One of the most dramatic changes in healthcare over the past 15 years has been the integration of information technology into care delivery. These innovations in clinical applications are great, but they may have a less-than-desired impact without the network connectivity that feeds them information and the people who use these applications to provide care.

Think about the next big project your hospital is planning on undertaking.

Maybe you want to make it easier for clinicians to find the equipment they need leveraging your wireless network. Perhaps you are onboarding and managing thousands of IoT medical devices and need to keep them secure on the network. Or to better leverage scarce resources and provide convenience for patients, you plan to roll out a telemedicine program to extend your reach beyond the four walls of the hospital.

All this is only possible if your network, wireless, security, data center, and collaborations systems are able to support these solutions.

And will your IT project have the impact it should?

It's time to take a step back from the possibilities of information technology integration and make sure your hospital's entire information infrastructure can actually scale and meet your business objectives.

So where's the best place to start on this infrastructure adoption journey?

Over the past year, Cisco has been working with HIMSS Analytics to inform the development of the HIMSS Analytics Infrastructure Adoption Model (INFRAM). INFRAM helps healthcare leaders assess and map the technology infrastructure capabilities required to reach their facility's clinical and operational goals - and meet international benchmarks and standards.

Utilizing INFRAM, healthcare provider organizations can help improve care delivery, reduce cyber and infrastructure risk, and create a pathway for infrastructure development tied to business and clinical outcomes.

The wait is almost over. Be among the first organizations to get your INFRAM score, when the new model launches globally on October 24^thby signing up here. In the meantime, learn more about the eight stage (0-7) model and the criteria for each stage.