How KMCH is banking on AI, app modernisation to future-proof healthcare delivery

As Indian hospitals race to digitise operations and elevate patient care, Coimbatore-based Kovai Medical Center and Hospital (KMCH) is doubling down on technology investments as it expands its healthcare network into peripheral and rural areas. From adopting hyper-converged infrastructure (HCI) to exploring AI-driven tools for clinical decision-making and patient experience, the hospital is positioning itself at the forefront of healthcare digitisation in India.

In an exclusive interaction with TechCircle, Ravishankar Shanmugasundaram, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of KMCH, explains how the hospital is “moving from a traditional IT-heavy model to a leaner, modernised setup, where digital transformation directly impacts patient outcomes.”

Scaling up with AI and modern platforms

Hyper-converged infrastructure has already proven to be a game-changer for KMCH, reducing administrative overheads and ensuring near-perfect uptime for critical hospital systems. The next step, Ravishankar says, is to integrate AI into operations and clinical workflows.

“AI-driven solutions and modern application platforms are critical to our long-term strategy. They not only optimise hospital operations but also help clinicians make faster, more accurate decisions,” he explained. Tools like Nutanix NAI (Nutanix Artificial Intelligence) and NKP (Nutanix Kubernetes Platform), which enable application modernisation and AI adoption, are being evaluated for wider use across the hospital network.

Ravishankar says that the hospital runs on the promise of reliability, speed and scalability, leading to more than just efficiency—they translate into tangible improvements in patient care.

Budget priorities shift towards digital-first growth

As KMCH expands its presence beyond Coimbatore into peripheral and rural centres, the hospital is scaling up IT spending. Ravishankar confirms that the technology budget is growing “substantially” compared to previous years.

“A strong infrastructure backbone is vital for scalability and interoperability. Given the pace of technological advancement, there’s no way around it—our digital investment has to keep pace with expansion,” he said.

The focus this year is clear: application modernisation, AI adoption, and infrastructure scaling to ensure zero downtime. These investments are aimed at optimising the hospital information system (HIS) and other core applications, while reducing administrative workload for staff.

Strengthening tech talent

To drive this shift, KMCH is strengthening its technology workforce. The hospital already has a mix of IT professionals managing complex hospital systems and enterprise-grade infrastructure. But with the move towards AI, clinical informatics and cybersecurity, the leadership is planning both upskilling and selective hiring.

“We are building capabilities in AI, clinical informatics, compliance, and infrastructure management. Digital transformation in healthcare requires not just the right tools, but also the right talent to deploy and manage them,” Ravishankar noted.

Innovation through IT simplification

The hospital’s tech investments are already showing measurable results. One standout example is the adoption of Nutanix’s hyper-converged infrastructure. By consolidating IT management into Nutanix Prism—a single console—the hospital cut administrative overheads and improved responsiveness.

“Critical healthcare applications like our HIS now run with lower latency, delivering faster access to patient records and smoother workflows for doctors and nurses. Add to that 99.999% uptime, and we’ve effectively ensured uninterrupted clinical services,” Ravishankar said.

The financial implications are significant, too. The ability to scale operations efficiently without proportionately increasing costs has created room for KMCH to channel resources into new areas, including AI-enabled predictive analytics and operational efficiency tools.

Asked to rate KMCH’s digital transformation journey on a scale of 1 to 10, Ravishankar does not hesitate. “We are at a 10,” he said, pointing to the hospital’s consistent history of technology investments.

The turning point came with the adoption of Nutanix HCI, which replaced a complex three-tier infrastructure. “It simplified management, improved performance, and ensured high availability. That set the stage for cloud and AI adoption, and we are now future-ready,” he adds.

Keeping an eye on peers

KMCH is also watching its contenders in the healthcare sector who are experimenting with AI-enabled diagnostics, predictive tools, and enhanced hospital management systems. The CTO said that benchmarking is an important part of staying competitive.

“We see the need to deepen activity in application modernisation, AI integration, and clinical decision support systems. These are areas where the industry is moving rapidly, and we want to ensure KMCH is not just keeping pace but setting benchmarks,” Ravishankar says.

Looking ahead, KMCH’s roadmap includes migrating core systems such as electronic medical records (EMR) and picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) onto more modern platforms, while adopting AI-enabled documentation and decision support.

“Our aim is to strengthen infrastructure with advanced Nutanix solutions, modernise applications, and explore AI-driven innovations across both hospital and education services,” Ravishankar outlined. “This will ensure KMCH remains agile, scalable and future-ready.”

As healthcare providers across India grapple with rising patient loads, the pressure to digitise is mounting. KMCH’s technology-first approach highlights how hospitals can leverage IT to not only streamline operations but also elevate patient care.

For Ravishankar, the mission is clear: “Every rupee invested in technology must translate into better experiences for patients and staff. That’s the true measure of digital transformation in healthcare.”

With Indian healthcare expected to reach $372 billion by 2027 (IBEF), mid-sized hospitals like KMCH feel confident to manage higher patient inflows without compromising quality. Digital tools—from infrastructure to AI—are becoming essential levers.