Improved performance and resource allocation for a platform supporting 16,500 endpoints.
Cisco Unified Communications Modernization to Support Pediatric Medical Care
Healthcare provider improves pediatric medical care through modern unified communications and collaboration solutions.
Client context
The work begins with the operating reality.
Client
Our client is a leading pediatric health system, providing care for over 200,000 children annually. Its specialties include cardiology, gastroenterology, surgery, and oncology across dozens of locations.
EngagementA pediatric health system relied on a Cisco Unified Communications and Collaboration environment to support its hospital, regional clinics, and Emergency Communication Information Center (ECIC). However, several collaboration components were running on outdated software nearing end-of-support, creating security, vendor support, and platform stability risks.
IndustryHealthcare
SolutionsCollaboration
The challenge
What had to change
The sheer scale of our client’s communications environment presented significant complexities, including 16,500 endpoints and 8,000 IP phones supporting hospitals, clinics, and a 24/7 ECIC operations hub responsible for coordinating pediatric transport, trauma response, and flight operations. As IP PBX systems, voicemail platforms, and related infrastructure components neared end-of-life status, they jeopardized the organization’s cybersecurity posture and ongoing vendor support for its communications platform.
Because the platform supported continuous clinical operations and regional emergency coordination, the organization could not tolerate service disruptions during upgrades. The upgrade also required careful dependency mapping and change-management coordination due to the platform’s size, including 13 core PBX servers, 12 additional servers supporting telephony services, 2 voicemail servers, and 4 remote-access servers supporting clinical and administrative staff.
The BlueAlly solution
How the work came together
Our technical experts executed a structured, multi-phase modernization of the organization’s communications environment, aligning closely with the client’s technical stakeholders and internal change-management processes. The project followed a standard lifecycle methodology, beginning with extensive discovery to identify existing technical issues, system dependencies, operational requirements, business drivers, and success metrics.
During the discovery stage, we identified and remediated underlying technical and functional issues to ensure the environment was ready for modernization. The project was completed in phased stages, allowing Cisco IP PBX systems, voicemail platforms, patient room phone systems, and remote access infrastructure to be upgraded while minimizing operational risk. Firmware was updated across approximately 8,000 phones to the latest recommended release, with the team executing upgrades within scheduled maintenance windows to preserve 24/7 medical service availability.
The results
What changed
Over the course of the project, the Cisco Unified Communications and Collaboration environment was modernized without disrupting critical clinical communications or emergency operations. The upgraded platform now supports 16,500 endpoints across hospitals, regional clinics, and emergency coordination centers on an up-to-date software version, strengthening the healthcare system’s operational stability and security posture.
By modernizing the communications environment, the organization also ensured reliable connectivity for its ECIC, enabling uninterrupted coordination of emergency services. Ultimately, our technical experts helped the client’s technology stakeholders conquer complexity by implementing a more secure, stable communications platform optimized for long-term scalability and support.
Outcome highlights
What the client gained.
Restored eligibility for vendor support, remediation, and troubleshooting.
Restored eligibility for vendor support, remediation, and troubleshooting.
Preserved uptime through a phased upgrade approach.
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