Smart hospitals are those that optimize, redesign, and/or build new clinical processes, management systems, and possibly even infrastructure, all enabled by an underlying digitized networking infrastructure of interconnected assets, to provide a valuable service or insight that was not previously possible or available and to improve patient care, experience, and operational efficiency.
Everything is evolving rapidly in today’s world but our hospital infrastructure is frequently left behind. Countless hospitals are over 100 years old and still in operation; they have very limited opportunities for advancement, but they must deal with increased demand and are unable to do so with their current infrastructure and technology
The world is going digital, and patient experiences are following suit. In hospital rooms and outpatient units, everyone from patients to hospitals is employing more and more high-tech gear. Patients are keeping track of their vitals and medications through wearable gadgets, remote monitoring devices, and cell phones.
Smart TVs and tablets are being used in hospitals for patient and staff education, electronic health records (EHR) are being used to aggregate patient information, and hospitals are offering quality care by giving healthcare workers all essential and relevant data.Â
Technological enablement, automation, and digitization are all having a significant impact on the smart hospitals business. Hospitals are moving away from simply implementing new technologies and toward adopting holistic business strategies. As a result, smart infrastructure is becoming increasingly popular in the smart hospital sector.
Healthcare facilities have begun to experiment with hi-tech components that were once only seen in sci-fi movies, such as voice automation and facial recognition.
Smart hospitals include three key levels: data, insight, and access. These layers work together to improve the quality of care.
The need for healthcare services is rapidly increasing as the population expands, particularly in the present COVID-19 crisis. Patients have ever-increasing expectations regarding the quality of the healthcare treatments they receive and the services they receive, on top of the rising demand.
Apart from that, laws and regulations are becoming increasingly rigid and complex. With more than 8.5 billion people on the planet by 2030, the burden on the healthcare system is only going to get worse. As a result, these factors contribute to increased prices, only smart hospitals can help to cut costs. Thanks to the digital transformation of the healthcare business, smart hospitals increase productivity, improve patient satisfaction, and provide more flexibility.
Smart hospitals can help recover from the COVID-19 pandemic by assisting in social distance between infected and non-infected patients, limiting the pandemic’s growth and spread. The healthcare business is under enormous strain as a result of the pandemic, therefore any technology that offers a solution is welcome. Smart hospitals may be necessary for treatment.
The integration of medical equipment with the network has already altered the healthcare industry’s working processes. The smart hospital project will be implemented by 2020 as a result of the broad adoption of high-tech methods in medicine.
It’s vital to keep in mind that e-Health isn’t yet fully adopted in every country.
E-Health systems and smart hospital projects have become a required and critical issue in the present world, with the tremendously quick pace of life. People will be able to save time and take better care of themselves thanks to the notion. Furthermore, it will assist doctors in better organizing their schedules, allowing them to avoid long lines in hospitals while also allowing medical staff to better manage their time.
Another key benefit is that the e-Health system allows patients and clinicians to obtain all required information about a person’s health status at any time. We help caregivers focus more on providing care by integrating with existing hospital technology and building new smart hospital software. This allows them to spend less time on tasks that can be automated and completed by smart systems.
Smart hospital design that has been well-thought-out and implemented provides us with these amazing opportunities while also removing the burden of paperwork.
Digitalizing operations to improve communication across departments and streamline workflows inside the hospital. Smart technology could assist ensure that the necessary teams are activated fast and that operating theatres are ready as soon as possible, resulting in higher patient survival rates.
Using smart technology to better manage the resources of a hospital. To ensure high levels of hygiene within the facility, a smart bathroom system that tracks usage and replenishment of consumables as well as monitors air quality might be used.
To maintain public safety in hospitals, smart technologies are being used to improve time and space management. Medical waste might be handled and processed by intelligent logistics robots, decreasing human exposure and danger of infection.
Benefits of smart hospitals:
Patient satisfaction should be improved. Patients can control their room temperature and lighting and summon the nurse, view noise levels, and operate their smart TV, using mobile applications from a bedside tablet that are linked to the building management system.According to the World Health Organization, proper air circulation can minimize the spread of healthcare-acquired infections (HAIs) and can be an effective approach to increase patient safety and healing (WHO).Technology advances at a breakneck pace, and hospitals are renowned for being hesitant to accept the latest and greatest. That’s because incorporating new technology into a complicated facility like a hospital is no easy task (second only to nuclear power plants in that regard). To support future technologies and expansions, a digital infrastructure must be open, flexible, and scalable.Digital infrastructure makes use of cutting-edge network connectivity to improve wireless communication and data transfer, such as electronic medical records and digital imaging. Having remote access to patient information via smartphones and tablets allows medical staff to react swiftly and efficiently, enhancing productivity and patient care.Hospital security teams can integrate video surveillance, access control, intercom, intruder detection, fire safety, and RTLS, among other security systems, into a digital, intelligent infrastructure to give real-time data and alarms. Furthermore, actionable reports with traceability are provided for forensic analysis in the event of a security issue.