Building for the Future: Smart Hospital Solutions for the Healthcare Industry
Published: June 26, 2023
In the rapidly evolving healthcare landscape, smart hospitals have emerged as a game-changer, revolutionizing patient care and operational efficiency. These hospitals drive clinical and operational outcomes by leveraging intelligent networking solutions, aligning with their patient-centric digital strategies. The network, acting as the lifeblood of modern healthcare services, must be reliable and secure. With a focus on improved patient satisfaction, engagement, cybersecurity, safety and operational efficiency, smart hospitals are at the forefront of transforming the healthcare experience.
As the healthcare industry embraces a digital future, healthcare facilities face unique challenges in managing patient data, optimizing energy usage and enhancing the patient experience. Enter smart building technology—the solution that addresses these challenges head-on. Smart hospitals leverage advanced networking capabilities to connect medical devices securely, protect patient data and create an environment that fosters personalized care and enhanced safety measures. These intelligent buildings optimize energy usage, streamline network management, reduce costs and minimize the environmental impact while putting patients at the center of care.
What is a Smart Hospital?
A smart hospital is a healthcare facility that uses advanced technology and intelligent systems to improve patient care, staff efficiency and overall hospital operations. Technology can include various connected devices, such as IoT-enabled medical equipment, that gather and transmit real-time data to a centralized platform. This data can be analyzed to provide insights into patient health, hospital operations and staff performance, allowing healthcare providers to make informed decisions and improve care quality. Smart hospitals also incorporate automation and artificial intelligence to streamline processes, reduce errors and enhance patient outcomes.
Why Upgrade to a Smart Hospital?
Not transforming into a smart hospital poses significant risks and limitations for healthcare facilities. Without embracing smart technologies, hospitals may struggle to provide efficient and patient-centered care. Smart hospitals improve resource allocation, inventory management and help maintain operations, leading to better outcomes.
In an era where technological advancements are transforming the healthcare landscape, not embracing the transformation into a smart hospital could limit the ability to deliver high-quality care and keep up with the evolving needs of patients and healthcare professionals.
By leveraging smart building technology, hospitals can create a more personalized and engaging patient experience while reducing costs and improving clinical outcomes. Smart hospitals use real-time data analytics to monitor and track patient data, ensuring medical staff can respond quickly and effectively to any issues.
Additionally, smart hospitals can improve communication and collaboration between staff, leading to more efficient workflows. Novant Healthcare System supports hundreds of different medical centers and hospitals. With Wi-Fi 6E, Novant improved connectivity, enabling more effective communication among staff and patients.
“Our mission-critical Wi-Fi-enabled equipment will now have its own clean airspace to ensure the delivery of revolutionary new services. This opens the door for all Novant Health teams to dream big regarding innovation in mobile care. Wi-Fi 6E is the catalyst that will enable our vision of next-generation healthcare and patient experiences.” - Allen Rider, Chief Wireless Network Architect, Novant Health
The Network is Key to Smart Hospital Success
The network is key to the success of any smart building initiative, and healthcare facilities are no exception. A fabric network can connect various devices and systems, allowing healthcare providers to collect and analyze large amounts of data in real-time. This provides valuable insights into patient behavior, inventory and hospital trends, ultimately leading to improved patient outcomes and increased efficiency.
Wi-Fi 6E revolutionizes smart hospitals with increased speed, bandwidth and mobility. It eliminates coverage gaps through mesh networking, benefits legacy devices and enables wireless workgroup bridging. The dedicated 6 GHz spectrum facilitates high-bandwidth applications like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), transforming clinician training and patient education. Wi-Fi 6E drives digital transformation, extending connectivity and improving clinical productivity and patient care.