Catholic Medical Center, a hospital chain in South Korea, recently underwent a digital health assessment to assess the baseline maturity of its hospitals.
The commonly accepted HIMSS digital health assessment tools were used, namely: Digital Health Index (DHI), Electronic Medical Records Adoption Model (EMRAM) and Infrastructure Implementation Model (INFRAM memory).
DHI measures an organization’s progress in building digital ecosystem capabilities across four dimensions: governance and workforce, predictive analytics, interoperability, and people-centric health. Meanwhile, EMRAM and INFRAM measure EMR and IT infrastructure maturity, respectively.
RESULTS
CMC has eight branch hospitals: Seoul St Mary’s, Yeouido St Mary’s, Uijeongbu St Mary’s, Bucheon St Mary’s, Eunpyeong St Mary’s, Incheon St Mary’s, St Vincent and Daejeon St Mary’s. All are connected through one hospital information system, CMC nU.
The DHI assessment showed hospitals had varying levels of baseline digital maturity, with St. Mary’s Hospital in Seoul scoring 310. CMC as a group was found to have a solid foundation for digital transformation, with strengths in governance, workforce, and interoperability.
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT
Despite the different speed and degree of digital maturity, all CMC hospitals are moving in the same direction, in line with the same digital strategy, said Prof. In-Adolescent Choi, Vice President of External Relations at Catholic Medical Center. St. Mary’s Hospital in Seoul, as the flagship hospital, is leading the implementation of CMC’s seven-year digital transformation. Modern technologies and digital services are first tested and validated here before being replicated in other hospitals.
According to the DHI assessment results, CMC as a group is well on its way to achieving a digitally mature ecosystem, and Seoul St Mary’s is a benchmark for the group to further enhance its digital healthcare capabilities, particularly in predictive analytics and data-driven healthcare.
CMC credits its IT coordinators at Seoul St. Mary’s with building a “high-quality” digital health ecosystem. IT coordinators established in each clinical area support ensure velvety communication between users and developers through a professional and systematic communication system; enhance the hospital staff’s ability to deliver digital health care; and maintain support and infrastructure.
CMC will also focus on increasing the number of EMR users and strengthening its data center to enhance its EMR system and IT infrastructure.
BROADER CONTEXT
CMC first revealed its digital transformation vision in 2019. Its seven-year strategy outlined eight key digital initiatives and actions to achieve that goal. These include a 12-terabyte clinical data warehouse—which it claims is the largest structured medical data platform in South Korea—and a 1,610-TB electronic data processing system, which it claims is the country’s first unstructured medical data platform. A big-data digital pathology platform is also in the works.
To further advance its digital transformation, CMC has created Catholic Information Convergence Institute in 2021. The Institute is responsible for CMC’s IT management system, which oversees the implementation and integration of up-to-date technologies across the group.
IN THE DOCUMENT
Stressing the importance of undergoing globally recognized digital maturity assessments, Dr. Dai-Jin Kim, CEO of Intelligent Hospital at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital and CIO at CMC, said, “If hospital organizations intend to improve process efficiency, patient safety and the quality of healthcare services, they must undergo an objective assessment of the current state of their digital healthcare services and receive professional advice and feedback on further digital improvements.”
“Such assessments can provide them with advanced knowledge and up-to-date information on the latest digital developments around the world, which they may need to improve their HIS and shape future-oriented institutional policies and strategies. These assessments can also help them avoid unnecessary trials and errors by obtaining evidence and confirmed trends regarding digital investments.”
Dr. Dai-Jin Kim, CEO of Intelligent Hospital, St. Mary’s Hospital in Seoul and CIO of Catholic Medical Center
Following the digital maturity assessment, CMC also intends to focus on empowering patients to manage their health and well-being in the sheltered environment of their homes.
“We plan to focus more on developing services that enable patients to participate in their care and treatment. Part of that is a follow-up care platform we’re developing that brings together a variety of cutting-edge services to help patients manage their health outside of the hospital.”
Professor In-Adolescent Choi, Vice President of External Relations, Catholic Medical Center
_
.