Microsoft Azure (Microsoft) Case Studies Revamping Stem Cell Donor Management Systems: Anthony Nolan's Cloud-Based Solution

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	Revamping Stem Cell Donor Management Systems: Anthony Nolan's Cloud-Based Solution Microsoft Azure (Microsoft)

Revamping Stem Cell Donor Management Systems: Anthony Nolan's Cloud-Based Solution

Microsoft Azure (Microsoft)

Technology Category	Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries	Cement National Security & Defense
Applicable Functions	Product Research & Development Sales & Marketing
Use Cases	Personnel Tracking & Monitoring Tamper Detection
Services	Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services System Integration
Challenge	Anthony Nolan, a UK-based nonprofit, collaborates with other stem cell donor registers worldwide to match people with blood cancer with donors whose stem cells can save lives. The organization was facing challenges with its legacy technology. Information about potential donors and recipients was kept on a different system than that of volunteers, financial supporters, and others. This lack of a single view made it difficult for the transplant, marketing, and fundraising teams to find the details to cultivate the most meaningful relationships possible. The nonprofit also used a 22-year-old, email-based system to communicate with more than 100 other registries around the world. This legacy platform was inefficient and resulted in hundreds of failed messages a day, which someone had to check and process. This took valuable hours in a time-sensitive matching process. Read More
About Customer	Anthony Nolan is a UK-based nonprofit organization that collaborates with other stem cell donor registers worldwide to match people with blood cancer with donors whose stem cells can save lives. The organization was founded by Shirley Nolan in honor of her son and matches patients with volunteers willing to donate stem cells. Anthony Nolan also leads research into stem cell transplantation, advocates for blood cancer patients and their families, helps patients navigate treatment, and expands its stem cell register so more people can access critical transplants. The organization operates on the philosophy of 'continuous improvement on all our technology platforms'. Read More
Solution	Anthony Nolan partnered with Formus Pro to revamp its stem cell donor management systems. Formus Pro built an Azure link to connect the separate systems, creating a 'single supporter view'. This allowed users to see the relevant information stored in the other system without switching back and forth between platforms. The databases sync in real time and prevent duplicate entries for people involved in multiple areas of the nonprofit’s work. Formus Pro also built two layers of permissions to ensure staff see only the information they need to do their job. To find donor matches more efficiently, Formus Pro built an Azure link that layered on top of the decades-old email-based system called EMDIS. This layer uses custom APIs to more securely analyze, process, and sort messages into queues. An Azure function processes these messages hourly, including Anthony Nolan’s own requests for potential matches. This automation and bypassing the previous mistake-prone process saved time and hassle. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Cloud Computing

Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms

Applicable Industries

Cement

National Security & Defense

Applicable Functions

Product Research & Development

Sales & Marketing

Use Cases

Personnel Tracking & Monitoring

Tamper Detection

Services

Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services

System Integration

Challenge

Anthony Nolan, a UK-based nonprofit, collaborates with other stem cell donor registers worldwide to match people with blood cancer with donors whose stem cells can save lives. The organization was facing challenges with its legacy technology. Information about potential donors and recipients was kept on a different system than that of volunteers, financial supporters, and others. This lack of a single view made it difficult for the transplant, marketing, and fundraising teams to find the details to cultivate the most meaningful relationships possible. The nonprofit also used a 22-year-old, email-based system to communicate with more than 100 other registries around the world. This legacy platform was inefficient and resulted in hundreds of failed messages a day, which someone had to check and process. This took valuable hours in a time-sensitive matching process.

About Customer

Anthony Nolan is a UK-based nonprofit organization that collaborates with other stem cell donor registers worldwide to match people with blood cancer with donors whose stem cells can save lives. The organization was founded by Shirley Nolan in honor of her son and matches patients with volunteers willing to donate stem cells. Anthony Nolan also leads research into stem cell transplantation, advocates for blood cancer patients and their families, helps patients navigate treatment, and expands its stem cell register so more people can access critical transplants. The organization operates on the philosophy of 'continuous improvement on all our technology platforms'.

Solution

Anthony Nolan partnered with Formus Pro to revamp its stem cell donor management systems. Formus Pro built an Azure link to connect the separate systems, creating a 'single supporter view'. This allowed users to see the relevant information stored in the other system without switching back and forth between platforms. The databases sync in real time and prevent duplicate entries for people involved in multiple areas of the nonprofit’s work. Formus Pro also built two layers of permissions to ensure staff see only the information they need to do their job. To find donor matches more efficiently, Formus Pro built an Azure link that layered on top of the decades-old email-based system called EMDIS. This layer uses custom APIs to more securely analyze, process, and sort messages into queues. An Azure function processes these messages hourly, including Anthony Nolan’s own requests for potential matches. This automation and bypassing the previous mistake-prone process saved time and hassle.

Impact #1	The implementation of the Azure link and the 'single supporter view' has allowed Anthony Nolan to streamline its operations and improve efficiency. Staff can now see all interactions across the CRM systems to have a complete view of each person, which helps in building meaningful relationships. The automation of the message processing has reduced the time spent on admin tasks, allowing staff to support transplant centers better. They can now be more proactive and responsive, providing updates to patients and transplant centers, running new searches, and tracking down donor samples that haven’t yet been returned. The technology also provides nonstop access to information, which is crucial in the time-sensitive process of stem cell donation and transplantation. The security measures implemented ensure the protection of sensitive data, maintaining the trust of donors and supporters.

Impact #1

The implementation of the Azure link and the 'single supporter view' has allowed Anthony Nolan to streamline its operations and improve efficiency. Staff can now see all interactions across the CRM systems to have a complete view of each person, which helps in building meaningful relationships. The automation of the message processing has reduced the time spent on admin tasks, allowing staff to support transplant centers better. They can now be more proactive and responsive, providing updates to patients and transplant centers, running new searches, and tracking down donor samples that haven’t yet been returned. The technology also provides nonstop access to information, which is crucial in the time-sensitive process of stem cell donation and transplantation. The security measures implemented ensure the protection of sensitive data, maintaining the trust of donors and supporters.

Benefit #1	The Azure function processes messages hourly, significantly reducing the time spent on admin tasks.
Benefit #2	The databases sync in real time, preventing duplicate entries and saving time.
Benefit #3	The Azure link layered on top of the EMDIS system allows for more efficient donor match searches.

Benefit #1

The Azure function processes messages hourly, significantly reducing the time spent on admin tasks.

Benefit #2

The databases sync in real time, preventing duplicate entries and saving time.

Benefit #3

The Azure link layered on top of the EMDIS system allows for more efficient donor match searches.

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Overview

Revamping Stem Cell Donor Management Systems: Anthony Nolan's Cloud-Based Solution

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit