UPMC offers free wireless Internet access in public areas of facilities

As the owner of two businesses, Greg Baugh cannot easily get away from his Uniontown office for hours at a time, unless he can tap into the Internet.

Thanks to a new Wi-Fi system installed at UPMC hospitals, Baugh has been able to continue working while spending up to seven hours in the waiting room as his wife, Julia, undergoes chemotherapy for breast cancer. She needs to travel from Fayette County to Magee-Womens Hospital in Oakland every few weeks for a treatment session.

"I would be there for my wife whether they had offered Internet access or not, but actually having that not only allows me to be there for my wife, but also allows me to be there for my customers," said Baugh, 37. He runs Neodyne Systems and Arch Manufacturing.

"I'm really productive when I'm (at Magee) because there are virtually zero interruptions," Baugh said.

The UPMC systems is offering free wireless Internet service in waiting areas, patient rooms and lobbies at Magee-Womens, Hillman Cancer Center, UPMC St. Margaret, UPMC South Side and UPMC Presbyterian/Montefiore. Hospital officials expect to add the Wi-Fi service at UPMC Shadyside by the end of the year.

The hospitals' Wi-Fi system, which connects to the Internet through a secure tunnel, operates like the system offered at many hotels and coffee shops, said Debra Quinn, director of IT services for UPMC Presbyterian and Shadyside. The system does not affect cell-phone usage, and is separated from the rest of the UPMC network for security purposes, she said.

Tom DePra, manager of data communications for UPMC, said the Wi-Fi service is a great help to patients and other visitors to the hospital, who can conduct business, fill their time, and communicate with family and friends, which can be especially important at a hospital, he said.

"It makes the waiting time seem less," DePra said. "Or at least, (patients) can conduct some of their normal life and business activities while undergoing procedures or in for a hospital stay."

Jon Peha, a professor of electrical engineering and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University in Oakland, said that Wi-Fi use has been skyrocketing for the past several years. He did a study last year about the city of Pittsburgh's Wi-Fi system.

UPMC's new system sounds great, Peha said.

"I think its good for patients who are stuck with nothing to do," he said. "It's also a way you can communicate with friends and family who are not in the hospital, and keep them informed."

Hospitals that offer the Wi-Fi service have placed placards in areas with simple instructions on how to connect to the GIA -- Guest Internet Access -- networks.