company payroll. While their current staff numbers approximately 50, CVRC anticipates growing to between 75 and 100 employees in the next six months to a year, which means their IT needs will grow proportionally. Catalyst knew this, so they were able to factor in a certain amount of calculated growth into the company s IT framework. It was extremely important for CVRC to work with an IT company which was all-inclusive, and a true partner which would be accountable to them. Since pets need medical attention at all hours of the day, there was never a question CVRC would be open 24/7, putting even more pressure on their IT infrastructure. It was also extremely important for CVRC to work with an IT company which was allinclusive, and a true partner which would be accountable to them. For Parks, there was no real choice other than Catalyst. We have struggled in the past with finger pointing of vendors not taking responsibility and blaming someone else when issues arise and at times a lack of knowing which vendor or company to contact for support. Catalyst is the only company I have worked with that does not believe in that mentality. Their support encompasses dealing with external vendors and companies, giving you a single point of contact for your IT support needs. Cost was, of course, a major factor in choosing Catalyst. According to Michael, Catalyst was creative and flexible in helping to design a cuttingedge system at a very reasonable cost. In fact, their system was far superior from a redundancy, performance, and scalability perspective to other vendors that I had worked with in the past, at an almost identical cost.

4 On that very tight budget, Catalyst devised a virtual server environment that has met and exceeded current computing needs in performance, reliability, and redundancy. We had initially been designing a traditional, server heavy infrastructure for our needs, which included a SQL server, File Server, Print Server, PACS Server, and Domain controller. Catalyst recommended going with a newer setup involving fewer, but higher-end servers running in a clustered, virtualized environment, says Parks, adding, This setup allowed us to leverage two clustered high end servers connected to a SAN for tremendous performance, reliability and redundancy. In being flexible, we repurposed our PACS server (provided by our digital x-ray vendor) to a virtual server in the cluster, and made the Server itself into the domain controller, leveraging hardware that we had already purchased. We were also able to add several Windows 7 virtual machines to run specific processes related to our EMR software, access control system, and credit card processing software. Previously, we would have had to purchase or use dedicated PCs for these purposes, increasing initial cost, as well as maintenance. BUSINESS CHALLENGE Thanks in no small part to their partnership with Catalyst, CVRC has had an extremely successful first few months of operation. As you can guess, running a 24/7 medical facility can present its share of IT issues which need to be resolved, and Catalyst has been there from the beginning, taking care of them for CVRC. Catalyst helped design and deploy our entire IT infrastructure, so they have been a vital partner thus far in the life of our business. They allow me to sleep easy at night knowing that I have a company available with tremendous technical abilities and dedication to assist us in any emergency, or during our day to day needs. Catalyst has helped increase my time available for other duties as well, says Parks. For Catalyst President and CEO Steve Jaramillo, while CVRC presented a unique challenge on several levels

5 (developing and implementing a high-end IT infrastructure from the ground up and working with an out-of-state client) on the most basic level they were no different from any other client. At Catalyst, we thrive on challenges, he says, adding, Whether it s the challenge of helping a small company here in the Valley make their sales quota on a weekly basis with no computer and technology issues dragging them down, or helping a high-end veterinary clinic across the country open its doors, on schedule, and stay open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, it s all part of the mix for Catalyst. SUMMARY Through their partnership with Catalyst, CVRC has demonstrated yet again that, when it comes to finding a true partner which will work with small-and-medium-sized businesses to solve their IT problems, Catalyst is the undeniable industry leader. At the time of engagement, we had no IT environment, as the building was being designed and constructed. I had worked with Catalyst previously at several other veterinary hospitals, and had been pleased with their support, recommendations, willingness to design flexible solutions around client needs and budgets, and also enjoyed my personal interactions with both the sales and support staff, Parks says. From a technology standpoint, CVRC possesses the most sophisticated imaging, monitoring and laboratory instrumentation available. We are the only veterinary facility in South Carolina that has high-field MRI on site. In addition, we have on-site CT scan, digital radiology, and a complete in-house laboratory. All of these technologies allow our doctors to obtain crucial information rapidly, improving our ability to diagnose and treat medical and surgical conditions and thus improving outcomes, Parks continues. For Dr. Alan E. Green, Chief of Staff at CVRC, the partnership with Catalyst couldn t have worked out any better. The most important goals we have are excellent patient care and successful medical outcomes. In addition, we have a strong commitment to client service and great communication. It is essential that you and your family veterinarian are well informed of how your pet is doing while in the hospital, he says, adding, As pet owners ourselves, we understand that your pet is a family member. As such, the better informed and comforted you are, the less stressful your experience will be while your pet is hospitalized. Perhaps CVRC s in-house IT person, Dave Smith, offers the most heartfelt endorsement of Catalyst and their services. He says, I would wholeheartedly recommend Catalyst to any business in need of IT support (and I have!) Unlike many companies, they design support, setup, deployment and purchasing to the specific needs of their customers, and are willing to be creative and flexible in every aspect of what they do. Their techs have an excellent skill set, interpersonal skills in dealing with people with high levels of IT knowledge to none and their management is vigilant over customer satisfaction.