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In some ways, hospitals are like fortresses or strongholds, offering protection and refuge. The structures often look like fortresses - sprawling buildings with imposing, impenetrable brick walls. Not impenetrable to patients and caregivers, of course, but to something else that has become increasingly important to hospital workers: cellular services.
This is a challenge, in spite of concerns over security or potential legal risks associated with technology and patient care, mobile devices are infiltrating the healthcare fortress in large numbers. More and more physicians are bringing their own smartphones and tablets to work, revamping the perception of what devices can help treat patients. In fact, according to a recent Manhattan Research report, it is estimated that 81 percent of physicians now use mobile devices at work. A few years ago, the discussion focused on the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH), which offered incentives to utilize electronic health records (EHR).on laptops. Now those same records are accessed via iPhones, Android devices and their other mobile brethren.
 It took some time, but healthcare has finally embraced wireless. Rather than constantly fight the proliferation of devices, hospitals have adopted mobile communications as a means of not only improving communications with staff and patients, but also enhancing the overall standard of patient care.
Much of this has to do with the fact that cellular technology itself has evolved, particularly as mobile network operators (MNO) build out and enhance large-scale 4G LTE and other next-generation networks that offer the promise of WLAN-equivalent data delivery. For doctors, nurses and administrative staff, this can mean faster and more efficient diagnoses, treatment, record maintenance and billing.
But in many cases, the hospital citadel poses a barrier to pervasive cellular coverage, which, in turn, creates a challenge for the healthcare provider. The increasing reliance on mobile devices is a double-edged sword. On one hand, access to vital patient information in the palm of one's hand can be a boon for patient care. But if that access simply is not available, the benefits of mobile services like 4G are lost. Hospitals, however, do have an option that provides strong cellular coverage regardless of the impenetrable nature of the building: distributed antenna systems (DAS).
DAS allows for reliable cellular coverage throughout the hospital facility via a simple concept. A DAS solution takes the mobile operator signals from an outside tower or onsite base station, "conditions" these signals for optimal quality and distributes them throughout the facility. A network of antennas carries the signals from multiple operators' networks throughout the building, enhancing coverage for the myriad of mobile devices in use.
Consider, again, the concept of an electronic health record (EHR) being accessed directly through a doctor's smartphone. The doctor can pull up that record from anywhere - during his or her stint in the ER, while in the ICU, etc. A DAS ensures the connection is there, enhancing the doctor's ability to treat patients.
DAS offer other benefits. First, many solutions are mobile operator-agnostic, allowing for multiple services to function inside any given facility. Second, the latest generation of DAS supports the speed and capacity of 4G LTE. This ensures that the hospital's network infrastructure remains future-ready as mobile operators roll out data networks supporting the next generation of data applications.
DAS benefits to hospitals are particularly relevant because of the way healthcare institutions have embraced cellular services. Hospitals are increasingly reliant on complete mobile-based systems designed to enhance communication between divisions and integrate clinical with administrative operations. Cellular connections are instrumental to such workflow and processes as:
- Wireless medical telemetry systems (WMTS)
- Medication administration systems
- Patient and asset tracking systems that utilize radio frequency identification (RFID) tags
- Wireless monitoring of freezer and refrigeration units
 In short, there's no time for downtime that may not only kill productivity, but also adversely impact patient treatment. Thankfully, cellular infrastructure solutions like DAS have made the impenetrable fortress a more mobile-friendly place, allowing everyone in the hospital to reap the benefits presented by today's wireless world.
Dayna Kully is senior director, vertical business development at Corning MobileAccess.
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