Telemedicine Extends Its Care to Remote Communities with Peplink

Access to healthcare is vital worldwide. Yet, there is a significant disparity between the need for healthcare and its availability in remote rural communities. In Guyana, several communities were served by only one healthcare worker, while others had no access to healthcare whatsoever. For these remote communities, telemedicine is a game changer, offering affordable and highly efficient healthcare.

Established in 2015, 19Labs’ CEO Ram Fish looked into telemedicine after being immersed in medical sensor technology advancements while leading Digital Health for Samsung. He partners with FrontierLATAM for a connectivity solution to bring telemedicine to the rural communities of Guyana.

Challenge

Guyana’s remote villages are small and offer limited availability to build a network infrastructure to keep the telemedicine deployment online. The area has no proper electrical power supply and no closeby cellular towers. This means that any connectivity will have to rely on satellite internet or the few distant cellular towers.

19Labs’ project also aims to expand in the future, bringing this potential telemedicine solution to underserved communities globally. However, many of these regions have little access to technology or locals with the technical expertise to manage such networks. On top of being scalable, the solution needs to be easily monitored and managed, whether on site or remotely.

Solution

With the communities’ limited resources in mind, 19Labs began to scout for cost-effective solutions to help keep the telemedicine deployment active. They tested different routers until they came across Peplink’s Balance 20X, which met all their operational needs.

FrontierLATAM and FrontierUS, with Peplink’s support, swiftly rolled out the devices with the telemedicine equipment. The Balance 20X routers were equipped with cellular connections, made reachable with powerful long-range antennas. Additionally, satellite dishes were connected to the router for another connectivity option.

AP One AXs were then used in other buildings outside the Balance 20X’s Wi-Fi range through the use of 3rd party wireless bridges.

All routers were configured and are continuously monitored through InControl. 19Labs and FrontierLATAM were able to centralize and unify all elements of the solution on the platform, managing the different connectivity sources and accessing real-time information on the networks’ health.

Result

Thanks to the rapid deployment of Peplink and telemedicine, remote villages in Guyana are now able to receive the full clinic experience. The solution provides sufficient bandwidth to power AI applications like Triage AI and Diagnostic Devices AI.

InControl has helped reduce on-site IT support costs while maintaining flexible and convenient management. 19Labs can manage access to separate networks using the platform, extending high-speed connectivity for purposes other than telemedicine. For example, Wi-Fi can be provided to nearby schools and the public. The range of controls offered by InControl also allows 19Labs to set limitations for the free Wi-Fi network.

Due to the successful deployment in Guyana, discussions are already underway to bring similar connectivity solutions to neighboring countries such as Mexico, Brazil, Peru, and Colombia.

“We see the impact of the attention economy in Western societies, the addiction and depression that unlimited and free internet can bring. We are able to manage that, relatively carefully, using Peplink features.”

Ram Fish, CEO of 19Labs

Deployment

Balance 20X

  • Deployed to the rural communities in Guyana
  • Hosts cellular and satellite connections
  • Configured and managed remotely through InControl

AP One AX

  • Installed in nearby buildings
  • Provides Wi-Fi 6 connectivity
  • Enables separate network for other Wi-Fi use