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NEC Display Solutions Client Installation Healthcare

KLINIKEN ESSEN-MITTE HOSPITAL

NEC TECHNOLOGY FROM RADIOLOGY TO THE CAFETERIA

With around 700 beds, Kliniken Essen-Mitte is one of the leading enterprises in the region with specialisations and technical competence at the highest level. The hospital was formed from the merger of the “Evangelische Huyssens-Stiftung” and the “Knappschafts-Krankenhaus” in 1995, which continue to operate as two divisions under Kliniken Essen-Mitte. Naturally for a hospital of this size, the IT infrastructure is vast: 1,100 PC workplaces alone are used across the divisions. In addition, there are 450 printers and multifunctional devices. The backbone of IT is formed by 120 servers, a large number of which have been virtualised.

The Challenge

The IT infrastructure also includes numerous projectors and monitors for various purposes, from diagnostic displays through to patient way-finding systems and entertainment. “In the Department of Radiology, there was a radical change in 2007. At that time, a PACS system was introduced. In 2011, the existing PACS was removed and replaced by a new system”, says Michael Winkel, Head of IT at Kliniken Essen-Mitte. “In this context, we also changed the film printing used up to that time. Since then, X-ray images have only been stored in a digital format.

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” In the course of the change, monitors for use in the Radiology Department also had to be replaced. The devices used up to then were replaced by displays from NEC. “From the outset, we were convinced by the high quality of the NEC products. The fact that they were also more favourable in procurement than the monitors used up to then naturally facilitated our decision”, Mr Winkel says. The installation was taken on by NEC Premium Partner ERGO Computersysteme GmbH. ERGO is the hardware partner of trust at Kliniken Essen-Mitte and can look back on years of good cooperation

The NEC Solution

Convinced from the outset

The first positive experience with NEC lastingly convinced the responsible people at Kliniken Essen-Mitte. “We recommended the NEC products on the basis of our very positive experience with a view to quality and service”, says Andrea Homann, managing director of ERGO Computersysteme GmbH. “In this way, the foundation was laid for the further use of NEC products.” The number of diagnostic workstations has grown in the meantime from 8 at the start, to 19 now. Amongst others, NEC MD211C2 monitors with a resolution of two megapixels are used here. The display has a high-brightness LCD panel with UA-SFT TFT technology and LED backlight. A precise DICOM-GSDF calibration by means of internal 14-bit look-up table (LUT) and its unique, recalibration-capable front sensor system ensure precise findings for the entire service life of the monitor. In addition, there are NEC MD215MG grey level monitors with a resolution of five megapixels in mammography.

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Demo rooms in radiology: displays instead of projektors

The hospitals then soon put another idea into practice. Up to then, two radiological projectors had cast the X-ray images onto the wall in a 4:3 ratio in the demo rooms in Radiology. “This equipment had proven its worth, but was also costly”, Mr Winkel said. “Each individual projector cost around 7,000 Euros back then, a bulb costing another 700 Euros. As a result of the good quality and distinctly better profitability, we decided to equip each of the demo rooms with two large format displays.” From 2010 on, the hospitals put this into practice step by step, and in the meantime all the five demo rooms have a pair of NEC MultiSync® E654 displays, featuring direct LED backlights for a lean design, low weight and low energy consumption. With this equipment, Kliniken Essen-Mitte has reached the best possible ratio between quality and profitability.

A further field of use of NEC displays is for patient information and way-finding. At 14 locations in the hospitals, NEC MultiSync® E424 displays have been installed. “We alternately provide the displays with current news by an RSS feed and with information for the patients. In this way, current information is always available at important points, from the entrance via various stations through to the cafeteria, and patients who are waiting have a bit of variety”, Mr Winkel explained.

Kliniken Essen-Mitte still makes use of projectors in individual cases, mainly for external presentations and coaching purposes using the NEC M271W LCD projector.

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The Result

“Above all, the important thing for us is that the products are totally reliable. Naturally, this particularly applies in the medical arena”, Mr Winkel established. The diagnostic monitors opened the door, but NEC’s quality and reliability won it favour for many other applications. “The outstanding support is also a clear argument in favour of NEC. Once, even an expert in Munich got on a plane and looked at a problem on our diagnostic monitors on site when we couldn’t find a solution over the phone”, he further described. The clear support channels are tremendously important, so that the IT architecture works without any problems and optimally supports the processes in the hospitals. In addition, the guarantee extension as a result of the ServicePlus offer ensures security of planning for the entire service life of the products.

Image rights: Udo Geisler Photographie, Essen