The Veterans Health Administration (VHA), the nation’s largest health care system, strives to provide the same high-quality standard of care to the 9 million Veterans we serve each year, regardless of their health status or location. Masu. Achieving that goal is difficult for an organization with more than 1,300 facilities, but VHA has learned that having the right technology can make a big difference in success.
The organization is currently piloting private 5G networking, a foundational technology that could improve the communications hospitals have been working on for years. The radio waves used by cell phone services do not penetrate the concrete and steel walls of medical buildings, so they cannot send or receive signals to cell phone towers. Therefore, most facilities utilize Wi-Fi. However, WiFi is designed to transmit data, not voice calls. As doctors and nurses move through hospital hallways, WiFi signals can switch between access points and cause you to lose connectivity during important calls.
Private 5G networks work differently. This is a mobile phone network designed to operate inside buildings, ensuring stable, high-quality reception. Avoiding the public internet also enhances cybersecurity and supports patient privacy.
Deploying private 5G networks will enable hospitals to deploy advanced features. The success of a cutting-edge pilot program at the Veterans Affairs Hospital in Livermore, California, shows some of the possibilities. The hospital, in collaboration with partners Verizon, Microsoft, and Medivis, is launching the first secure, private, VA hospital designed to power augmented reality (AR) applications for surgeons and residents. We have built a 5G network.
The ultra-fast and secure network has near-zero latency, giving all surgeons equal access to advanced imaging tools for preoperative planning. During surgery, her 3D scan can be superimposed on the patient’s body to improve precision and accuracy. This network will also be used to create immersive and lifelike training for surgical residents. Currently, hospitals use mannequins and live actors to simulate patients, which are expensive and require careful planning and scheduling.
Using private 5G networks, hospitals can provide augmented reality (AR) training to complement or replace mannequins and actors. AR systems can be updated in real time, allowing trainees to stay up to date with the latest information and technology. Some trainings can be accessed remotely using a laptop and headset, allowing hospitals to serve hundreds of participants around the world with less planning and expense.
5G networks will also help the VA better track medical devices. Like many hospital systems, the organization is understaffed, with 92% of facilities reporting severe nursing shortages. Studies show that nurses spend 21 to 60 minutes per shift searching for supplies and equipment, taking them away from patient care and costing hospitals up to $14 billion in lost productivity annually.
The shortage of nurses is expected to increase further in the future, and improving efficiency has become an important issue. Using a private 5G network, a nurse can use her mobile device to find the items she needs and get instructions on the fastest route to get to them. And with intelligent video monitoring, you can receive alerts when patients at risk of falling attempt to leave the bed, helping to avoid causing serious injuries.
With 5G, hospitals can add even more capabilities, including establishing secure, high-performance connections to all the cloud services they use. You can also use the system to securely share cloud-based information with other facilities. Sending data over a private network makes it much harder for hackers to break into it.
Many veterans receive home care through telemedicine, which is especially beneficial for those with disabilities and those who live far from their health care provider. Easy-to-install wireless base stations ensure reliable connectivity for veterans in remote areas.
The future of medical 5G networks is wide open, and these are just a few of the services that medical 5G networks can provide. Government agencies may be able to obtain funding for their proposals through the Technology Modernization Fund.
Learn more: https://www.verizon.com/business/solutions/public-sector/federal-government/veterans
