Hill Top Home of Comfort - MPS
Company Overview
Hill Top Home of Comfort is a 55-bed skilled nursing care facility, located in Killdeer, ND. Hill Top provides appropriate nursing care in a comfortable atmosphere. The establishment of Hill Top Home has made it possible for people in the community and surrounding areas to remain “at home” while receiving nursing care. Their mission is to provide compassionate care that extends and enhances the quality of life for residents.
The Problem
Hill Top Home of Comfort in Killdeer, North Dakota serves 75 patients in its nursing home facility. The staff at Hill Top took their computers to the repair shop every few weeks. Their wireless Internet cut out often, leaving staff to their back-up matrix software.
Hill Top’s administrator, Gerry Leadbetter, said he felt frustrated by the unreliable technology. “In electronic medical records, IT is so important to have working. Our wireless was a huge problem in our building,” said Leadbetter.
Employees couldn’t access patients’ medication and treatment lists without fear of the wireless service crashing. Stephanie Harderson, a nurse at Hill Top, said their Internet and computers experienced issues frequently. “We use Matrix care, and that system requires good Internet because that is where all of our nursing charting is and it’s how we deliver all of our medications.”
Hill Top’s Internet provider attributed the problems to the company’s computers. “Every other week, we were having to take this computer or that computer in, and it just started adding up. It was $200 here and $500 there,” Harderson said.
Hill Top’s technology expenses spiked due to their outdated machines. Harderson remembers the wiring in the building wasn’t properly completed. She also realized they used old, mismatched equipment, such as monitors, keyboards, processors, servers and printers of various brands.
Even more, their primary server was out in the open, atop a filing cabinet. Every staff member used the same password. “It was very unsafe,” Leadbetter said.
When they couldn’t stand the unpredictable equipment anymore, they turned to Marco. Leadbetter received a reference from a colleague, and he called Marco for assistance right away.
“We had a lot of problems. I think our technology goals were to be secure and have a reliable system. Those two were on the top,” Leadbetter said.
After their Marco Technology Advisor established a plan, Leadbetter and Harderson felt confident. They implemented Managed Print Services at the nursing home. Leadbetter explained that they didn’t dislike their prior print services provider, but wanted Marco to handle all their needs. “We have it all under one umbrella and saved some money doing it. Managed Print came along with the Managed IT, and it integrated everything for us, so we can print from anywhere in the building.”
Harderson also values the enhanced printers and copiers. “I have a larger computer in my office, and it tells me how many pages I have left.”
She finds the email, print, fax, and scan capabilities useful too, which every staff member can easily use—thanks to the intuitive designs. “Once you know the capabilities in one state-of-the-art machine, it’s nice to have. You know when a job is complete or when it fails.”
Automatic toner and ink replacements are another plus. “We don’t have to carry a lot of supplies on hand. That has been a good road,” Leadbetter said of their Managed Print Services.
Besides the automatic ordering and increased functionality, the multi-function devices save time and efficiency. If a rare issue arises, they call Marco’s support desk and quickly have the problem solved either remotely or on-site.
“Anyone can come sell you stuff, but it’s what you get down the road. Our sales rep and network systems engineer and the rest of the team at Marco, they are always there for us”
Leadbetter said. Before, Hill Top didn’t have the reliability of specialists to help solve their technology issues, but Marco gives the 24/7 support the medical facility requires.
The multi-device project ultimately established an improved, reliable network for Hill Top. “We covered a lot of hurdles, stuck together, and at the end of the day…we have a great system that works. As we work together with Marco, we keep improving our system, and that’s kind of exciting. Marco doesn’t just sell it to you; they help you keep it going and improve. I hope we continue to build and grow together for many years to come,” Leadbetter concluded.
