Intermountain Health Makes History: Receives World’s First Modernized INFRAM Stage 7 Validation for Pioneering Excellence in Outcomes

Intermountain Health, the largest non-profit health system spanning the Intermountain West (with 33 hospitals and 385 ambulatory care centers), has reached an unprecedented milestone. As the first organization worldwide to secure Stage 7 validation on the modernized HIMSS Infrastructure Adoption Model (INFRAM), Intermountain sets a new standard of excellence. Building on their legacy of “world's firsts,” they previously achieved validation on three HIMSS latest maturity models – EMRAM, O-EMRAM, and AMAM requirements - this remarkable feat solidifies Intermountain's position as a global leader in HIMSS achievements, reaffirming their relentless commitment to pioneering advancements in healthcare infrastructure and excellence.

Embracing unparalleled milestones, Intermountain Health proudly secured its place as the first healthcare organization worldwide to achieve Quadruple Stage 7 validation, including reaching Stage 7 on the newly modernized INFRAM24. Beyond this remarkable feat, the organization emerges as the pioneer, earning the distinguished title of the “First Healthcare Organization to Validate on INFRAM2024 Globally.” Intermountain Health further cements its leadership by claiming the “First Combined Stage 6 & 7 INFRAM2024 Validation Worldwide.” These groundbreaking achievements underscore Intermountain's unwavering commitment to setting new standards of excellence in global healthcare.

“Our journey is intertwined with significant milestones, having attained validation on four HIMSS maturity models. This achievement reflects our relentless commitment to excellence, innovation, collaboration, and a patient-centric future, marking a transformative shift in healthcare technology. Leading and achieving the pioneering endeavor for INFRAM Stage 7 to become a Quadruple Stage 7 organization fills me and my team with pride, as we stand at the vanguard of history in the making. We are embarking on a new era, marked by remarkable advancements in healthcare, shaping the future," says Farukh Usmani, MD, Medical Director, Digital Technology Services at Intermountain Health.  

In a remarkable feat, Intermountain goes beyond exceeding expectations by not just presenting three but four robust outcomes-based case studies. These compelling examples showcase the seamless integration of people, process, and technology, harmonized within a culture of innovation, placing patient care unequivocally at the forefront of their organization. The transformative case studies of diverse realms such as cardiac care, virtual care, ventilator management, and hyperbaric therapy, revealing how Intermountain excels in merging cutting-edge solutions with compassionate healthcare practices, discovering the real-world impact of their commitment to innovation and excellence in patient care as Intermountain demonstrated how innovation, excellence and commitment converge for the betterment of patient well-being in healthcare by going above and beyond in every dimension.

"Receiving INFRAM Stage 7 status is a tremendous achievement for us and places Intermountain Health as a Quadruple Stage 7 organization. That recognition highlights the dedicated work of our caregivers to deliver personalized patient care,” says Craig Richardville, Chief Digital & Information Officer at Intermountain Health. “As an organization, it is our mission to help individuals live their healthiest lives possible. It is through unlocking the potential of health data that we can truly empower patients with the tools they need to achieve their health goals. It's exciting to witness the cutting edge of digital health, where innovation and progress meet." 

Intermountain doesn't just embrace innovation; it defines the future of healthcare through a multitude of robust enterprise-wide examples. From elevating caregiver and patient engagement to refining value analysis processes, finance, governance, and enterprise communications, redefining excellence in every facet. Their commitment extends to enhancing physician and advanced practice provider experiences, prioritizing caregiver well-being, and ensuring a seamless patient journey. Intermountain's dedication to robust data and analytics governance and processes is evident, shaping a digital workforce and fostering a culture of intelligent automation.

Delving into the dynamic world of machine learning, natural language processing, computer vision, optical character recognition, ambient listening, interactive voice response, conversational artificial intelligence, robotic process automation, and extract-transform and load databases. Their journey includes the integration of physical robotics and a nuanced approach to ambient intelligence and generative artificial intelligence, all geared towards supporting and enhancing provider interactions with patients to lead the charge in transforming healthcare experiences and setting new benchmarks for innovation and excellence. Intermountain leads the way in harnessing the power of technology, where they elevate provider interactions with patients through cutting-edge advancements in artificial intelligence.

“Intermountain Health understands the importance of infrastructure and technology in patient care and the role it plays in the efficiency and quality of care by their care providers.  Intermountain Health continues to lead in the secure use of technology and is accelerating the modernization of infrastructure and technology,” said Phillip Bradley, HIMSS digital health strategist.

Intermountain has also achieved the prestigious HIMSS Nicholas E. Davies Award of Global Excellence on two occasions, another monumental achievement to their dedication to improving population health, clinical precision, financial prowess, and ultimately, patient outcomes, where innovation meets excellence, shaping the future of healthcare in ways that redefine standards and inspire progress. Intermountain’s holistic approach from infrastructure to exemplary patient outcomes positions the organization as a true innovator in today’s healthcare ecosystem.

Farukh Usmani, MD, Medical Director, Digital Technology Services, who led the efforts for new Modernized INFRAM Stage 7 Validation at Intermountain Health will deliver a presentation at 2024 HIMSS Global Health Conference sharing his experience of how team Intermountain Health leverages technology and infrastructure to build and maintains a culture of strong innovation and outcomes. The journey doesn't end here; it's an invitation to witness the continued evolution of healthcare excellence at Intermountain Health.

Intermountain Health met this achievement by showcasing not only their stellar infrastructure framework, but also by sharing the blueprint for achieving world-class outcomes with standardized care process models (CPMs), excellence in clinical and patient engagement strategies, and the path forward for artificial intelligence.

The newly modernized INFRAM helps healthcare leaders analyze and optimize their health systems’ technical infrastructure, creating a comprehensive assessment report that highlights critical gaps and potential risks in a facility’s infrastructure architecture. INFRAM also identifies investment opportunities and provides a toolkit and roadmap for future improvements, at the core of healthcare delivery for Cybersecurity, Adoption, Sustainability, Performance, and Clinical Outcomes which are the guiding principles, steering organizations towards measurable contributions to the value and outcomes. This isn't just about addressing the present; it's about shaping the future of healthcare, ensuring a trajectory of long-term success to redefine the core of healthcare delivery and pave the way for a sustainable and impactful future.

The certification allows one to measure value through an evidence-based approach, gain critical buy-in, and be recognized for outcomes linked to the level of investment. The focus on service-level agreements leads to clearer investment planning and documented milestones that consider both executive and end-user operations. Gap analysis helps identify and overcome friction and aids in proactive cybersecurity planning, building governance, and enhancing adoption rates to deliver the best possible care outcomes, revolutionizing healthcare through digital transformation to embrace excellence, and be at the forefront of shaping the future of healthcare.

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About Intermountain Health:

Intermountain Health is an internationally recognized, integrated, not-for-profit health system with 33 Hospitals, (includes one "virtual" hospital), 385 Ambulatory Care Centers (clinics), approximately 5,000 employed physicians and advanced practice providers, and a health insurance company, Select Health, which covers more than 1.1 million lives. Intermountain is widely recognized as one of the premier healthcare systems in the United States and as a leader in transforming healthcare through high-quality clinical outcomes and efficient healthcare delivery at a sustainable cost. Intermountain is the largest healthcare provider in the Intermountain West with more than 66,000 caregivers (employees) serving communities across its vast geography of 630,000 square miles in seven US states: Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana and Kansas.

Intermountain Healthcare is uniquely positioned in the nation to provide technological advancements and innovative solutions that help meet the demand for high quality care at a sustainable cost with a long history of excellence in healthcare technology & innovation, development and to find solutions that help patients and those who provide care and to improve care & outcomes for patients. Intermountain has been delivering on its mission of helping people live the healthiest lives possible.