Preventive diagnosis: PRTG by Paessler acts as an early warning system for DR. ERLER KLINIKEN

Monitoring as an ECG for IT and medical technology

For years, IT has played a fundamental role in the operation and organization of the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN. And in light of the rapid onset of digitalization and Germany's new Hospital Future Act (KHZG), this role is becoming increasingly important. In the world of medical IT, where precision and reliability can make a difference in the health (and in some cases, the lives) of patients, the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN has been consistently relying upon comprehensive monitoring based on Paessler PRTG since 2017.

Like an ECG, PRTG measures and monitors the vital functions of both the IT and medical technology infrastructure — 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. By detecting anomalies at an early stage, PRTG allows for proactive maintenance. As a result, IT manager Michael Krappmann and his team can prevent downtime and additional costs, and provide the technical basis for the continual and reliable care of patients.

Michael Krappmann explains the reasons for choosing PRTG in 2017: “Our main job as the IT team of a hospital is to make sure everything is always up and running, and above all, to ensure that patient care is administered smoothly. We don't have the time or the resources to implement open-source systems such as Nagios, or to maintain them with the help of support forums. With PRTG, we get a mature, user-friendly solution and unbeatable support from the manufacturer Paessler. We also love the fact that Paessler is a German company based in Nuremberg.”

The advantages of comprehensive IT monitoring

PRTG covers a wide range of IT and medical technology components. The software monitors web and mail servers, core switches, the entire network, server hardware, storage systems, virtual and physical servers, databases, and various clients. For example, PRTG monitors storage locations for interface messages (with regard to the number of files) and the Windows services of application servers. PRTG also keeps a constant eye on critical medical technology systems such as the hospital information system (HIS), the picture archiving and communication system (PACS), medication systems, and payment machines, focusing on parameters such as runtime, drive capacities, LAN interfaces, and RAM and CPU usage.

Among other things, PRTG has helped Krappmann and his team manage a problem with the temperature in the server room caused by a partial failure of the building management system. By monitoring iLO, PRTG could quickly detect the problem, allow for rapid troubleshooting, and prevent more serious issues. This incident highlights the value of proactive monitoring — even with respect to compliance with the KHZG, which involves a shift from simply reacting to problems to implementing a predictive maintenance strategy.

For security reasons, Krappmann's IT team strives to keep the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN VPN as lean as possible. PRTG was therefore integrated with the Teamwire messenger service. The hospital hired a service provider to develop a bot that can receive email notifications from PRTG, and then send these notifications via Teamwire to the members of the IT team. This keeps the load on the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN VPN to a minimum, and allows the respective workers to receive the alerts and notifications via the usual means.

PRTG sunburst view

Increased efficiency in the age of the KHZG

Since implementing PRTG, the infrastructure at the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN has become a lot more reliable, and the monitoring of its medical technology has improved significantly. PRTG enables the IT team to take immediate action at the first sign of a malfunction (rather than simply reacting), which has increased the efficiency of the team while allowing them to reduce downtime and the additional costs associated with interruptions.

Thanks to the outstanding reliability and transparency achieved by PRTG, the DR. ERLER KLINIKEN is also able to comply with the requirements of the Hospital Future Act: “The KHZG requires autonomous server room monitoring in order to be able to quickly identify effects on critical systems. We can meet this requirement with PRTG”, says Michael Krappmann.

Network map of DR. ERLER KLINIKEN