Reliable connectivity across rural locations had been difficult to achieve. Fibre connectivity upgrades increased bandwidth and reduced costs, including one site where annual connectivity costs fell from £12,000 to £800.
The Challenge
Hywel Dda University Health Board provides healthcare services to approximately 384,000 people across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire. The organisation operates across four major hospitals and around 50 community sites. The rural geography of the region made it difficult to obtain reliable high-speed connectivity through traditional networks.
Some sites were operating on extremely slow connections which affected access to digital systems. The health board needed improved connectivity to support digital services across its network.
The Solution
We implemented upgrades through the Core Network Change (CNC) programme to improve connectivity across sites. Fibre connectivity replaced older connections at several locations. One community health centre moved from a 2 Mbps connection costing £12,000 per year to a 20 Mbps FTTC connection costing around £800 per year.
Faster connectivity has enabled better transmission of large clinical image files. The improved network also supports video conferencing between sites, reducing the need for travel.
Sector: Education
Problem: Security and Reliability
Solution: Public Access Wi-Fi Service
Outcome: Strengthened Security
Outcomes and benefits
Network speeds increased by up to 10 times
Connectivity costs reduced by up to 93%
Improved video conferencing capability
Better sharing of clinical information
PSBA has made the opening of the new facility much easier, and enabled us to implement a cost-effective, digital- first focus across all 50 of our sites in Mid and West Wales, something we couldn’t have done without them.
John Hackett
Infrastructure Operations Manager
Hywel Dda University Health Board
Services
Internet Connectivity
High-capacity internet connectivity supporting digital services, collaboration and secure access to online systems.
Secure Roaming Services
Reliable connectivity enabling staff to access networks and systems securely while working across locations.
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Contact Us
If your organisation is interested in joining PSBA or learning more about available services, please e-mail PSBA.new.connection.enquiries@bt.com and a member of our dedicated team will be in touch.