Seoul National University Hospital in South Korea was recently confirmed to have achieved HIMSS Stage 6 Infrastructure adoption model.
The hospital IT infrastructure architecture was assessed in five areas: mobility, security, collaboration, transport, and data center, as identified in the previous INFRAM framework. Earlier this year, HIMSS introduced a The new INFRAM framework, which now assesses an organization’s IT maturity based on cybersecurity, adoption, sustainability, performance and outcomes.
WHY IT MATTERS
SNUH, a teaching hospital of Seoul National University’s Faculty of Medicine, recently made major changes to its network infrastructure. The hospital underwent the HIMSS INFRAM assessment to evaluate the strength of its infrastructure.
Between 2021 and 2022, the hospital built and migrated to a private cloud SDDC (software-defined data center) that virtualizes and controls server, storage, and network resources. The hospital also moved from in-house server room space to an off-site data center – the first hospital in Korea to do so. In addition, the hospital switched to an X86 operating system from a UNIX-based system.
“Since last year, we have been running HIS, PACS and other IT systems on a private cloud platform. This has allowed us to reduce the number of physical servers, data center space usage and power consumption to one-fifth of what we used to, significantly reducing costs.”
Chang Wook Jeong, CIO, Seoul National University Hospital
Earlier this year, the hospital replaced its complex three-tier network configuration and large, outdated chassis-type network equipment with an SDN (software-defined networking)-based environment to simplify and minimize the physical network configuration. The hospital also replaced the network equipment with a high-speed wired/wireless network infrastructure.
SNUH is currently constructing a disaster recovery center that will be used to operate critical clinical services, including HIS and PACS, and major hospital operations during disasters. Construction began in May and is expected to be completed in December.
According to HIMSS, SNUH has demonstrated strong infrastructure management capabilities, advanced data center capabilities, and robust IT infrastructure security.
“Technologically, SNUH uses advanced encryption, multi-factor authentication, robust network and endpoint security, real-time monitoring, and a disaster recovery system. The school has also applied for national information security certification from South Korea. These measures ensure patient data protection, business continuity, and regulatory compliance, reinforcing SNUH’s position as a leading and secure healthcare organization,” said Andrew Pearce, HIMSS Vice President of Analytics and Global Consulting Lead.
SNUH is currently working to reach the highest stage of INFRAM.
THE BIGGER TREND
SNUH follows Chang Gung Memorial Hospital-Linkou in Taiwan achieved INFRAM stage 6 this year. Apollo Hospital in India is also now confirmed to have achieved INFRAM stage 6.
ON THE RECORD
Jeong, CIO of SNUH, said that it took them two to three years to achieve INFRAM Phase 6, sharing: “We improved the entire system to move to private cloud, boldly removed legacy systems to move to SDN network environment, and adopted next-generation network environment. All these processes are not only to achieve INFRAM Phase 6, but also the result of infrastructure innovation and efforts towards a more stable and efficient infrastructure transformation.”
INFRAM’s Phase 6 validation is a feat for both SNUH and the Korean healthcare industry as a whole, Jeong added.
“Achieving INFRAM Phase 6 is not only significant for us but also for the Korean healthcare industry as a whole. It is a great opportunity to demonstrate that efficient services can be achieved through cloud infrastructure and SDN-based network environments while maintaining stable services. We hope that this achievement will promote change in the Korean healthcare infrastructure market.
“We believe that the validation of HIMSS INFRAM is a great opportunity to diagnose the level of SNUH’s infrastructure and highlight its value globally.”
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Learn more about enhancing your hospital’s digital transformation from Seoul National University Hospital at HIMSS24 APAC Healthcare Conference on October 1-4 in Seoul, South Korea. Register now.
