Smart Hospital, Better Impact: How Northwestern Medicine Uses AI to Improve Operations
AI-Powered Platform Improves Patient Experience
You’ve heard of smart homes, but what about smart hospitals?
Smart hospitals are using technology to enhance patient care. They want to make things more efficient and reduce the workload for clinicians. Unlike smart homes, though, this type of innovation requires bringing together advanced technology in a highly regulated healthcare environment with complex operations.
One leader in this field is Artisight, whose Smart Hospital platform won Modern Healthcare’s Best in Business of 2025 for Artificial Intelligence. Artisight’s Smart Hospital platform aims to change how hospitals operate by using AI to create a safer environment for patients.
Northwestern Medicine collaborated with Artisight to implement Patient Room, which integrates AI-enabled cameras, audio and workflow tools with hospital operations to streamline care.
How AI Can Address Operational Challenges
The system has two-way audio and video, and it uses computer vision and AI to support bedside teams. These features help address key challenges, including admissions and discharge bottlenecks, delayed patient throughput and systemwide scalability.
To address these challenges, capabilities of Patient Room include virtual nursing. Virtual nurses handle admissions and discharges, reducing administrative tasks for bedside teams.
AI Can Enhance Human Care
Data since implementation at Northwestern Medicine shows:
4%
year-over-year increase in discharges by 2 pm, compared to a 1% historical average
48%
of discharges completed by the virtual nurse
37%
of admissions completed virtually
Most importantly, 25 minutes per patient was returned to bedside nurses. This means more time with the patient, often linked with improved patient satisfaction. While AI serves as a powerful tool, Patient Room aims to amplify human care rather than replace it.
Looking Ahead
Additional capabilities available through Patient Room are also being evaluated, including telehealth services. Patient Room offers clinicians’ access to specialists with no scheduling required. Telehealth for stroke care, ICU care, cardiothoracic surgery and hepatology gives patients access to advanced subspecialty care without needing to transfer to another hospital.
Innovation isn't a buzzword. It's providing measurable results and creating real impact. Northwestern Medicine uses and expands these solutions to improve efficiency across the entire system to achieve operational excellence. This allows clinicians to focus on what matters most — the patient.
