Southcoast Health’s builds cyber resilience with a Most Wired digital strategy

Digital Health Most Wired Level 10 award-winner Southcoast Health established itself as a cybersecurity leader through strategic investment, comprehensive governance, and rigorous assessment practices, achieving a significant reduction in cyber insurance premiums and demonstrating exceptional incident response capabilities. By aligning its efforts with DHMW’s cybersecurity benchmarks, Southcoast has built a proactive defense posture — one that protects patients, enables clinical operations, and builds trust across the health system.

In this case study, discover how Southcoast:

• Built a cross-functional governance structure to own and evolve its cybersecurity strategy

• Leveraged DHMW assessments to identify gaps and align with industry best practices

• Integrated zero-trust architecture and threat intelligence to stay ahead of emerging risks

• Created a culture of cyber awareness across clinical and administrative teams

Key results include:

• Enhanced cyber maturity across people, processes, and platforms

• Streamlined incident response and systemwide accountability

• Alignment with national standards and regulatory frameworks

The Southcoast Health journey demonstrates how proactive, governance-driven cybersecurity measures can protect patient data while maintaining operational continuity, offering a model for healthcare organizations facing increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.