Smart hospitals employ data and technology to improve their processes and the health of their patients. They work in an automated and optimized setting. These medical facilities use connected gadgets, artificial intelligence, and data analytics. In each hospital, smart rooms will appear different, but they will all serve the same purpose: improving patient experience, optimizing clinical workflows, and facilitating communication.
What Does it Mean to be a Smart Hospital?
According to a 2019 article in the Global Health Journal, smart healthcare is a system that leverages technology, such as wearable devices and mobile internet, to access information and connect people, materials, and healthcare institutions.
Smart healthcare can encourage interaction among all participants in a health-related discussion. It can assist patients in receiving the services they require, caregivers in making informed decisions, and the productive allocation of resources.
Smart hospitals upgrade, rethink, or develop new clinical processes, management systems, and maybe infrastructure, all while using an underlying, digital network of assets to give useful, otherwise unavailable services or insights. All of this is done to improve operational efficiency, patient care, and the overall patient experience.
Patient Monitoring: Smart Hospital Solutions
The global smart hospital market is anticipated to be worth $59 billion by 2026, up from $29 billion in 2021. According to another study, the smart hospital market will already exceed $63 billion by 2023.
In any case, it's a promising industry with numerous smart hospital solutions on the market. They are divided into the following categories: patient monitoring, asset tracking, and predictive maintenance. Let’s talk more about patient monitoring.
Intelligent hospitals use a variety of patient monitoring methods both within and outside of the healthcare facility. Here are some smart hospital solutions that fall within this category:
- Displaying essential patient information at their room entrance: Smart hospitals are adopting digital signage to display relevant patient information at their room entrance in a way that respects patient privacy. Unlike traditional banners that can only show the patient's and attending physician's names, digital signage can be linked to the patient's Electronic Health Record (EHR) to provide real-time updates on their medical condition, including allergies, infections, and fall risk, among other things. This technology can also be used to educate visitors on compliance standards while keeping track of who enters the space without revealing sensitive patient data.
- Monitoring patients' vital signs are an essential part of patient care, especially for those who are critically ill or require continuous monitoring. Several health-tech companies have developed solutions to make this process more efficient and accurate. One such solution is Sotera's ViSi Mobile, a wearable device that allows healthcare providers to monitor patients' vital signs continuously and wirelessly. This device uses sensors to measure key vital signs, such as blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, oxygen saturation, and more and provides real-time data to the healthcare team. Sotera's ViSi Mobile is one example of the many monitoring solutions available. Other companies have developed their own versions of wearable and non-invasive monitoring devices, each with its own unique features and capabilities. These technologies are becoming increasingly popular as they allow healthcare providers to monitor patients remotely, improving patient outcomes and reducing the need for in-person monitoring.
- Locating patients: Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore uses a system that tracks patient flow from admission through discharge. This method can locate patients throughout the hospital in real-time.
Tips for Transitioning to a Smart Hospital
While transitioning to a smart hospital, those in hospital administration roles must foster a culture that embraces digital transformation, which can lead to a greater understanding of the benefits of the shift. They should also explore employing interconnected communication technology. Furthermore, a hospital's planning team should consider the long-term requirements for scaling systems in the future. Administrators should also concentrate on developing systems for gathering, storing, safeguarding, and evaluating data. Furthermore, hospital administrators should train personnel in the development of digital initiatives to ensure that they are ready for the change.
Looking for a Patient Monitoring device to keep up? Check out the features of our FDA-approved ViSi Mobile and see if it is the right fit for your hospital’s current needs.
