Richard Karluk has worked for Lehigh Valley Hospital since 1992, rising to the position of Lead Subject Matter Expert (an IT specialist) and ensuring the ongoing performance of the healthcare provider’s HP NonStop mainframe systems, which run the GE Lastword application (soon to be Centricity Enterprise). In fact, Richard worked at Tandem Systems (HP NonStop’s predecessor) for five years before taking the Lehigh position, making him uniquely qualified in the Tandem/HP NonStop mainframe field. When Richard needs to find a solution to address a need, or keep his systems up-to-speed (and up-to-date), he turns to the NonStop experts at TIC Software.

​

“I’ve been working with TIC since 1993 when we integrated their TeleFax offering into our network for securely transmitting admission and discharge documentation to physician’s offices via fax,” explained Richard. “I discovered TIC through the Tandem Alliance Partner Program back in the day, and due to the great success we’ve experienced implementing their technology, we’ve been working with them ever since.”

​

Since the TeleFax installation, Lehigh Valley has acquired several other TIC solutions for their enterprise including TelePath, which they use to securely communicate credit and insurance information to their network of vendors via encrypted email. The hospital also added TeleMail in 2003 for automating internal data distribution from the mainframe through email, via secure PDF and HTML formats. TeleMail has provided greatly enhanced internal communication in the hospital as daily report data is exported from the server, and distributed to internal bulletin boards for employee access via encoded password.

​

Lehigh Valley Hospital also had a need to securely distribute a large volume of reports from the server, and make them accessible via Web browser. TIC was happy to oblige with its Tele2000 offering, an early version of TeleFTP , part of TIC’s dynamic suite of dataflow products.

​

“Everything we’ve implemented from TIC has benefited the hospital in a number of ways, ” explained Richard. “We’ve realized the automated delivery of data – to our vendors, doctors, patients and even clergy – notifying them about the status of parishioners if requested to do so. Plus, the ease-of-use we’ve gained, while still maintaining data integrity and security has been phenomenal. Communication is greatly enhanced – both internally with our employees, and externally with our partners and vendors.”

​

“We’ve been extremely happy with the number of clients we’ve worked with over the years, like Lehigh Valley Hospital, that continue to challenge us to find innovative solutions to address their business and technology needs,” enthused Phil Ly, President of TIC. “As we continually develop products and services for the NonStop market, we look to people like Richard for his input, to help us create what is needed.”

​

Never one to rest on his laurels, Richard is always looking for ways to update and improve the systems in his charge. To that end, he is speaking with TIC about addressing two new issues that have arisen, an HTTP Web server offering for file display, and a terminal configuration solution to manage workstation Java updates from the mainframe. TIC’s Web Server and Auto Configurator are products designed specifically to address those requirements.

​

“I love working with TIC, they are a great sounding board when I need to bounce ideas around, and do a little brainstorming,” stated Richard. “When we come up with a solution – they’re very flexible, letting me test and verify the viability. I remember working on an installation over a weekend once, and had a question. I called Phil Ly at home on a Sunday, and he was more than happy to help – now that’s service and case in point of the kind of company TIC is! Very responsive – they back what they sell, and what they sell works!”

​

About Lehigh Valley Health Network:

Lehigh Valley Health Network has Magnet-designated hospitals in Allentown and Bethlehem, Pa., labs, health centers, physician practices, home care, hospice and pharmacies, and serves the Pennsylvania communities of Easton, Doylestown, Quakertown, Hazleton, Lehighton, Perkasie, Pottstown, Pottsville, Reading, Scranton, Wilkes Barre, Stroudsburg, and the Poconos and also Phillipsburg and Flemington, N.J., and western New Jersey. Lehigh Valley Health Network has also been recognized by US News & World Report as one of America’s Best Hospitals and by the American Nurses Credentialing Center as a Magnet hospital for excellence in nursing care. You don’t have to travel to Philadelphia or New York for quality health care.

​

About TIC Software:

TIC Software has been providing solutions for the HP NonStop platform since 1983 – predominantly in the banking, financial services and health care markets. The firm’s dedication to creating innovative solutions and providing responsive services has enabled its clients to best leverage modern technology and optimize productivity.