Shackelford Health Clinic

Shackelford was experiencing poor performance with its office WiFi network, and were unable to run E-MD Solution Series, their core business application, from the clinic’s laptops. Doctors in the clinic were unwilling to let go of paper processes and move management of patient health records into the software, reducing the return on investment in the application as well as impacting workloads within the office since information had to be maintained both electronically and on paper.

Other issues included:

• Lack of timely, trackable system backups, including backups of POP based email.
• Difficulties scanning documents into the electronic medical records system.
• Issues with system performance and software reliability.

According to the client, “We needed somebody reliable, who knew what they were doing.”

The Solution

To resolve the issues that Shackelford was experiencing, Tolar Systems:

• Managed installation of a brand-new, more reliable wireless network and firewall to securely support business needs within the clinic as well as needs for remote access.
• Oversaw the purchase of new tablets that were supported by their software vendor. Old, unsupported tablets were sold on eBay to offset the cost of these purchases.
• Reviewed hardware and peripherals, such as scanners, that were supported by Shackelford’s core software vendor, and managed the purchase and installation of the needed hardware.
• Installed a new database server and electronic fax server that could integrate with their core applications, improving space utilization as well as processing speed.
• Analyzed security risks to improve the clinic’s HIPPA compliance using the expertise developed by providing IT services for healthcare organizations.

Tolar Systems also managed the purchase of a new domain for the clinic, and met the clinic’s needs for more collaborative business productivity tools via the implementation of Microsoft 365.

As part of Complete Care, Tolar Systems also reviews patches and updates released by Shackelford’s core software provider on a monthly basis. Tolar Systems works with Shackelford to determine the timing of these patches and updates, which are typically done remotely on Shackelford’s terminal server and desktops outside of business hours. This helps Shackelford maintain system performance, as well as improving office productivity and reducing time lost to fix IT issues.

“Since we have been working with Tolar Systems, we have been able to eliminate most of our reliance on paper.”

Faster response to IT issues, better reliability and more timely management of the clinic’s IT needs as well as increased collaboration within the clinic and with other health district systems are just a few of the benefits that Shackelford Health Clinic has received from working with Tolar Systems.

 According to the client, one of the biggest advantages of working with Tolar Systems is that clinic staff are now able to trust their IT systems to support their business needs. 

“Previously, the medical staff had all kinds of problems with our software, to the point that they were unable to regularly use it. Because of this, we had to keep both paper and electronic records, which was very time consuming for our medical and office staff.”

“Since we have been working with Tolar Systems, we have been able to eliminate most of our reliance on paper and rely mainly on the software. Paper records are now used mostly for reference. Our medical staff are confident enough in our IT systems to let go of the paper charts, and I believe this is because of the support we get from Tolar Systems.”

“We always feel supported, regardless of the size of our IT needs, and that is not something every company is able to provide.”