Iridium announced Monday that MedStar Health, the largest healthcare system in the Baltimore, Md., and Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, has selected Roadpost to provide Iridium satellite emergency backup communications for its personnel and facilities. Roadpost will supply Iridium hardware and monthly services, including nine multi-channel fixed terminals and 96 mobile handsets.
The fixed terminals will be installed at MedStar’s hospitals and other facilities to provide up to four independent channels for incoming and outgoing satellite calls. These will be interfaced with the buildings’ private-branch-exchange switching systems.
“The hurricanes that ravaged the U.S. Gulf Coast last year revealed the extreme vulnerability of fixed landlines and cellular phone networks, leaving many hospitals and emergency service responders in the affected area unable to communicate with each other or with the outside world,” said Greg Ewert, Iridium’s executive vice president.
“MedStar, like many other medical service providers, is looking to Iridium as a key component in their disaster preparedness and emergency response plans,” he added.
“As a vital community medical services provider, it is critically important that we have redundant layers of backup communications,” said Christopher Wuerker, medical director for MedStar Transport and co-chair of emergency preparedness for Washington Hospital Center.
“The Iridium in-building systems and portable handsets will ensure uninterrupted communications if conventional systems are disrupted by a natural disaster or terrorist attack,” he added.
MedStar also utilizes Iridium systems on its fleet of four medical transport helicopters to provide automated tracking and voice communications.
