Medical computers are specifically built to handle the sometimes punishing environments in the healthcare sector, such as hospitals. Related health organizations like rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, and hospice care may not always feel the need or have the financial means to have All-in-One medical PCs for their facilities.
Today's article covers enterprise computers as an alternative for these health organizations, collectively called skilled nursing facilities. It covers how enterprise PCs differ from medical-grade computers, why skilled nursing facilities like Athena Healthcare use them, and what features are essential to computer purchasers for such facilities.
Medical-Grade vs. Enterprise Computers
Medical-grade means the computer or device has been built, tested, and certified to work safely around patients (60601-1) and not interfere with numerous medical devices like EKG machines (60601-1-2). Many of the medical computers found in hospitals and healthcare establishments are medical-grade.
Enterprise computers, also known as enterprise-class and enterprise-grade computers, are not built to such standards and thus are less expensive. On the other hand, enterprise computers are not off-the-shelf models. They have been designed explicitly for the business setting, with many coming with more memory and extensive network capability than consumer brands.
"Businesses" include for-profit high-tech and finance companies, non-profit organizations, and the public sector, such as government agencies. Healthcare in the US is a mixture of for-profit and non-profit companies.
Reliability and Enterprise Computers in Healthcare
Reliability is critical in healthcare. Providers and their medical staff in an ER need to know and trust that their medical devices and equipment will function when used. A computer that only sporadically displays patients' electronic medical records can threaten lives since providers make life-and-death decisions on the records' information or lack of it.
Most skilled nursing facility workers do not face the same pressures. Their use of computers usually places them away from patients, and medical devices that may be affected by the computers are few and far between.
However, facility workers always aim to provide the best health care for their patients, whether undergoing rehabilitation after an accident or resting comfortably in a hospice home. An unreliable computer can disrupt that care, which in turn can affect staff workflow and morale. Costs to repair or replace the computers can impact budgets, which are already limited in many skilled nursing facilities.
Reliable Enterprise Computers: What to Look For
Enterprise computers are built to provide high reliability and are designed from the ground up to handle intensive business operations, such as 24/7 operation in server rooms or graphic processing.
The following features make enterprise computers more reliable for skilled nursing facilities.
Fanless Design: Fanned computers can break and entirely shut down the computer until repaired or replaced. Enterprise computers do not suffer such issues. Their fanless cooling systems make cleaning a breeze, as the staff doesn't have to worry about cleaning products entering the machines and damaging their interior. Fanless computers are also virtually noiseless, making them ideal for nursing home residents who need sleep.
IP65: Sealed front bezels protect the interior of the enterprise computer from dust and fluids from splashes and during regular cleaning in skilled nursing facilities. Again, this protection increases the PC's reliability.
Solid State Drives (SSD): Like fans, hard disc drivers (HDDs) in most consumer computers have moving parts that can break down and render the devices unusable until fixed. HDDs can also lose vital information. SSDs in enterprise computers do not store data in such a manner, which makes them more reliable, especially during extended use.
Rugged Design: Skilled nursing facilities can be bustling places like hospitals. At these times, computers get bumped, banged, jostled, and dropped and potentially suffer damage. Enterprise computers like business tablets have been built to handle the abuse. Antimicrobial* casings protect the computer casing from deterioration and degradation.
VESA Mount: Skilled nursing facilities come in various layouts, from a physical therapist's rehabilitation gym to a private bedroom for hospice patients. The standard VESA mounts on enterprise computers make placing them convenient and reliable for staff and patients.
Cybernet Brings Reliability to Healthcare Enterprise Computers
Specific healthcare-related organizations, like skilled nursing facilities, may not feel the need or have the budget for medical-grade computers. Enterprise computers are an excellent alternative, being built with many features to make them reliable for use in such places.
Contact a Cybernet representative on our network of Enterprise computers for healthcare use. They happily cover the reliability of our Enterpire All-In-Ones and tablets, which have a failure rate of less than 0.5 percent.
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