NETGEAR helps Nepalese hospital switch on its network

<p>Sydney, Australia (February 15, 2005) – The Australian branch of networking vendor NETGEAR (Nasdaq: NTGR), has donated high-end networking products to the United Mission Hospital in Nepal to help it manage growing patient numbers and streamline laboratory and office operations.</p>
<p>The United Mission Hospital in Tansan was built by charity group the United Mission to Nepal over 50 years ago, when it began working in the country to improve living conditions for the poor. The United Mission Hospital is now one of the busiest hospitals in Nepal, treating 80,000 outpatients, 10,000 emergency department cases and 10,000 inpatient admissions per year.</p>
<p>With 325 staff trying to service a multitude of patients on a daily basis, the Hospital recognised the need to upgrade its existing network. Upgrades can be costly, so the United Mission turned to NETGEAR for assistance, which supplied products to the hospital free of charge.</p>
<p>NETGEAR donated a FS524S Stackable Fast Ethernet Switch, enabling the Hospital to easily and cost-effectively improve its network performance. Using the NETGEAR switch, the Hospital can quickly distribute large amounts of information over its network. With 24 Ethernet ports, the switch also allows multiple computers to connect to the network and access hospital resources.</p>
<p>“Our existing network was based on a 10Mb hub and was not large enough to support all of our PCs and computer systems. The new switch has transformed our network, allowing us to connect all of our computers and speed up access to billing and accounting databases,” said Peter McConaghy, an Australian volunteer at the United Mission Hospital.</p>
<p>“We are now using some Thin Clients and are in the process of moving files to a central server – both of these things would not have been possible without a faster network.”</p>
<p>The Hospital has also incorporated several NETGEAR PS101Mini Print Servers into its infrastructure that support multiple print jobs simultaneously and allow numerous users to share a printer from anywhere on the network. This has been particularly useful in linking computers and printers in remote locations throughout the hospital.</p>
<p>“The pathology laboratory recently expanded and moved to a new location further away from the clinical areas. Using the NETGEAR print servers, we have been able to close this distance,” said McConaghy. “When patient test results are entered into the system in the labs, they can be immediately printed onto a label in the outpatient clinic and placed directly onto patient record cards or inpatient notes. This replaces the hand-copying method that is currently used, reducing errors and making the whole process more efficient.”</p>
<p>While the care offered by the Hospital is cheap by Western standards, it is still expensive for many Nepali’s that earn less than $A2 a day, if anything at all. The hospital has a charity fund for those that cannot afford to pay, with about 10 per cent of patient care currently being given for free.</p>
<p>“ When you consider that one night in hospital here costs $A2.20 and an outpatient visit is $A0.25, NETGEAR’s contribution has been important. Thanks very much to NETGEAR for its support – it’s really appreciated by the people here.”</p>
<p>A high-resolution image of a local United Mission to Nepal volunteer using NETGEAR networking equipment is available at: http://www.watterson.com.au/Downloads/Netgear/Customers/139_3978_1.jpg</p>
<p>A high-resolution image of the United Mission Hospital is available at:
http://www.watterson.com.au/Downloads/Netgear/Customers/hospitalview.JPG</p>
<p>About NETGEAR
NETGEAR (Nasdaq: NTGR) designs technologically advanced, branded networking products that address the specific needs of businesses and home users. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, NETGEAR’s suite of approximately 100 products enables users to share Internet access, peripherals, files, digital multimedia content and applications among multiple personal computers and other Internet-enabled devices. For more information, visit the company's website at www.netgear.com.au or call 02 8448 2072.</p>
<p>NETGEAR and the NETGEAR logo are registered trademarks of NETGEAR, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective holders. Information is subject to change without notice. All rights reserved
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