Smart, connected hospital framework

Hospital IT leaders have made massive investments over the past two decades installing digital systems, while receiving too little value in return. To deliver value, digital technologies need to be connected and integrated within the clinical ecosystem. Siloed technologies create workflow complexity for frontline care teams, who must focus more on dealing with the tools than on the work of patient care. If the problem remains unchecked, complications will negatively affect patient safety and outcomes.

Indeed, too many hospitals have invested too much money and effort installing digital systems and received too little value in return. Why? Because to derive optimal value from these data sources, a hospital needs to be “smart.” And digital technology alone isn’t what makes a hospital smart.

What makes a hospital smart is the ability to rapidly derive insight and value from data sources which, in turn, enables nurses and physicians to respond quickly and appropriately. The ROI is this ability to shorten the time to recognize and react to issues. Smart hospitals leverage data in near-real time, and to do it, they need digital technologies to be connected – that is, integrated within the clinical ecosystem through an intelligent clinical communication and collaboration platform.

Transforming a digital hospital into a smart hospital
Integrated systems for communication and collaboration form the bedrock of the smart, connected hospital. They break down data silos, accelerate the conversion of data into information, and rapidly communicate new events to the most appropriate and available team members.

The agility with which hospitals derive insight and value from data sources contributes to organizational resiliency. A resilient organization rapidly adapts in response to challenges, be they pandemics, staffing shortages, or other internal or external stressors.

Strategies to optimize the value of digital technologies and improve organizational resiliency
We devised a smart, connected hospital framework to help IT leaders visualize how to make the most of investments in an EHR infrastructure and clinical and operational systems while improving the care team experience, patient safety, and other outcomes.

Read more: Smart, connected hospital framework