Florida Hospital Orlando is a member of the Adventist Health System, a nationwide non-profit organization that runs 44 hospital campuses with nearly 8,300 licensed beds in 10 states.
Florida Hospital Orlando is a member of the Adventist Health System, a nationwide non-profit organization that runs 44 hospital campuses with nearly 8,300 licensed beds in 10 states. Florida Hospital itself has 1,528 beds and treats more patients in a given year than any other hospital in the U.S. The hospital has been rated as the best in the State of Florida two years in a row by U.S. News and World Report. Additionally, the magazine has ranked Florida Hospital among the top three percent of hospitals in the country.
Challenges
Florida Hospital’s paramount concern was security. The hospital’s security staff, although well-trained and conscientious, could not be everywhere at once. They needed extra “eyes” to catch what people could not. This was especially true in cases where the local Sheriff’s Office had to be involved; for example, when a sick or injured person was hastily dropped off at the Emergency Room by a driver who then sped away before anyone could stop them. The incident had to be throroughly documented and the driver identified, neither of which the hospital’s staff could do reliably. There was also a need for real-time analysis of traffic entering and leaving the hospital; this would tell them how much parking was used by staff and patients and at what times of the day. The efficient operation of the hospital and plans for future growth depended on this knowledge. Finally, Florida Hospital needed a secure automatic access control system for its staff garage. Existing methods required too much human intervention and did not reliably prevent non-staff from parking in the garage.
Solution
PlateSmart’s ARES Video Analytics Solution was chosen to address all of these issues due to its accuracy and versatility. ARES would allow Florida Hospital not only to monitor and record traffic activity in parking areas and other exterior zones, but also to capture the license plate of each vehicle entering and leaving the property along with the location, date, time and a full-color image. Getting accurate counts of both staff and patient vehicles would now be a matter of running a simple report as ARES would keep track of the numbers for them. The system would also provide complete documentation for investigative purposes; in the event of criminal activity, the hospital could provide a license number to police along with a vehicle image and the exact date, time, and location where the offender arrived.
Implementation
PlateSmart installed ARES with a total of 30 fixedlocation LPR cameras in the hospital’s parking garages and at key entrances and exits in the main building. Additionally, one security vehicle was outfitted with a mobile LPR unit which interfaces with the main ARES system. Out of the 30 cameras, 26 perform a dual function—in addition to providing LPR and monitoring for security purposes, they also perform automatic access control for the garages, allowing staff to enter and exit based on the license plates without having to use an ID badge.
Results
Members of Florida Hospital’s security staff say that ARES has been a vital help in a multitude of situations, including prevention of workplace violence, solving crimes, and resolving patient disputes. Among other advantages, they cite the speed with which ARES retrieves information as key in helping them to do their jobs more efficiently. They also point out that ARES is used hand-inhand with traditional security methodologies and is not a replacement for hard-working security personnel, but is an indispensable and reliable helping hand.
Product Adopted:Medical