In today’s healthcare system, connectivity is not an optional extra: it is essential infrastructure for doctors and patients. Sharing medical reports in real time between departments, telemedicine, IoT monitoring of vital signs, and services for patients and visitors all depend on a stable network, especially indoors, where outdoor coverage can reach its limits.
Signals on certain frequency bands have more difficulty penetrating walls, glass and structural elements. Good outdoor coverage alone therefore does not necessarily provide a good network experience inside a building.
In this context, INWIT’s Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) play a strategic role. Using networks of indoor micro-antennas connected to a central unit, DAS technology provides uniform, high-capacity 4G and 5G mobile coverage for multiple operators, even in the most complex environments, including operating theatres.
Connectivity reaches hospital wards
To date, INWIT has installed DAS systems at more than 800 sites in Italy, including more than 180 hospitals and clinics, serving more than 60,000 hospital beds with 4G and 5G connectivity. Thesehealthcare facilities are evenly distributed across the country, with Sicily, Lazio and Lombardy among the regions with the largest number of installations.
In Lombardy, for example, they include hospitals in the provinces of Como and Lecco: Sant’Anna Hospital, with more than 400 DAS remote units; Erba-Renaldi Hospital, with around 80; Alessandro Manzoni Hospital in Lecco, with more than 150; and San Leopoldo Mandic Hospital in Merate, with around 300.
The latest project is at Maria Cecilia Hospital in Cotignola (Ravenna), a highly specialised facility within the GVM Care & Research group. The new DAS deployed by INWIT provides coverage throughout the facility via a network of around 80 latest-generation micro-antennas, delivering stable signal for both voice and data.
Towards a more digital healthcare system
DAS systems do more than support communication between patients, healthcare professionals and the outside world: they provide enabling infrastructure for the digital transformation of healthcare as a whole.
Stable connectivity makes it possible to share clinical data and medical reports in real time between departments and with specialists working remotely, supporting the development of telemedicine and the adoption of electronic health records.
Multi-operator indoor coverage can also bring advanced connectivity to operating theatre suites, environments that are, by definition, shielded and beyond the reach of outdoor signals. Here, DAS systems provide reliable connectivity, supporting increasingly digital clinical processes and real-time access to data. INWIT has already installed DAS in one of Italy’s largest hospitals, bringing connectivity to all 50 of its operating theatres.
The benefits also extend to the patient experience. Patients can continue to use digital healthcare services without interruption while inside the facility, from appointment booking through to the different stages of their care journey.
The same applies to the many Italian healthcare facilities housed in historic and monumental buildings, where the challenge of indoor coverage is compounded by the need to protect architectural heritage. INWIT’s DAS solutions with low visual impact are naturally suited to these settings, helping improve the everyday experience of the people receiving care and working in these facilities.
In hospitals too, INWIT’s digital infrastructure works behind the scenes to provide connectivity for patients and doctors.
