July 3, 2024
Imagine the servers or the computers develop a fault in the treatment rooms of a large hospital across several locations. Or the IT technology for a new outpatient clinic has to be fully connected. Colleagues sometimes also need urgent help with their computers. At the Helios Hospital in Duisburg, IT expert Sebastian Ganz is on hand to deal with all of these tasks – and many more besides. It goes without saying that an IT specialist is not directly involved with the patient! And, of course, his job is not necessarily the first thing that springs to mind when it comes to helping hands in a hospital. All the same, without his commitment and that of his colleagues in the networked IT center in Duisburg, it would simply not be possible for medical applications and processes to run smoothly across the city’s five Helios locations. To mark his tenth year with the company, Sebastian Ganz, gives an insight into his diverse range of tasks.
Ganz is responsible for maintaining the “Orbis” hospital information system. It is operated across six locations – at the five Helios hospitals in Duisburg and at his former workplace in Wipperfürth, where he was based from 2014 to summer 2023. His primary task here is to process the complex information from medical applications and treatments. With Orbis, he manages the IT systems used to process patients’ sensitive data. He also supports the medical teams, nursing staff, and medical controlling and billing employees with extensive tasks such as therapy documentation. By not only managing these important interfaces, but also constantly optimizing them, the man from Duisburg and his colleagues establish the technical requirements that enable complex projects to function in the first place, one such example being the introduction and use of electronic medical records. “Admittedly, my job sounds a little one-dimensional at first. But for me personally, it is really varied. And it always has surprises in store,” explains Ganz, who returned to his home on the Lower Rhine from Wipperfürth in the summer of last year.
It was his interest in computers and IT that led the young Sebastian Ganz to study computer science upon leaving high school, eventually gaining his degree in 2012. Did he already have a medical career in mind back then? Not at all! Ganz initially worked for a small IT company. A chance tip brought to his attention the job advertisement for the IT role at the Helios Hospital in Wipperfürth. In 2014, two years after completing his degree, he finally started working at Helios. Ganz had already specialized in the field of network systems engineering during his academic studies. His in-depth knowledge of digital system maintenance particularly helps him when introducing new modules or making adjustments to existing systems.
When he was still working in Wipperfürth, a much smaller hospital, Ganz was the only IT specialist. His first task in the morning usually involved sitting in front of one of his monitors or going into the server room. Often, however, he also had to go straight to the ward to sort out problems that his colleagues had with the tablets, ward trolleys, or printers used there. In Duisburg, he is part of a large IT team and specializes in managing complex Orbis applications in particular. Due to his previous role as a “one-man band,” he is also very familiar with a hospital’s wide-ranging IT technology and is able to provide support. “When the matter is extremely urgent – in the event of a relevant technical function failing, for example – it can also be done by telephone, otherwise by ticket,” says Ganz with a smile.
Since digitalization arrived in hospitals, the technical equipment has also been in a state of permanent transformation. A hospital’s IT team is also responsible for this. In Duisburg, for example, there are so-called client managers within the department who replace old devices, or colleagues who are solely responsible for the infrastructure, such as server updates. Digital modules are also constantly being upgraded or supplemented. Such tasks also fall within Ganz’s area of responsibility. He often installs the necessary updates from home in the evening so as not to interfere with patient care.
“I naturally always have to make sure that I disturb my colleagues as little as possible while they are working. During visiting hours, for example, all devices should be available so that every module can be accessed. That is why I have to think carefully about when I schedule certain updates,” he explains. This particularly applies to major updates that take longer – these should also be installed at the least inconvenient times if at all possible. For me, this means that I often have to access the systems at night or over the weekend.”
The subject of security also plays a key role in all matters related to IT. This is a top priority in the field of medicine. In the event of a system failure, a backup must always be available so that processes and patient care can be guaranteed at all times, even in exceptional situations, according to Ganz.
Despite his outstanding education and high level of knowledge, even an IT expert like Sebastian Ganz has to keep on learning in order to be able to introduce new technologies. “It takes more than merely adopting new technical equipment every so often in order to make progress in the area of digitalization. We also need to look at how it can be used efficiently. Just as doctors and nursing staff regularly undertake continuing education, I also have to make sure that I am always up to date,” explains Ganz.
Author: Brigitte Baas