Establishing IT systems in a new practice

Posted on August 5, 2022 by - Business Podcast, Podcasts

In this episode of PodMD, David Martin from Trisynia will be discussing the establishment of an IT system in a new practice, including the time it takes to establish a new system, the importance of planning, deciding on a location, the types of internet available, the types of equipment to use and much more.

This podcast is brought to you by Trisynia. Trisynia is built on the foundation of three existing IT Service providers, Microresponse (est. 1991), CED IT (est. 1993) and Bluefly IT Solutions (est. 2003). Together, Trisynia have established a dynamic new firm that focuses on contemporary business technology solutions. Headquartered in Port Melbourne, Trisynia also has a presence in Sydney and Brisbane, enabling us to directly engage with the Australian east coast. They also have clients in the New Zealand cities of Auckland and Wellington.

Trisynia provides specialist support to more than one hundred medical practices in Melbourne and Sydney. Their medical support and infrastructure teams work seamlessly to bring our customers the best possible outcome.

To learn more, please visit their website.

  • Transcript
    Please note this is a machine generated transcription and may contain some errors.
    *As always, all in this PODMD podcast is intended for health professionals and the comments are of a general nature. Information given is not intended as specific medical advice pertaining to any given patient. If you have a clinical issue with one of your patients please seek appropriate advice from a colleague with expertise in the area.

    Today I’d like to welcome to the PodMD studio David Martin from Trisynia.

    Trisynia are a specialist IT provider that has had over 20 years experience supporting medical practices, and has evolved into a larger company recently with offices in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.

    Today, we’ll be discussing the topic of establishing IT systems in your practice.

    *We do hope you enjoy this podcast but please remember that the advice here is of a general nature and is not intended as specific advice about a given patient. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the participant, not PodMD.

    David, thanks for talking with us on PodMD today.

    David: Thank you for having me

    Question 1
    The topic of today’s discussion is establishing IT systems in a new practice. David, can you give us a brief overview of the systems required for a new medical practice?

    David: Yes, certainly, Caroline yeah setting up a new medical IT system needs some planning of course. So from the beginning there will be decisions or practitioner needs to make, for example, what’s their preferred practice application? Do they prefer on premise system or cloud based based system and where the new practice is located and what type of Internet services are available in that location also has a bearing on whether to cloud or on prem application because a poor Internet service you wouldn’t put something in a cloud because you may have trouble accessing it.
    So yeah, look they’re initial topics, but there’s also domain names and emails you need to consider upfront to establish or present on the Internet. From there, there’s also, the desktop equipment to prefer is of Microsoft Windows or Apple Mac based.

    PodMD: Do you find this much of a difference between Windows and Mac these days?

    David: Not from an IT side of things. There they’re all computers that basically do the same functions. It’s just you really the user interface and what the practitioner prefers so, we have both in operation and both work equally as well.

    PodMD: OK, and any other considerations?

    David: Of course, telephone systems VoIP systems are very popular these days. Now that the NBN is out there it is all digital, so the VoIP type systems can be very hosted PBX. Or in other words the telephone the caller is hosted in a data centre or some of the other ones are still on Prem where you run your own phone system in the practice, so I’d suggest the hosted is far more preferable, more flexible for moving around the place.

    Then of course, there’s fax systems. Fax systems are better hosted then you can receive your faxes anywhere as a as an e-mail and send via e-mail just like a like a fax machine where you don’t have the cost of toner and paper and the like.

    Question 2
    How long will it take to establish a new medical practice setup

    David: On the IT side of things at least, if we had a clean run at a new medical practice, I’d say three to four weeks we could get a medical practice set-up. The longest lead time to traditionally is the Internet service, by the time that’s ordered and provisioned, an Internet can take two to four weeks quite happily if you’re talking a fiber service it could be 4-6 weeks.

    Question 3
    Once a location is chosen how much involvement does the IT provider need to do?

    David: Yeah, we need to be involved in initial planning just to look at the the structure of the building and what cables in a building so we can plan where to put basic Internet equipment and firewalls and switches where wireless access points are located in the in the premises, so we need that at the planning stage. And then after that it’s over to the fit-out contractor to put the equipment in and then we come in at the end.So yeah, we do need to be involved upfront.

    Question 4
    If we just order a NBN internet connection will any plan do?

    David: It is governed by the location, as I said a city location got more choice compared to our country location. But NBN is just a name for a high-speed Internet provided by NBN Co, but it comes in various flavours. There’s ones that get delivered via coaxial cable called HFC, and they’re very low grade. You gotta remember NBN is more residential type Internet service, not a business grade service. So there is business grade NBN plans as well as business grade Internet services from various ISPs, so really the choice is that the best you can get in a particular location.

    Question 5
    Who will do the cabling setup for a new practice?

    David: Look, we usually go in and recommend what cabling to put in and where to put the points, but it’s usually up to the fit-out contractor and electrician these days to actually run the cabling and terminate and test cabling plants, so it’s still there’s nothing better than a bit of cabling. Wi-Fi still needs to be provided, but yeah, a good quality structured cabling plant is good for a long time.

    PodMD: So the in the event that the doctors getting cabling put in, probably best to contact yourself or the IT provider so that electrician and the provider can talk just to make sure things are done correctly?

    David: Oh absolutely, because it’s a lot more cost effective to do it at the initial stages rather than wait a year or two and then have to try and run it in ceilings and walls when it’s all closed up, so a bit of planning up front will save a lot of money down the track.

    Question 6
    Who will supply and setup all the IT equipment?

    David: Look, once we come up with a project plan of what’s involved in the size of a particular medical practice, we will specify computers and monitors and whats to go where as well as other peripheral equipment like scanners and printers, and we’ll provide a bill of quantities. So back to the practitioner to let them know what they need

    Question 7
    What if the practitioner has their own IT equipment already?

    David: Oh yeah, absolutely look. If it’s a reasonably current computer or printer. Yeah, quite happily integrated into a new system to make it more cost effective for the practitioner.
    Yeah, look, but certainly if the computer is 5 years old it’s getting a little bit tired and really the cost saving is very minimal. It’s most pretty more slower than a nice new one, so yes, there is a new balance point.

    Question 8
    How long will it take to setup and configure a new IT System?

    David: Look not very long at all. We’ve obviously been involved with the planning process and equipment ordered we could get in and get an IT system in within a week to two weeks quite happily and fully functioning

    Question 9
    What ongoing support can you provide a new practice setup?

    David: Certainly up and running, we will provide warranty and support for all the equipment and the setup that we provide. But yeah, look ongoing there’s obviously when with new staff there’s advice and training and questions that will go along, and we can provide IT support for that ongoing medical practice and to keep it running.

    Final question
    So David, in relation to the topic today, what would be the main point that you’d want to drive home from your experience to impart to our listeners in relation to their IT?

    David: Look planning that planning is the key to everything, if upfront that you can decide on this on the on the size and the scale of your medical practice certainly lead time from equipment is difficult these days. There’s a lot of equipment which is not available anymore due to various reasons, overseas and even your Internet can be delayed. So look if you’ve got a go live time, get that Internet ordering very quickly, because yes, I’ve seen Internets provisioning stretch out 8-10 weeks quite happily and that could prevent you moving in when you want to.

    Thanks Dave again for your valuable insight today into IT and setting up your medical practice.

    David: Thank you Caroline, it has been a pleasure.

*As always, all in this PODMD podcast is intended for health professionals and the comments are of a general nature. Information given is not intended as specific medical advice pertaining to any given patient. If you have a clinical issue with one of your patients please seek appropriate advice from a colleague with expertise in the area.