Internet
What a facility should actually pay for internet.
Most facility internet contracts were signed for a building that did far less online. Since then the EHR moved to the cloud, residents arrived with three devices each, and the cameras went IP — usually on the same circuit, at the same price.
What drives the price
Four things, and only one of them is speed.
Dedicated or shared
A dedicated (DIA) circuit is a private, uncontended connection with a service guarantee. Shared cable is far cheaper and fine for many buildings. Paying DIA prices for a building that does not need it is the single most common overspend.
What is actually available at the address
Two carriers might serve the street and only one the building. Availability, not the rate card, decides the real price.
Contract length
Longer terms lower the monthly, and lock you in past the point the building changes.
Backup
A second path costs money and saves the day when a contractor cuts the main line.
Who manages it
An unmanaged circuit is cheaper until the day it goes down and you are on hold.
Sizing it honestly
Bigger is not the answer.
The right question is not how fast, but what has to keep working when the connection has a bad day. Clinical systems, the phone system and the cameras are not equal, and a properly configured circuit protects the first two when the third floods it.
- Clinical and EHR traffic separated from resident Wi-Fi
- Phones prioritised so calls survive a busy network
- Backup path for the systems that cannot stop
- Cameras and building systems kept off the clinical path
Questions
What operators ask us.
How much internet does a 120-bed facility need?
It depends on what runs on it, not on the bed count. A building with cloud EHR, IP cameras and resident Wi-Fi needs a different build from one where residents mostly watch television.
Is dedicated fiber worth it?
For some buildings, yes — it comes with a guarantee and does not slow down when the neighbourhood gets busy. For many, a well-configured cable circuit with a backup path costs far less and does the job.
Can we use one circuit for everything?
You can, and most facilities do. What matters is that clinical traffic and the phones are prioritised so they keep working when the network is busy.
Who do we call when it goes down?
If we sourced it, us. That is the practical difference between buying a circuit and having it managed.
Find out in two minutes
Paying DIA prices for a cable building?
The assessment asks what you pay and what you run. It is usually obvious within a minute.
At your address
Availability decides the price.
Fiber · Cable · Backup
Two carriers on the street
Only one in the building, sometimes.
Dedicated or shared
Paying DIA prices for a cable building is the common overspend.
Backup
Cheap insurance against a cut line.
