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BUSINESS
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A nonprofit, nondenominational hospital, it currently includes
25 beds and maintains medical/surgical units and multi-bed
special care units. Twenty-four hour emergency care is avail-
able 365 days a year, and nurses are specially trained in cardiac
life support, trauma life support, and specialized pediatric care.
Community Hospital also provides specialty services for the
following: Audiology, Cardiology, Pulmonology, Dermatol-
ogy, Obstetrics/Gynecology, Ophthalmology, Orthopedics/
Sports Medicine, Podiatry, Urology, Oncology, and Wound
Care. It is one of only two hospitals in Macoupin County and
is the second largest employer in Staunton with a total of
about 150 full-time and part-time employees.
New CT Scanner Needed New Network
As an Illinois Critical Access Hospital, Community Hospital
was required in 2008 to expand its remote diagnostic ability
in order to transfer digital imaging to larger hospitals and
clinics in Springfield. As a result, it installed a new 64-slice CT
scanner, which produces larger data files with dramatically
higher quality and diagnostic capabilities than the previous
CT scanner.
Sue Campbell, CEO of Community Hospital, explains, “Back
in 2008, the bandwidth limitations of our shared T-1 connec-
tion made it insufficient for use with the 64-slice CT scanner.
The time required to transmit its large image files to remote
diagnostic labs was too long and not acceptable.”
Partnering With Madison
To address this challenge, Community Hospital worked
collaboratively with Madison Communications to install a
Fiber-To-The-Premise connection. This fiber infrastructure
eliminated network congestion and enabled fast transmission
Community Hospital of Staunton was first envisioned in the 1940s by local coal miners who were concerned
that the nearest hospital was 20 minutes away in Litchfield. The miners understood the importance of local
health care since speed is vital when treating injuries. Since opening in 1951, Community Hospital continues
to provide services to local residents, thanks in part to a fiber network from Madison Communications.
Community Hospital of Staunton
Broadband technology helps keep health care close to home