ICT Department
ICT Strategy
The ICT Strategy document (draft) outlines a number of focus areas for the SLH ICT strategy. These key areas include:
- Development of ICT infrastructure
- Systems resilience Plan
- Business Continuity
- Information systems integration
- Image transfer/PACS
ICT Infrastructure
The ICT infrastructure has been radically redeveloped to provide higher levels of service to patients and staff and to support the planned PACS/RIS system.
The main computer room server/switch racks were relocated to a secure new room in March 2008 and a new Secondary Computer Room in the former Nurses Home is currently being prepared for use later in 2009.
Significant funding for a major network upgrade was received in 2008 and this upgrade will also be completed in 2009.
Systems Resilience
The Hospital's strategy is to increase the level of server virtualisation for the following reasons:
- Cost saving versus use of physical server per application
- Space saving
- Energy saving
- Ease of management of backup servers
The majority of application servers excluding the clinical servers now run on a virtual platform using VMWare.
Business Continuity
The two new computer rooms and enhanced network provide a firm foundation for further development of the hospital's ICT Disaster Recovery plans including virtualised SAN's in each computer room.
Image Transfer/Pacs
A web-based system for the transfer of DICOM images between St Luke's and other hospitals was installed in late 2007. Diagnostic images from Beaumont are currently sent using this system.
It is planned to implement a PACS/RIS system in 2009.
