Huaxi Hospital: Digital Transformation of Healthcare

As a top-ranking hospital in Western China, Huaxi (which means West China in Chinese) Hospital of Sichuan University (Huaxi Hospital) had been navigating a digital transformation journey. In the early phases, Huaxi Hospital focused on the development of setting up a digital foundation. Specifically, it created the relevant supporting departments and built eighteen digitalized systems. In 2013, when Weimin Li became president of Huaxi Hospital, he prompted the expansion of digitalization. Telemedicine services, hospital services using smart technologies, and online hospital services represented examples of the digital innovation adopted. More recently, the COVID-19 epidemic further accelerated the process of hospital digitalization, and Huaxi Hospital continued to advance and keep up with the rapid changes. Artificial intelligence-assisted diagnosis and big-data platforms were implemented during this later phase. However, despite its success and facing an increasingly turbulent and complex health care industry, Huaxi Hospital needed to continually explore future digital transformation strategies. What could the future of Huaxi Hospital look like in the digital age? How should the hospital prioritize its different initiatives plans and design a road map for its future digitalization?

This case is best suited for undergraduate- or graduate-level courses on strategy, general management, information systems, digital transformation, and innovation. This case explores the digital transformation drivers in hospitals as well as the challenges and key success factors during a digital transformation process. After working through this case and assignment questions, students will be able to<ul><li>understand digital technology and its implications for hospitals and health care sectors;</li><li>explore strategies and operating models for the digital transformation of hospitals; and</li><li>identify best practice for hospitals undergoing a digital transformation.</li></ul>

• Healthcare
• Digital health
• Hospital management
• Digital transformation