Many care facilities now depend on the internet for nearly everything: a cloud-based electronic health record, e-prescribing, electronic fax, cloud phone service, pharmacy ordering and email. When the connection fails, work does not simply slow down. It can stop. A single cut fiber line or a failed router can leave staff documenting on paper while no one is sure when service will return.
Redundancy does not have to be expensive or complicated, but it does need to be planned. This post covers the options and the steps that matter most.
Start by listing systems that stop working without connectivity, and rank them by importance to resident care:
Electronic health record and medication administration.
Phone system, including voice over IP lines.
Nurse call or alert systems that rely on cloud services.
eFax and secure messaging with pharmacies, hospitals and physicians.
Door access, cameras and building controls managed in the cloud.
Email, scheduling and payroll tools.
This list tells you how much failover is worth to you.
The strongest common approach is two circuits from different providers, ideally using different physical paths into the building. If a construction crew cuts one line, the other keeps working. Ask providers whether their lines share the same conduit or upstream route, since two services riding the same pole or trench are not truly independent.
A 4G or 5G backup connection can be a cost-effective safety net. Speeds and limits vary, so confirm that it can handle your essential services, even if not everything. Many facilities design the backup to carry critical traffic like the EHR and phones, and to throttle noncritical use such as streaming.
Two connections are only useful if your equipment can switch between them automatically. Business-grade firewalls support this and can prioritize traffic. Test it regularly, because configurations drift.
An internet backup does not help if the equipment loses power. Protect the pieces that keep you connected:
Put routers, firewalls, switches and modems on battery backup.
Confirm how long the batteries last, and whether a generator feeds the network closet.
Protect against surges, which can damage equipment.
Keep network closets cool and secured.
CMS emergency preparedness requirements for long-term care facilities expect plans for utilities and communications. Your IT continuity planning fits naturally into that framework.
If your phone system runs over the internet, an outage can cut off calls to families, physicians and emergency contacts. Options include:
Configuring automatic call forwarding to mobile numbers when the system loses connection.
Keeping a few analog or cellular lines for emergencies.
Maintaining a printed list of key phone numbers.
Phone planning deserves as much attention as data planning.
Technology cannot fully remove the risk, so prepare staff:
Keep paper forms for medication records and care notes at each unit, with a process for entering information later.
Print and refresh key resident information, such as medication lists and emergency contacts, on a regular schedule if your policies allow.
Define who declares downtime, who notifies the administrator and who contacts the IT provider and carrier.
Practice downtime drills at least once a year.
When buying internet service, ask:
What are the guaranteed uptime and repair time commitments?
Is there a service level agreement with credits for outages?
How do I report a problem, and is there a human on the line at night?
Are there data caps, and how are they handled?
Does the provider offer monitoring so we know about an outage before staff do?
Set up simple monitoring that alerts IT when a circuit drops or performance degrades. Without it, the first alert is a nurse trying to open a chart.
At least once or twice a year, unplug the primary connection during a planned window and confirm that failover works, phones behave as expected and staff know what to do. Record the results and fix gaps.
You do not need to protect everything equally. A common approach is to guarantee clinical systems and phones, and let guest Wi-Fi be the first thing sacrificed during an outage.
UnityCare IT helps healthcare and senior-living organizations design failover, configure monitoring and write downtime procedures that match their operations. If an outage would be a crisis for your building, we can help you plan before it happens.
Call or text: 405-285-3845
New customers: start@unitycareit.com
Existing customers: support@unitycareit.com
Address: UnityCare Technologies, 2524 N Broadway Ste 554, PMB 947974, Edmond, Oklahoma 73034-4172