02
Nov
The Situation
When Heatherlands Medical Centre were in the market to replace the Old Digital Telephone system they looked for help and advice from Sure Business Systems. The old system was lacking flexibility and didn’t deliver the features the thriving practice required.
Issues Faced Included:
- Limited options to divert calls and inform patients of closures or changes.
- No Backup solution or Disaster Recovery processes in place in case of a BT network failure or fault.
- Limited number of lines for patients to call and book an appointment.
- No mechanism to monitor the number of patient calls into the practice.
Challenges
The Old NEC legacy system no longer suited the needs of the practice having been set-up for how they operated years ago. Lacking functionality, the old technology was also becoming expensive to maintain. An additional challenge presented was the BT Digital switch off which will affect all businesses in 2025 and includes NHS Medical centres and Doctors Surgeries.
Solution
Telcoswitch Hosted Cloud based telephone system
Highspeed Direct Fibre Internet Line to deliver secure VoIP traffic on the network
Deployment of Mobile Applications onto 4G mobile devices in the event of a BT outage or failure.
Results
Improved caller waiting times and the ability to manage the number of callers at busy times.
90-Day call recording and real-time call monitoring provided as standard
Cloud based Call queuing to inform patients of queue and waiting times to book appointment.
Automated IVR messages which can be changed on the fly to deliver messages to patients at different times of the day.
Enhanced system features.
Seamless Migration
The new VoIP platform allows for greater flexibility and disaster recovery. Unlike traditional aging systems phone numbers are not tethered to a set location, giving Cloud Hosted Telephony the benefit of portability. The deployment of 4G Mobile applications meant the solution could be delivered even when the internet connection failed.
It was important for Heatherlands that the practice could keep their existing numbers for patient continuity.
Neil Owens, Head of Networking Services at Sure Business Systems, commented:
“The deployment and migration to a Cloud Based was seamless, and it took Sure Business engineers just 24-Hours to supply, install, commission and train staff ensuring that there was minimal disruption in service to staff and patients throughout the entire project.”
Enhanced Communications
Overall, the features and functionality capabilities of Telco Switches Cloud technology have dramatically improved communications internally and externally. The Hosted VoIP solution is now capable of migrating away from a legacy technology which is due to be retired in 2025. With key benefits such as caller identity, inbound call control, IVR messages and diverse call routing it has improved staff productivity and the overall patient experience.
IT resilience has improved patient continuity considerably. Previously, Heatherlands had its primary voice communications in the hands of an obsolete aging phone system with limited support. Now their systems are robust and resilient with cloud based numbers delivering flexibility and resilience particularly in the event of an Internet failure.
Discussing the Solution with Practice Manager Karen Jones, she detailed:
“The phone system has changed the way we work and improved the services we offer our patients. Features such as real time call data, voice recordings, phone access via the app for remote working have been hugely beneficial for training and monitoring of staff and improved the speed and quality of service we offer. Neil and the team are very helpful and are always on hand to help when we need them.”
