Seoul National University Hospital in South Korea has recently been validated for Stage 6 of the HIMSS Infrastructure Adoption Model. 

The hospital's IT infrastructure architecture was assessed in five areas: mobility, security, collaboration, transport and data centre, as identified in the previous framework of the INFRAM. Early this year, HIMSS introduced a new INFRAM framework, which now assesses an organisation's infrastructure maturity based on cybersecurity, adoption, sustainability, performance, and outcomes.

WHY IT MATTERS

SNUH, the teaching hospital of the Seoul National University's College of Medicine, recently implemented major network infrastructure changes. It underwent the assessment for HIMSS INFRAM to gauge the strength of their infrastructure.

Between 2021 and 2022, the hospital built and transitioned to an SDDC (software-defined data centre) private cloud that virtualises and controls server, storage, and network resources. It also moved to an external data centre from an internal server room space – the first among hospitals in South Korea to do so. Additionally, the hospital pivoted to an X86 operating system from a UNIX-based system.

"Since last year, we have been running our HIS, PACS, and other IT systems on private cloud. This allowed us to reduce physical servers, usage of data centre space, and power consumption all to a fifth of where they were at previously, resulting in significant cost reduction."

Chang Wook Jeong, CIO, Seoul National University Hospital

Early this year, the hospital replaced its complex three-tier network configuration and large outdated chassis-type network equipment with an SDN-based (software-defined network) environment to simplify and minimise physical network configurations. It also replaced its network equipment with a high-speed wired/wireless network infrastructure. 

SNUH is currently building a disaster recovery centre, which it will leverage to operate critical clinical services, including HIS and PACS, and major hospital operations during disasters. Its construction began in May and is targeted for completion by December. 

According to HIMSS, SNUH demonstrated strong infrastructure governance, advanced data centre capability, and robust IT infrastructure security. 

"Technologically, SNUH employs advanced encryption, multi-factor authentication, robust network and endpoint security, real-time monitoring, and disaster recovery systems. It has also adopted the national information security certification from Korea. These measures ensure the protection of patient data, operational continuity, and regulatory compliance, reinforcing SNUH's status as a leading and secure healthcare institution," said Andrew Pearce, HIMSS VP for Analytics and Global Advisory Lead.

SNUH is now working toward achieving the highest stage of the INFRAM.

THE LARGER TREND

SNUH follows Taiwan's Chang Gung Memorial Hospital-Linkou in achieving Stage 6 INFRAM this year. Apollo Hospitals in India is also currently validated for Stage 6 INFRAM. 

ON THE RECORD

SNUH CIO Jeong said it took them two to three years to achieve Stage 6 INFRAM, sharing: "We improved the overall system to transition to a private cloud, boldly discarded legacy systems to transition to an SDN network environment, and adopted a next-generation network environment. All these processes were not just for achieving Stage 6 of INFRAM but were the result of infrastructure innovation and efforts for a more stable and efficient infrastructure transition."

Getting validated for Stage 6 of the INFRAM, Jeong continued, is a feat for both SNUH and the larger Korean healthcare industry. 

"Achieving Stage 6 INFRAM not only holds significant meaning for us but also for the greater Korean healthcare industry. It has been an excellent opportunity to prove that efficient services are possible through cloud infrastructure and SDN-based network environments while maintaining stable services. We expect that this achievement will catalyse change in the infrastructure market of the Korean healthcare sector.

"We believe that HIMSS INFRAM validation is an excellent opportunity to diagnose the infrastructure level of SNUH and highlight its value globally."

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Get more insights on enhancing your hospital's digital transformation from Seoul National University Hospital at the HIMSS24 APAC Health Conference on 1-4 October in Seoul, South Korea. Register now.