People first: How infrastructure enables better healthcare

"Healthcare will always be about people: doctors, nurses, patients and carers. Yet, it's resilient and secure digital infrastructure that quietly enables clinicians and carers to deliver safer, faster, data-driven care at scale,"

— Professor Nilmini Wickramasinghe, Optus Chair of Digital Health at La Trobe University

During our fireside chat at this year's Digital Health Festival in Melbourne, Professor Wickramasinghe and Kavin Arnasalon, Head of Government at Optus Enterprise and Business, explored four critical questions facing Australian healthcare providers as it undergoes digital transformation.

Here's what emerged from their conversation.

Traditionally, infrastructure has been treated like background wiring, necessary but not something you think about. That approach no longer works, explains Professor Wickramasinghe.

Today's health environments are more complex and fast-moving than ever. Hospitals rely on real-time imaging and data. Clinicians use mobile devices and cloud tools at the point of care. Telehealth, remote monitoring and digital records are becoming the norm.

To support this, infrastructure must step up, not just to carry data, but to actively improve how care is delivered. That means being smarter, faster and more responsive.

This concept of infrastructure as intelligence includes:

• Private networks that prioritise critical data such as radiology images or patient monitoring, keeping care uninterrupted
• Smart networking tools that allow hospitals to move seamlessly between cloud, on-site systems and remote sites without losing speed or control
• Predictive technology that spots potential issues before they affect patient care, from outages to system strain
• 5G-powered solutions that bring decision-making to the frontline, from emergency vehicles to rural clinics.

The infrastructure becomes an enabler that quietly works in the background, allowing healthcare professionals to focus on what matters most: their patients.

Professor Wickramasinghe noted this is perhaps the most critical question facing healthcare today. As AI-enabled patient and clinician touchpoints become more prevalent, healthcare providers and stakeholders must plan for responsible design. This means keeping the "human in the loop," a principle that must not be overlooked.

Professor Wickramasinghe emphasised that responsible AI goes beyond governance. It requires:

• A systems thinking perspective
• Fail-safe systems with human oversight at critical decision points
• Transparency and accountability in how AI-driven recommendations are made
• Delivery to specific healthcare metrics, regulations and best standards of practice
• Solutions that are secure-by-design and privacy-first.

As Professor Wickramasinghe explained: "AI can support in a preventative fashion, but it can also support while the individual is receiving care. It can be embedded into any solution so that the advice is personalised and precise for that individual."

But personalisation must be balanced with trust. Patients want care tailored to their unique definitions of quality of life, whether that means being able to run with their grandchildren, cook without pain or reduce medication side effects. The challenge is delivering this personalisation while ensuring patients feel confident their data is protected and their care decisions remain human-centred.

Co-designing solutions with patients and providers ensures technology serves real-world needs and upholds the principle of 'do no harm.'

Professor Wickramasinghe highlighted that as the Health Connect Australia Strategy moves through its four key phases (from setting up foundations to sharing information securely, building discovery tools and enhancing services), infrastructure must evolve alongside it.

But there's an even bigger opportunity: building an infrastructure layer that actively supports better health outcomes, not just connectivity.

Practical applications that are already possible

Digital twins for care delivery optimisation
Using digital twin technology to test how new hospital layouts, workflows or equipment placement affect care delivery before making physical changes.

5G-enabled emergency response
Helping ambulance crews send vital patient data ahead to hospitals via 5G, so emergency department staff are prepared with the right specialists and equipment before the patient arrives.

AI-driven demand forecasting
Using AI to spot trends across regions and better prepare for demand, whether that's an incoming flu season, workforce shortages in rural areas, or capacity planning for elective procedures.

Thinking globally, acting locally

Around the world, governments are investing in smarter digital infrastructure. Australia could lead in this space, but we need to be proactive. This means:

• Building infrastructure that is open and interoperable, connecting with national systems like My Health Record and working with different electronic medical record (EMR) platforms
• Following national frameworks around privacy and security, aligned with the Protective Security Policy Framework
• Delivering cloud-first, secure-by-design solutions ready for public, private and regional health services
• Ensuring equity of access, from metro hospitals to rural clinics, aged care facilities to hospital-in-the-home programs.

The goal is infrastructure that doesn't just connect us, but helps us care smarter, faster and more equitably.

To truly support doctors, nurses, patients and carers, the digital systems behind the scenes must be just as agile and smart as the people using them.

Arnasalon outlined how Optus sees its evolving role in the healthcare ecosystem:

From service provider to trusted partner

Optus is moving beyond simply providing connectivity to becoming a system enabler and innovation partner, helping connect the dots between policy, technology and people to ensure every investment in digital health improves lives on the ground.

This means:

• Working across the healthcare system, from state departments and Primary Health Networks to private providers and community clinics
• Ensuring technology is reliable and transparent across all care settings (emergency, rehabilitation, acute care, hospital-in-the-home, aged care) whether in metro, regional or rural locations
• Taking care of the technology layer so healthcare workers don't have to worry about connectivity when lives are on the line.

Enabling value-based care

As Professor Wickramasinghe noted, Optus has a critical role in supporting continuous monitoring for patients with chronic conditions like asthma, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, helping shift the system from reactive treatment to proactive, preventative care.

This supports the broader goal of value-based care, delivering high quality and better clinical outcomes for every dollar spent while reducing pressure on emergency departments and hospital beds.

Core capabilities that support the healthcare mission

Optus brings together the foundational capabilities healthcare organisations need:

• Resilient, secure connectivity that healthcare organisations can trust, including private 5G networks and satellite solutions for remote areas
• Predictive monitoring that spots potential issues before they affect patient care
• Mobile-first solutions that support flexible, hybrid workforces and telehealth delivery
• Cybersecurity built into the foundation, protecting sensitive patient data
• Local delivery capability and sovereign alignment for Australian healthcare requirements

Partnering for the future

Working alongside technology partners like Cisco and academic leaders like Professor Wickramasinghe, Optus is committed to supporting Australian healthcare organisations as they navigate digital transformation, ensuring infrastructure remains in the background, quietly enabling clinicians and carers to focus on what they do best: caring for people.

The path forward

The conversations at this year's Digital Health Festival reinforced a critical insight: successful digital health transformation isn't about the technology itself. It's about how that technology fades into the background, empowering healthcare professionals to deliver better care.

Infrastructure must be resilient enough to be trusted and secure enough to protect patient privacy. But most importantly, it must be invisible in day-to-day operations, freeing clinicians and carers to focus on patients, not systems.

As Australia continues its digital health journey, the organisations that succeed will be those that keep people at the centre. The infrastructure simply makes better care possible.

Ready to explore what's possible for your organisation?

Request a call back to learn more about advancing your digital transformation or learn more about how Optus is helping health care, aged care, and social services here.