Health Center Makes Quick Recovery with ShoreTel® Phone System

Customer: Thundermist Health Center
Industry: Health Care Services
Solution: ShoreTel Business Communications

Background:
For over 45 years, Thundermist Health Center, a Federally Qualified Community Health Center headquartered in Warwick, RI, has provided healthcare services to people in Woonsocket, West Warwick, and South County, Rhode Island who struggle with transportation problems, addiction, unemployment or underemployment and many other issues. Thundermist’s goal is to improve the health of patients and communities by delivering exceptional health care, removing barriers to that care and promoting healthy lifestyles.

With their flagship health center in Woonsocket being nationally recognized for its innovations in patient flow and use of technology, it seemed only natural to have a phone system with advanced features and functionality that would meet their quality standards for patient administration and general business communications.

Challenge:
Thundermist was experiencing rapid growth. They were making plans to open a new call center, and putting the final touches on a new health center facility. The legacy phone system in place was complicated to use and had a poorly-designed interface. Upgrades and maintenance were cumbersome and time-consuming to perform, which often required weekends and evenings to make necessary changes. With only three IT support staff in-house, they wanted a modern phone system that would be straightforward to integrate and allow them to make quick changes based on business requirements. In particular, they wanted to be able to easily add extensions when new employees came on board, or be able to make hunt and work group changes quickly and in a clear-cut fashion. It was also important to have a solution that offered an easy-to-use GUI (graphical user interface) to make training and everyday use intuitive for their staff.

Solution:
Andrew Tomkiewicz, Director of Information Technology, was referred to Econotel. The Econotel team was able to evaluate Thundermist’s current system, discuss their strategy for growth and determine best course of action based on their business communication requirements. They looked at a number of different phone systems, but ultimately determined that ShoreTel had a great user interface, seemed very easy to implement and fit their budget. With the addition of a new call center in the works, the ShoreTel system also had everything they would need to get that off the ground without having to purchase additional features. Other phone systems they evaluated were complicated to set up and make changes, and after talking with other users they were convinced that the simplicity of the ShoreTel system was best for their on-the-go staff of doctors, nurses and administrative staff. With Econotel’s help, the ShoreTel solution was chosen and they went right to work to set things up. With a new facility going up and the move of another, they put together a plan that allowed them to prep one site and then install the other for a seamless integration. Once the equipment was installed, Econotel came in to perform hands-on training with their staff, along with a guide for each user. “It was a very smooth process,” said Tomkiewicz. “Econotel was great. They taught us how to use the GUI and how to add extensions, set up the hunt and work groups, route pulling and so on. From there we were off and running,” he added.

Results:
Today Thundermist has 6 locations and over 425 users in Rhode Island. They have continued to use the ShoreTel phone system, which offered plug and play deployment in each of the new facilities they opened. Econotel has continued to provide them with advice, recommendations and regular updates on trends and technology. “They are a great source of knowledge, and their ability to get the answers we need makes them a great partner,” said Tomkiewicz.

What’s next for Thundermist? “Our call center operation is constantly evolving,” said Tomkiewicz. “ShoreTel and Econotel will definitely continue to be part of our growth plans.” For information on ways a modern phone system can accommodate your organization’s business requirements, contact us or call 800-776-4967 to schedule a site assessment.