KPJ News

The inclusion of technology in healthcare has become increasingly crucial, with advancements in patient care and medicine. As such, hospitals and healthcare providers carry the responsibility of introducing such innovations to better assist healthcare professionals and provide superior care to patients.

An evolution to the integration of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), automation, robotics and precision medicine allows higher levels of healthcare, the natural next step being the implementation of these technologies at hospitals.

KPJ Healthcare Berhad, a home-grown leading provider of private healthcare services with an integrated network of 29 specialist hospitals across the nation, has established Damansara Specialist Hospital 2 (DSH2), with a dream of providing revolutionary care through the utilisation of advanced healthcare technologies.

The existing Damansara Specialist Hospital (DSH) has been a leading tertiary-level hospital in the region for the past 25 years and the launch of DSH2 as the first smart hospital in Malaysia will continue in upholding the work that has been done over the years.

DSH2 will redefine the healthcare ecosystem with its smart and green hospital with an AI-driven Electronic Medical Records System, coupled with an Internet of Things (IoT) network at the heart of it, enabling seamless integration of processes, systems and experiences throughout the facility.

“The inspiration behind KPJ Healthcare’s first smart hospital is the desire to depart from the traditional model of healthcare in terms of environment, equipment and, most importantly, quality of care with our drive to further enhance our customers’ experience through technological innovations,” says Datuk Shukrie Mohd Salleh, president and managing director of KPJ Healthcare.

The smart hospital model transcends the idea of merely adopting “apps and technology” by ensuring a healing environment that encapsulates digitisation throughout the building, which, in turn, allows technology to seamlessly deliver the intended outcome to the entire network, be it patients, doctors or staff.

KPJ promises its patients to Care for Life, which requires exceptional operation efficiency that is crucial for an entire ecosystem to function properly.

“DSH2 embodies our aspirations for the healthcare industry in this post-pandemic world, built to protect the environment while saving human lives,” says Shukrie.

“Our end goal is to ensure we provide quality services with actionable insights to improve planning and execution of important care delivery processes, thus enabling our medical experts, physicians, consultants and staff alike to carry out their duties seamlessly.”

Making the ‘smart’ move

The 300-bed tertiary care facility is known as a “satellite” hospital, with its pool of about 600 consultant specialists from the KPJ Klang Valley hospitals who are able to integrate quality care and treatment to make DSH2 the preferred, one-stop healthcare destination.

“DSH2, being KPJ Healthcare’s first smart hospital, will no doubt set a new standard for patient experience, even before patients step into the facility, with our connected healthcare technology,” notes Shukrie.

“After the treatment and consultation, the smart hospital will continue to enhance patients’ health, with our connected healthcare services.”

Connected healthcare services allow the smart hospital to provide care from pre-­hospitalisation through to consultation, hospitalisation and back among the community, while being able to keep track of patients’ healthcare through remote patient monitoring services as well as personal healthcare information, available at their fingertips via a mobile app.

DSH2 is equipped with MedTech, allowing patients to be privy to the connected healthcare experience, with services beginning before they are admitted into the hospital and extending post-treatment once they are discharged.

MedTech powers Smart Ambulance, which provides telemedicine services for first responders and utilises the Smart Vision solution that transmits to the emergency room, allowing emergency physicians to guide the first responders.

“Besides Smart Vision, MedTech also provides technology to transmit all real-time clinical data from the ambulance back to the emergency room physician, so that an accurate diagnosis can be provided,” explains Shukrie.

The Smart Patient Experience (SPE) is the patient’s gateway into the ultimate hospital experience that can be accessed from the comfort of their own bed. Simply by using the SPE device, patients are able to access a host of information from electronic medical records, billing information and communication with physicians to other features that can be customised depending on their needs and wants.

Medical professionals will want for nothing while providing superior care with their expertise with innovative systems and capabilities in place. For instance, Buzz, which operates as a network-based central information hub, will be utilised in digital operating theatres, allowing medical images to be utilised optimally. Facilitating this would be Medcom Bridge, which has the ability to transit and digitise operating theatres with its real-time remote monitoring function, allowing doctors to provide remote consultation whenever the need arises.

Moving forward, the application of big data and AI using the smart hospital’s electronic medical records data in scientific research and development will become increasingly precise, leading the way to better outcomes in improving patient treatment.

Furthermore, KPJ will implement the state-of-the-art new Hospital Information System (nHIS), which is a platform that runs the smart hospital, enabling the hospital to become a digital native that provides data-driven intelligence by utilising analytics and insight using a machine learning engine.

The future is now

With the introduction of smart hospitals, KPJ Healthcare endeavours to bring ease and convenience to patients and medical professionals alike by aiding a patient’s experience from the moment they seek to make an appointment, while continuing to provide service even after they are discharged, and also providing medical professionals the equipment and tools to make the best decisions and provide the best service.

“The future of healthcare will be decentralised and patient-centric with the smart hospital. Smart hospitals deliver high-value services within a broader system of entities, many of which have not traditionally been associated with healthcare delivery,” promises Shukrie.

“The smart hospital will enable a patient-centred care team to be cooperatively involved in ongoing healthcare management towards a shared goal of high-quality medical care.”

DSH2 is the first step of many for KPJ Healthcare in revolutionising healthcare in Malaysia. Capitalising on its status as a home-grown leading provider of private healthcare, the company strives to continue making tremendous progress by embarking on a hub and spoke model.

Serving as a referral model across its network of 28 hospitals, hub hospitals would act as specialised hospitals while spoke hospitals would serve as multi-disciplinary hospitals, covering the seven core principles for secondary care.

Further down the road, our Centres of Excellence will provide intricate subspecialities with additional services and premium offerings and be equipped with trailblazing equipment and facilities.

Currently, with four Ambulatory Care Centres (ACC), KPJ Healthcare will grow the business to expand the network across the country to provide cost-efficient and convenient service to patients, by providing care that is offered outside the hospital setting, with a plan to grow it to 25 ACCs in the next five years.

“This will be part of KPJ’s journey to provide holistic care and complement its existing healthcare. KPJ will also embark on its digital transformation journey in the next five years, where it will be steering towards realising the vision of a smart hospital model,” concludes Shukrie.