| Private Networks: Delivering Distance Learning to Health-Care
Professionals |
| Private Networks is making
access to medical education easier and more convenient for students and hospital
administrators throughout Arizona. |
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Background
Private
Networks is a high-technology communications company that specializes in
developing continuing-education programs. In particular, Private Networks
works with a team of experts to develop medical-education content for its
customers.
Private Networks brought broadcast and video networking
to one of its large clients, the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association
(AzHHA). The new system makes interactive distance learning more accessible
to health-care workers within the organization and allows hospital personnel
to more easily obtain credentials in various disciplines. The company's videoconferencing
capabilities facilitate communication among hospital administrators.
Challenge
The AzHHA, which represents
110 Arizona hospitals, needed to provide ongoing training programs and cost-effective
education for its medical professionals. It also sought to give hospital
CEOs immediate access to information affecting their hospitals and to help
them communicate better with one another.
To meet AzHHA's need for
both content and convenience, Private Networks' technology had to deliver
high-quality video-on-demand to desktop PCs via satellite broadcasts.
Solution
Private Networks chose Cisco
IP/TV video technology to deliver its specialized content to the AzHHA.
Through
this system Private Networks develops content, compresses it, and sends it
to a satellite. The satellite then sends its signal to "downlink" locations
that are connected to Cisco IP/TV servers, which are in turn connected to
users' networks. Students, who select and download courses from a program
listing on their PCs, can then view the program at their convenience.
Private
Networks' Cisco IP/TV solution is:
 Cost-effective
Compatible with AzHHA's various existing applications
Customizable
Available to learners
anytime, anywhere
Results
The combination of innovative Cisco technology and
Private Networks' own educational and video resources has yielded immediate,
positive results for distance-learning programs in the AzHHA.
With
the help of Cisco IP/TV servers and software, Private Networks can now create
interactive education and training programs and deliver them to learners'
desktop PCs. The Cisco IP/TV solution also streams live video broadcasts
of meetings to desktops, so busy CEOs can participate without leaving their
offices.
Results include:
Convenient and flexible courses for busy hospital professionals
Access to current
policies and procedures for hospital CEOs
Elimination of travel and time costs associated with traditional
continuing-education programs
Private Networks' clients enjoy:
Reduced costs
for professional development
Reduced time and lower travel costs associated with continuing
education
Easy
access to current medical information in various disciplines
The convenience
and customized-learning formats that Private Networks offers encourage medical
professionals to continue their education—and informed health-care workers
can provide better patient care.
Words to Live By
"With
the Cisco IP/TV technology, we have been able to offer hospitals a system
that allows nurses to make course selections appropriate to their interests
or training needs from a desktop computer. They can then view the program
when they want, without leaving the hospital."
—Richard Altman, vice
president of development, Private Networks
Next Steps
The Internet holds great potential for corporate
education at every level, from building leadership skills to teaching staff
how to use new software. With e-learning, organizations can empower their
workforces to keep pace with today's changing economy. To implement an effective
e-learning program in your company, you need technology that will:
Inexpensively
deliver instructional content in multiple formats, including videoconferencing,
multimedia and virtual labs
Provide companywide access and real-time collaboration
to an extended network of learners, instructors, and experts
Manage and track the learning process and assess program
and student success
Enable content creation and delivery in an open-platform environment
With
e-learning, your organization can reuse and reformat content quickly and
easily, significantly reducing development and delivery time. Online courses
provide flexibility and convenience and can quickly reach students anywhere,
at any time.
As a company experienced in building e-learning solutions,
Cisco Systems' Internet Business Solutions Group offers:
Proven technology, including the Cisco IP/TV solution,
that ensures a scalable, standards-based, networked system
An extensive network of application providers and system
integrators
Internet
expertise combined with exceptional service and support
Words to
Live By
"We continue to be impressed with the robustness, functionality,
and reasonable price of the Cisco IP/TV solution, and by Cisco's commitment
to develop and evolve the product with new features. The promises of this
technology are great, and for the first time it looks as if they can be delivered
on."
—Robert Fink, deputy head of networking and telecommunications,
Lawrence Berkeley Lab
What Cisco Offers
Cisco has set the
standard for using Internet technology to transform business processes. Its
Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) has vast experience
helping companies make the transition from old-world business to e-business.
IBSG’s Net Readiness analysis tool
is designed to assess an organization’s ability to make the transition
to an Internet business model. Cisco offers:
Internet-powered business methodologies
Internet-powered application frameworks
Networking reference architectures
Alliances with leading companies with proven experience
in building e-business applications and solutions
May 2001
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Private
Networks Snapshot
Based in Tempe, Arizona
Customers include the Arizona Hospital and Healthcare
Association, which represents 110 hospitals in the state
Keep
in Mind
Being able to provide online content quickly and efficiently
is vital to Private Networks' business. In its commitment to creating excellent
distance-learning solutions for the health-care field, the company always
keeps abreast of changes in the medical profession.
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