A new industry coalition, the Alliance for Smart Healthcare Excellence (the Alliance), has been established to promote the adoption and advancement of smart hospital technologies, processes, and practices. Announced on November 7, 2024, the Alliance will provide tools and guidance for hospitals seeking to transition into more technologically advanced, “smart” facilities. According to the Alliance, it aims to help healthcare providers assess their current progress in adopting smart healthcare technologies and to foster a more structured path forward.
The Alliance will house the Smart Hospital Maturity Model (SHMM), a framework originally created by care.ai, which is now part of Stryker. This model, with input from the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), is designed to measure hospitals’ levels of digital integration across several domains critical to healthcare operations. The SHMM uses a comprehensive 89-question survey, allowing hospitals to benchmark their progress across three key areas: Humans (patients, clinicians, and support staff), Environments (clinical spaces and conditions), and Processes (workflow optimization). By focusing on these aspects, the model provides a snapshot of a hospital’s readiness and performance within a smart care framework.
According to Chakri Toleti, Vice President of Digital Innovation at Stryker, and previously CEO of care.ai, the formation of an independent Alliance is meant to promote objectivity and vendor neutrality within the SHMM assessment tool. Toleti shared that the Alliance reflects an industry-wide interest in having a standardized, impartial framework that allows hospitals to gauge and enhance their smart care capabilities. He explained that the model’s independence would help ensure that its evaluations remain unbiased, fostering greater trust and broader industry participation.
H. Stephen Lieber, former CEO of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and former Chief Analytics Officer of CHIME, will serve as CEO of the Alliance. Lieber emphasized that the SHMM is free of commercial influence and offers a vendor-agnostic way for hospitals to better understand where they stand on the journey to fully integrated smart care. This neutrality, Lieber claims, is crucial for establishing a trustworthy, industry-standard measure of progress.
The formation of the Alliance comes amid a period of increasing interest in the use of smart technology in healthcare. According to the Alliance, smart hospitals are defined by their integration of advanced technologies such as AI, IoT, and data-driven systems designed to improve operational efficiency, patient care, and overall clinical outcomes. Despite the potential benefits, Roberta Schwartz, Executive Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer of Houston Methodist, noted that many healthcare leaders find it challenging to sift through the influx of new technologies. Schwartz explained that the Alliance’s new framework could help hospitals avoid confusion, providing clearer guidelines to help healthcare systems chart a path toward becoming more efficient, data-driven institutions.
To date, over 170 hospitals have completed the SHMM survey, gaining insights into their technology readiness and identifying areas for improvement. Early findings from this initial set of surveys were shared at the CHIME Fall Forum in San Diego. The Alliance encourages other health systems to participate in the survey to gain visibility into their progress and find actionable recommendations for advancing their digital transformations. Additionally, the Alliance is recruiting further board members and advisors who will bring industry expertise, support fundraising, and provide ongoing strategic insights.
Moving forward, the Alliance plans to develop resources to support hospitals in adopting the tools and practices needed to create more digitally connected care environments. This could include professional guidance, educational content, and resources designed to enhance the understanding and use of technologies that optimize patient care. The organization has positioned itself as a collaborative platform for both healthcare providers and technology partners, aiming to bridge gaps between healthcare needs and technological capabilities.
As part of its goal to offer more support and guidance, the Alliance will focus on enhancing public awareness of the SHMM and other smart care resources. For interested healthcare providers, the SHMM survey is now accessible online, enabling health systems across the country to evaluate their current position and determine concrete steps toward smart hospital implementation.
For more information about the Alliance and the Smart Hospital Maturity Model survey, healthcare professionals and administrators can visit smarthospital.ai, the official website of the Alliance.
