A medical system includes one or more MBAN devices that acquire and communicate patient data. The medical system further including one or more medical body area network (MBAN) systems, each MBAN system including the one or more MBAN devices that communicate the patient data with a hub device via short-range wireless communication, the communication of the patient data via the short-range wireless communication being within a predefined spectrum. The hub device receives patient data communicated from the one or more MBAN devices and communicates with a central monitoring station via a longer range communication. The one or more MBAN devices transmit an association request to the hub device on one or more auxiliary channels to associate each MBAN device with the MBAN system, the auxiliary channels being outside the predefined spectrum.