The NHS estate is vast but aging, with heavy maintenance backlogs and capital shortfalls. Cisco argues hospitals must become smart, sustainable, and productive by uniting four tenets: flow (optimised scheduling, bed/asset tracking, virtual wards), experience (better patient/family comms and controllable, sensor-led environments), adaptiveness (future-ready design for rapid tech cycles, AI/robotics, Med-IoT), and infrastructure (secure, ubiquitous Wi-Fi, converged IT/OT, zero-trust security). Living Labs (e.g., Westmorland, Linden Lodge) and Barts’ scalable network show gains in resilience, safety, and efficiency. Co-design, holistic architecture, and strong foundations (connectivity, datacentres, comms, security) enable care closer to home and system-wide productivity.

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