Explore every episode of the podcast The Beat

In this insightful episode of The Beat Podcast, Sandy Vance is joined by two healthcare experts, Dr. Peter Pronovost and Claudia Douglass from Grant Thornton, to discuss a transformative concept in healthcare: the Intelligent Clinical Environment (ICE). This advanced, technology-driven model is revolutionizing the way healthcare systems are addressing critical issues like clinician burnout, labor shortages, and improving patient care outcomes. If you’re interested in the future of healthcare and technology, this episode offers a deep dive into how digital innovations like the Intelligent Clinical Environment are changing the landscape.

• The concept of Intelligent Clinical Environment and how it addresses the current clinician labor crisis
• The impact on clinician burnout and turnover
• The role do advanced technologies like this play in improving patient care, leadership development, and clinician efficiency
• How the Intelligent Clinical Environment enhances clinical outcomes and patient safety
• How the Intelligent Clinical Environment enhances patient satisfaction
• Some of the common challenges health systems face when implementing this digital care transformation model 
• The ways the Intelligent Clinical Environment helps health systems meet their financial targets and reduce costs

Claudia Douglass, FACHE, MHSA, PMP, is a Principal and U.S. National Healthcare Growth Leader with 30 years of experience in healthcare strategy and operations. She’s led complex initiatives in strategic growth, digital transformation, operational performance, and population health across large health systems and consulting roles. A recognized thought leader, Claudia regularly speaks and publishes on topics like leadership, virtual care, and value-based care at top industry conferences. Previously, she served as SVP & COO and VP of Strategy in health systems, bringing practical, implementable insights to her clients.

Dr. Peter Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM, is a leading expert in patient safety and critical care, known for pioneering research that has saved thousands of lives. With over 800 peer-reviewed publications, he gained global recognition for his work using checklists to reduce catheter-related bloodstream infections. His groundbreaking contributions earned him a spot on Time magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people and a MacArthur Foundation “genius grant.” As the Chief Quality & Clinical Transformation Officer at University Hospitals in Cleveland, Dr. Pronovost drives innovation in healthcare across a network of 20 hospitals, 50+ health centers, and over 200 physician offices.

About Adam Mariano:

Adam Mariano is the GM and President of LexisNexis Healthcare. Adam is a technologist, nurse, and attorney, deeply invested in helping healthcare companies build better, more equitable, and unbiased products and services through intentional product development, open interoperability, and reduced health disparities. He brings extensive clinical, technical, and legal experience spanning 20+ years. Adam's legal work is focused on equal access, civil rights, and immigration.

About Sushma Akunuru:

Sushma Akunuru is a strategic technology leader with expertise in healthcare insurance, wealth management, and banking. As CIO at Independence Blue Cross, she drives digital transformation, modernizing business applications and optimizing IT operations. Previously, she held senior leadership roles at Bank of America and Merrill Lynch, leading wealth management technology and automation strategies. With an MBA from Wharton and a background in computer sciences, she excels in IT strategy, product development, and operational excellence, shaping the future of healthcare and financial services through innovation and digital solutions.

Things You’ll Learn:

• 80% of clinical outcomes are influenced by factors outside of traditional medical care, like social determinants of health; therefore, a focus on whole-person care and community support is essential for equitable health.
• No single entity can solve the complex challenges of healthcare disparities. Collaborations between payers, providers, and technology vendors are essential for creating a connected and equitable healthcare ecosystem.
• Digitalization presents both opportunities and risks. While technology can improve access and convenience, the rapid push toward digitalization can exacerbate health disparities if not implemented thoughtfully, especially for vulnerable populations with limited access to technology or health literacy.
• Solving large, systemic problems can be easy; healthcare organizations should prioritize achievable improvements to create positive experiences for members.
• Telehealth is here to stay. The pandemic accelerated its adoption, which now requires careful consideration to ensure that the service remains available to modern consumers. As things return to normal, virtual healthcare or therapy must remain an option.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Adam Mariano on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about LexisNexis Risk Solutions on their LinkedIn, Instagram, and website.
• Follow and connect with Sushma Akunuru on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Independence Blue Cross on their LinkedIn, Instagram, and website.
• Learn more about this episode's sponsor, UST Health, on their website.

In this thought-provoking episode of The Beat, host Sandy Vance is joined by Caleb Manscill, the President of Vyne Medical, to dive deep into the rapidly evolving intersection of AI and healthcare. Caleb shares invaluable insights into how AI and automation are reshaping healthcare workflows, improving operational efficiency, and ultimately enhancing patient outcomes.

As AI becomes increasingly pivotal in transforming industries, its impact on healthcare stands out, particularly in overcoming the persistent challenge of data interoperability. With AI's growing role, ethical considerations around data privacy, transparency, and bias are coming to light. Caleb and Sandy discuss these topics in-depth by exploring how healthcare organizations can navigate the complexities of implementing AI responsibly and effectively.

• How AI is transforming healthcare workflows and patient care, making processes faster and more accurate.
• The role Vyne Medical is playing in improving operational efficiency through AI-driven automation.
• How AI is bridging gaps between healthcare systems, improving data exchange, and supporting better decision-making.
• Real-world examples of how AI-driven automation is enhancing operational efficiency and patient outcomes for healthcare providers.
• Key challenges in the implementation of AI, and how Vyne Medical is tackling these to ensure ethical and responsible use.
• What the next frontier for AI in healthcare looks like, and how it will continue to revolutionize the industry.
• How healthcare professionals and organizations can prepare for the AI transformation, and what skills or mindset shifts are necessary to thrive in an AI-powered healthcare environment
• Caleb’s perspective on how Vyne Medical is contributing to the future of AI in the healthcare sector.

Caleb Manscill is the President of Vyne Medical, where he leads efforts to enhance healthcare communication and operational efficiency through AI. With over 15 years of experience in the healthcare industry, Caleb has held key leadership roles, including business development at Weave and co-founder and CEO of DentalRay. His career has provided him with deep insights into both clinical and business perspectives, working closely with doctors, radiologists, and healthcare executives. Caleb is also a board member for LymeDisease.org and holds an MBA from Babson College and a BA from Brigham Young University.

About Terri Couts:

Terri Couts is the Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at The Guthrie Clinic, an accomplished healthcare technology leader with a passion for driving innovation and clinical care through digital transformation. Terri focuses on creating integrated, patient-centered health systems by leveraging digital health solutions, remote patient monitoring, and telemedicine, particularly in underserved rural communities. With a strategic approach to balancing innovation and sustainability, Terri is dedicated to solving real-world problems and fostering a culture where IT, clinical, and operational leaders co-own transformation initiatives.

Things You’ll Learn:

• The Guthrie Clinic is building a connected, intelligent, and patient-centered health system through innovative care models. Their pulse center allows for real-time patient monitoring and supports virtual nursing and enhanced care transitions.
• Balancing innovation with sustainability involves building internal capabilities and focusing on solving real problems.
• Leadership plays a crucial role in fostering a culture of digital transformation by taking smart risks and collaborating across silos.
• AI and virtual care models are poised to reshape healthcare by improving efficiency, addressing workforce shortages, and enhancing population health management.
• The Guthrie Clinic focuses on internal staffing for virtual care to maintain the connection to its mission and values.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Terri Couts on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about The Guthrie Clinic on their LinkedIn and website.

About Rahul Lakhanpal:

Rahul Lakhanpal is the Chief of Staff at SpectraMedix. He is focused on driving strategic initiatives and ensuring the company's alignment with market needs in the evolving landscape of value-based care.

About Sean Kelly:

Sean Kelly is the Senior Vice President of Growth and Business Development at SpectraMedix. He is responsible for leading the company's growth strategies and expanding its presence in the healthcare market.

Things You’ll Learn:

• SpectraMedix focuses on delivering a technology solution for value-based contract administration and management for health plans and health systems.
• The organization's platform enables different departments to come together, administer contracts, track performance, and identify opportunities for improvement.
• SpectraMedix differentiates itself by filtering information through the prism of the value-based contract, translating contract terms into actionable activities and measurements for providers.
• The company's technology helps health plans and health systems manage the increasing complexity of value-based contracts and make data-driven decisions.
• SpectraMedix emphasizes provider enablement by providing real-time financial incentives and making it easier for doctors to improve quality and reduce costs.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Rahul Lakhanpal on LinkedIn.
• Follow and connect with Sean Kelly on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about SpectraMedix on their LinkedIn and website.

About Chris Caramanico:

Chris Caramanico is a growth-oriented CEO, investor, and consultant with a proven track record of driving profitable growth in healthcare technology. With over 20 years of experience, Chris excels in both startups and large corporations, leading successful transformations and delivering results in complex environments. He is adept at anticipating market trends, developing innovative strategies, and building high-performance teams. Chris is a customer-focused strategist with expertise in value-based care and a passion for improving healthcare delivery through intelligence and intervention. Currently, he serves as CEO of Elligint Health, leveraging his expertise to reshape the healthcare landscape.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Elligint Health provides a toolset outside of the electronic medical record to help organizations perform value-based care arrangements.
• Their solution combines data analytics, care management, and communication tools to proactively identify and address patient needs.
• The platform aggregates data from various sources to create prospective work lists, enabling targeted interventions and improved patient outcomes.
• Elligint Health emphasizes patient activation, encouraging patients to take a proactive role in their care to improve health outcomes and address labor shortages.
• The organization is focused on interoperability and is prepared to meet CMS's rulings regarding prior authorization and data exchange.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Chris Caramanico on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Elligint Health on their LinkedIn and website.

About Kevin Ritter:

Kevin Ritter is the Executive Vice President of CareInMotion at Altera Digital Health, an experienced digital health leader with more than 20 years of experience spanning electronic health records, population health management, consumer health, and data analytics.

Things You’ll Learn:

• CareInMotion at Altera Digital Health focuses on interoperability, data aggregation, and delivering actionable insights at the point of care.
• The organization leverages FHIR, generative AI, and national networks to improve data connectivity and usability.
• AI-enabled search and natural language processing (NLP) are utilized to enhance data retrieval and decision-making.
• Remote patient monitoring, powered by AI, enables better analysis of patient data from wearables and chronic condition devices.
• Altera Digital Health serves health systems, physician organizations, and payers globally, providing high-quality data to clinicians within their existing workflows.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Kevin Ritter on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Altera Digital Health on their LinkedIn and website.

About Dr. Stanley Crittenden:

Dr. Stanley Crittenden is the Chief Medical Officer at Quantum Health. He is a board-certified nephrologist and internal medicine doctor with an unwavering focus on clinical excellence and a deep passion for improving the healthcare system. He has extensive experience in managed care, having held leadership positions at Humana, Anthem, and Evergreen Nephrology prior to joining Quantum Health.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Quantum Health is focused on human-centered navigation, enhanced by AI, to improve member engagement, operational efficiency, and employer value.
• The organization utilizes predictive analytics and real-time intercept technology to proactively intervene and improve clinical outcomes.
• Quantum Health’s premier pharmacy product suite provides pharmacy-trained pharmacists who analyze clinical records to ensure members receive the right care at the right time while being cost-conscious.
• Quantum Health is helping employers navigate the complexities of GLP-1s by taking a holistic approach that considers the whole person, including their health coaching needs, diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes.
• Employers should recognize obesity as a chronic problem and embrace holistic programs that not only control inappropriate utilization but also provide ongoing support for members using GLP-1s.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Stanley Crittenden on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Quantum Health on their LinkedIn and website.

About Ashish Pamula:

Ashish Pamula is the Growth Lead at Samaritan, where he spearheads partnership efforts with Medicaid plans, Medicare Advantage plans, and health systems to reach more people with stable housing.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Samaritan partners with Medicaid and Medicare Advantage plans to provide resources and support to unhoused residents.
• The organization focuses on incentivized behavioral change, flexible funds for strategic needs, and relational support to help people overcome financial barriers and achieve stable housing and health.
• Samaritan helps individuals navigate the complex process of finding housing by providing financial assistance for basic needs like groceries, transportation, and access to housing navigators.
• Medicaid and Medicare Advantage plans benefit from partnering with Samaritan through reduced reliance on emergency services and a better understanding of the gaps in addressing social determinants of health.
• Samaritan aims to serve 100,000 unhoused residents in the next five years by expanding partnerships and reaching underserved rural communities.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Ashish Pamula on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Samaritan on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Ashish directly here.

About Dr. Shafiq Rab:
Dr. Shafiq Rab is the Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Information Officer for Tufts Medicine. He leads the organization's digital transformation efforts and leverages technology to improve patient care and operational efficiency.

About Suman Mishra:

Suman Mishra is the Chief Technology Officer of Healthcare for GS Lab GAVS. He has extensive experience in healthcare technology and is passionate about using technology to solve complex challenges and improve healthcare outcomes.

Things You’ll Learn:

• AI, data, interoperability, communication, and transparency are key technologies and trends that will impact healthcare over the next five years.
• Strong governance, change management, and digital workforce development are essential for successful technology implementation in healthcare.
• Partnerships are crucial for healthcare organizations to drive innovation and improve patient care.
• Understanding patient needs and preferences is essential for creating a positive member experience.
• Healthcare organizations face significant economic pressures and must leverage technology and automation to improve efficiency and reduce costs.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Shafiq Rab on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Tufts Medicine on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Dr. Rab here and call him at +1 (609) 304-5342.
• Connect with and follow Suman Mishra on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about GS Lab GAVS on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Suman directly here.

About Dr. David Carmouche:

Dr. David Carmouche is the Chief Clinical Transformation Officer at Lumeris. He is a visionary leader in transformational healthcare delivery with a unique blend of provider, payer, retail, and integrated delivery network leadership experience.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Lumeris has launched Tom, an agentic AI solution designed to support primary care teams and extend primary care to more Americans.
• Tom leverages Lumeris's data aggregation capabilities to launch coordinated agents that proactively address patients' needs and improve care coordination.
• There's an estimated two billion-hour gap in primary care in the US, and technology like Tom is essential to bridge this gap and ensure access for all.
• AI can help automate tasks, provide services that aren't currently happening, and upskill the delivery of primary care.
• Lumeris is approaching the deployment of Tom cautiously, with guardrails and thorough testing, to ensure it enhances the provider-patient relationship rather than replacing it.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. David Carmouche on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Lumeris on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email David directly here.

About James Woods II:

James E. Woods II, is the Head of Enterprise Informatics at Philips North America. With over 20 years of experience in the medtech industry, James leads Philips' healthcare informatics interests, including delivery, device integration, and digital pathology solutions.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Philips focuses on end-to-end client partnership, improved efficiencies and collaboration for clinicians, and delivering actionable insights at the point of care.
• Philips invests heavily in innovation, including AI, to free up clinicians' time and improve patient outcomes. In 2023, the company invested $1.7 billion in innovation.
• The company approaches AI development through a mixed model, including homegrown solutions, collaborations with startups, and partnerships with other industry groups.
• Philips addresses the ethical implications of AI through five key principles: considering the well-being of the patient, augmenting people with human supervision, robustness (do no harm), fairness, and transparency.
• The future of healthcare will be shaped by trends such as personalized medicine, home care, and addressing equity and access to healthcare.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow James E. Woods II on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Philips on their LinkedIn and website.

About Tammy Cress:

Tammy Cress is the Senior Vice President of Clinical Innovation and Solutions at Teladoc Health. As a nurse by background, Tammy leads a cross-functional team to develop and evolve solutions that enable care transformation at scale while addressing the health systems’ most challenging problems.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Listening to the market and designing technology to fit the needs of health systems is crucial for effective care transformation.
• Hybrid care teams, blending in-person and virtual care, are improving efficiency, patient satisfaction, and return on investment.
• Telehealth adoption is on the rise. Twenty-five percent of care is now delivered virtually, and perceptions of its quality are increasing.
• Enterprise telehealth solutions and the incorporation of AI tools can scale efficiencies and improve care outcomes.
• Care teams will have more time to spend with patients and deliver better-quality care through improved collaboration and technology.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Tammy Cress on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Teladoc on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Tammy directly here.

About Travis Dalton:

Travis Dalton is the President and CEO of Clerativ, a healthcare technology, data, and insights company focused on affordability, transparency, and quality. With over 20 years of experience in the health tech space, Travis is passionate about leveraging data and technology to drive positive change in healthcare delivery and cost management.

Things You’ll Learn:

• A company rebrand represents growth and a renewed commitment to solving key issues in the healthcare space.
• Transparency in healthcare can align the interests of payers, providers, and employers, leading to better care and fair pricing for patients.
• AI and cloud-based solutions can automate business processes, reduce costs, and improve the delivery of actionable insights in healthcare.
• Addressing rural healthcare disparities is crucial for ensuring equitable access to care and maintaining the viability of local healthcare services.
• Clerativ's Benefit Insights product helps employers evaluate health plan options and identify opportunities to reduce costs while improving employee benefits.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Travis Dalton on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Claritev on their LinkedIn and website.

About Jason Oberfest:

Jason Oberfest is Vice President of Healthcare at ŌURA, leading strategy and partnerships to drive early health interventions, improved patient outcomes, and cost reduction. He previously spent five years at Apple, shaping the Health app on iPhone and Apple Watch. As Founder and CEO of Mango Health, Jason built a pioneering mobile health app for chronic condition management, partnering with major healthcare leaders before its acquisition in 2019. Passionate about behavior-driven health innovation, he excels in designing digital solutions that empower consumers and enhance healthcare delivery.

Things You’ll Learn:

• ŌURA focuses on sleep, readiness, and activity tracking, providing comprehensive health insights.
• Wearable health trackers can improve primary care by making it more efficient and personalized.
• The healthcare community is increasingly recognizing the critical role of sleep quality in overall well-being, extending beyond mental health to encompass cardiovascular and metabolic health.
• ŌURA measures various biometrics, including sleep stages, heart rate variability, resting heart rate, and body temperature.
• Wearable technology provides a means for continuous, passive biometric data collection, offering a comprehensive view of a patient's health status. Integrating this data into care plans can personalize treatment and improve patient outcomes.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Jason Oberfest on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about ŌURA on their LinkedIn and website.

About Branden Robinson:

Branden Robinson is the Chief Growth Officer at Sevaro Health, where he leads the organization's growth strategies and initiatives. With over 20 years of healthcare experience, including 15 years focused on digital and virtual healthcare, Branden is dedicated to expanding access to neurological expertise through innovative technology solutions.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Virtual neurology is essential to address the growing shortage of neurologists and the increasing prevalence of neurological disorders, ensuring patients receive timely and specialized care.
• AI triage systems can optimize neurologist time by prioritizing patients based on the acuity of their condition, ensuring the most critical cases receive immediate attention while managing the influx of stroke consults.
• Hospitals can improve revenue, outcomes, and patient satisfaction by using teleneurology services.
• A continuum of care model in virtual neurology, connecting acute care to outpatient teleneurology, is crucial for maintaining patient engagement within the health system and improving long-term health outcomes.
• Mechanical thrombectomies and surgical procedures to remove clots are transforming stroke care. This provides an opportunity for health systems to develop hub-and-spoke models using virtual health to extend access to specialized care.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Branden Robinson on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Sevaro Health on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Branden directly here.

About Mark Whittington:

Mark Whittington is the Managing Director at HealthXL, a company focused on improving healthcare outcomes for patients with chronic conditions through chronic care management and remote patient monitoring. Mark is passionate about helping people stay healthy longer and improving their quality of life, especially those in vulnerable stages of their health journey.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Chronic care management and RPM can alleviate the burden on primary care physicians, allowing them to focus on patients who need face-to-face care while managing routine cases remotely.
• Devices used for remote patient monitoring (blood pressure cuffs, pulse oximeters, etc.) should be simple and familiar. Accountability and consistent use are the most critical factors for success.
• Transparency and communication with patients through various channels (devices, texting, apps) will improve patient engagement and access to care.
• AI has the potential to glean insights from patient data, predict health issues, and enable earlier interventions, ultimately improving patient outcomes.
• Chronic care management and RPM are key components of value-based care. They enable providers to proactively manage patient health and prevent costly complications.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Mark Whittington on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about HealthXL on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Mark directly here.

About Harpaul Sambhi:

Harpaul Sambhi is the CEO and Co-Founder of Magical and a Limited Partner at Various VC funds. He previously worked as an Advisor at On Deck, an Entrepreneur In Residence at Bain Capital Ventures, and a former Product Manager at Microsoft. Harpaul attended the University of Waterloo.

Things You’ll Learn:

• AI is evolving from simple automation to Agentic AI, which can learn, adapt, and make decisions.
• Healthcare workers spend too much time on administrative tasks, but AI can automate these and improve patient care.
• RPA is becoming obsolete, while Agentic AI offers a more flexible and intelligent solution.
• AI in RCM can reduce denials, lower costs, and speed up reimbursements, improving financial performance.
• Successful AI implementation requires clear goals, collaboration, and adaptability.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Harpaul Sambhi on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Magical on their LinkedIn and website.

About Myron Wallace:

Myron Wallace, the fractional Chief Product Officer at White Label Communications, is a visionary technology executive with 20+ years of entrepreneurial expertise. He excels at driving innovation and launching enterprise customer solutions within SaaS, telehealth, and UCaaS. Myron's focus lies in translating ambitious product goals into reality, accelerating time to market, and maximizing customer adoption. He transforms startups and hyper-growth companies by building seamless customer experiences and driving impactful product development. He excels at crafting innovative products to meet the unique needs of the business customer base.

Things You’ll Learn:

• White Label Communications simplifies telephony by breaking down features into APIs, enabling easier integration with SaaS solutions. 
• RCS (Rich Communication Services) can significantly improve telehealth by delivering rich, interactive experiences directly within text messages. This eliminates friction for patients and provides a more seamless engagement.
• The traditional text experience is one-dimensional, while the RCS will provide a multidimensional experience. This will make it easier for patients to get pre-op, post-op, or other needed information.
• By using RCS for patient education and forms, patients no longer have to go through portals and systems.
• Many companies exaggerate their AI capabilities. Myron urges caution and emphasizes the importance of focusing on real solutions and tangible benefits.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Myron Wallace on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about White Label Communications on their LinkedIn and website.
• Discover more about Myron on his website.

In today’s episode, Sandy chats with Yan Chow, an expert in AI, automation, and healthcare tech, and the global healthcare leader for Automation Anywhere. Healthcare is a target-rich environment that offers opportunities everywhere to make healthcare more sustainable and more valuable for the future. They chat about how AI is being applied to healthcare and how it can benefit both healthcare workers and patients alike. He also talks about how AI doesn’t have to be so scary, but it is important to take AI adoption one step at a time. If you want to hear more about Automation Anywhere, check out their recordings at the ViVe Event website.

• An overview of Automation Anywhere and what they are doing
• The main application of AI today
• There is a labor shortage in healthcare even though the demand is increasing
• What is agentic automation and how will it help people with healthcare?
• Automations are doing the job more effectively than we would be able to do
• Cross borders and the difference in regulations and rules
• Is AI making patient biases better or worse?
• Limiting data to avoid hallucinations and mistakes
• It takes time to learn when and where to utilize AI 

Yan Chow, MD, MBA, is a leader in the AI, automation, and healthcare technology sectors. He joined Automation Anywhere in 2019 to launch its healthcare vertical, leveraging AI to automate routine tasks and enabling healthcare professionals to focus on patient care. Previously, Dr. Chow was Medical Director for Digital Medicine at Amgen, where he integrated digital technologies like wearable sensors and advanced analytics into clinical trials.

Before Amgen, Dr. Chow served as Chief Innovation Officer at Longview Technology Solutions, providing healthcare consulting services to major U.S. government clients. He also led the Innovation & Advanced Technology Group at Kaiser Permanente, overseeing emerging clinical information technologies and managing a significant innovation grant program.

In addition to his corporate roles, Dr. Chow has founded and advised several startups, including a venture-funded NLP analytics company with a successful exit. He holds three U.S. patents and was recognized as one of the top three healthcare innovators in the nation by Healthcare IT News in 2014. Dr. Chow earned his A.B. from Harvard, M.D. from UC San Diego and MBA from UC Berkeley.

About Jason Reminick:

Jason Reminick, MD, MBA, MS, is the CEO and Founder of Thalamus, a premier cloud-based interview management platform revolutionizing graduate medical education. A Stanford-trained physician with a distinguished academic record, Jason excels in both medicine and entrepreneurship. His innovative approach, highlighted by notable research and awards, bridges clinical practice with transformative technology. Rooted in humanistic values and fueled by relentless curiosity, he inspires future leaders in medicine and beyond, embodying a balanced blend of expertise and compassionate innovation today.

Things You’ll Learn:

• There are 8000 residency and fellowship programs in over 800 institutions that are utilizing Thalamus technology.
• Physician recruitment is expensive, with hospitals spending an average of $250,000 in direct costs per physician hired. It can take six months to fill a role. Because of those 6 months to fill a role, they can lose $2 million in clinical revenue.
• Hospitals are recruiting for their major league teams without knowing who they even have in their minor league systems.
• Medicare spends $16 billion a year to incentivize hospitals to train residents. Thus, retaining those doctors is more cost-effective than recruiting from the open market.
• Thalamus uses AI to standardize and normalize medical school grades, providing a more consistent basis for evaluation.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Jason Reminick on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Thalamus on their LinkedIn and website.

About Misty Grambow:

Misty Grambow is a results-driven sales executive with over 26 years at U.S. Bank/Elavon, Inc., specializing in healthcare, higher education, and nonprofit sectors. As VP of Healthcare and Nonprofit, she leads strategic initiatives to drive growth, develop key partnerships, and optimize payment solutions. With deep expertise in lead generation, prospect engagement, and sales negotiations, Misty has a proven track record of expanding client relationships and delivering impactful solutions. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, she excels in fostering business success through innovation and collaboration.

About Tom Priedeman:

Tom Priedeman is a seasoned financial executive with over a decade at U.S. Bank, specializing in healthcare corporate banking and capital markets. As Division Manager of Middle Market Healthcare, he leads a team providing corporate finance advisory, capital solutions, and working capital optimization for healthcare firms under $1 billion in revenue. Previously, he held senior roles at J.P. Morgan. With an MBA from Duke University and a background in accounting, Tom excels in strategic financial solutions and client growth.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Financial services are playing a crucial role in driving change in healthcare, particularly by addressing payment challenges and streamlining revenue cycle management. US Bank's commitment to providing capital and innovative payment solutions is making a tangible difference for healthcare providers.
• AI holds immense potential for improving the efficiency and patient experience in healthcare, but it also brings significant cybersecurity implications that must be carefully managed.
• Integrating payment solutions into the healthcare journey is essential for improving patient financial satisfaction and increasing revenue streams for healthcare providers. 
• Healthcare systems should prioritize user-friendly payment options, transparent billing practices, and proactive communication with patients about their financial responsibilities.
• Healthcare organizations need comprehensive solutions that address patient and non-patient payment challenges and can be customized to their specific culture and needs.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Misty Grambow on LinkedIn.
• Follow and connect with Tom Priedeman on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about U.S. Bank on their LinkedIn and website.

In this episode of The Beat Podcast, host Sandy Vance sits down with Jeff Taylor from Orbita to explore the intersection of operational efficiencies and enhancing patient experience and engagement in healthcare. At Orbita, the team believes these two areas should evolve in parallel, yet many health systems are struggling with isolated, one-off solutions that fail to address the broader challenges their organizations face.

• Orbita is transforming the patient experience and improving healthcare interactions.
• Empowering patients through more involvement in their healthcare, making them feel both more in control and cared for.
• Achieving up to a 30% reduction in staff inefficiencies by integrating Orbita into healthcare workflows.
• Breaking down AI concepts, including the difference between machine learning and generative AI, and the importance of safety in implementation.
• AI allows you to maximize your resources by allowing you to make decisions about where to allocate your team, time, energy, and money for optimal impact.

Jeff Taylor is the CEO of Orbita.ai, bringing over 20 years of leadership experience in healthcare IT and business solutions. His expertise in driving growth, operational excellence, and organizational transformation is key to leading Orbita through its next phase of innovation and expansion. Orbita powers virtual health assistants that help healthcare organizations engage patients, improve outcomes, and reduce costs.

About Pranam Ben:

Pranam Ben is a visionary entrepreneur and leader in healthcare technology, known for building and scaling cutting-edge, award-winning software solutions. As the founder of The Garage, he continues to drive innovation in health IT following the successful acquisition of Visions@work by NIIT Technologies in 2011. With extensive global business experience across the UK, Japan, India, and the UAE, Ben has been featured in Fast Company, CBS Money Watch, and MarketWatch. Recognized as an Orlando Business Journal CEO of the Year, he remains a driving force in healthcare innovation and digital transformation.

Things You’ll Learn:

• A digital-first, data-first architecture is essential for scaling value-based care, providing a comprehensive view of the patient's health, and enabling timely interventions.
• AI, particularly machine learning and natural language processing holds immense potential to transform healthcare by driving intelligence from data and creating simplified, personalized user experiences. It can also be applied to various use cases.
• Transitioning to a digital-first, data-first strategy requires a fundamental shift in organizational culture, prioritizing adaptability and a commitment to value-based care principles.
• Data alone is not enough; it must be contextualized and actionable to drive meaningful change in healthcare. This involves cleansing the data, preparing it for analysis, and leveraging technologies like AI to deliver relevant insights to healthcare providers and patients.
• To enable holistic care, a platform should extend its view of the patient beyond the walls of the clinic, providing insight into their community, daily habits, and lifestyle.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Pranam Ben on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about The Garage on their LinkedIn and website.

About Vijay Verma:

Vijay Verma is a seasoned product leader currently serving as VP of Product Strategy at TeleVox Healthcare in the NYC metro area, where he spearheads AI-driven initiatives and contact center innovation. With 20+ years of experience driving digital transformation, he specializes in creating exceptional customer journeys that drive engagement and business growth. A specialist in Conversational AI and CX, he has pioneered AI-driven engagement platforms, impacting 30M+ users, and led enterprise-scale transformations resulting in significant NPS improvements. Vijay excels at leveraging emerging technologies, data-driven insights, and cross-functional teams to create innovative solutions that resonate with users and deliver measurable business growth.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Good communication is crucial for achieving positive clinical outcomes, necessitating platforms that work for both institutions and patients. TeleVox focuses on bridging communication gaps through patient-centered experiences that improve health outcomes and drive financial success for healthcare providers.
• Generative AI is poised to significantly impact healthcare by alleviating staff shortages and simplifying complex processes. 
• A major pain point in healthcare is the friction in communication, often leading to frustrating experiences for patients and staff burnout.
• Omnichannel communication strategies are essential for providing consistent and convenient patient experiences across various channels, including voice, SMS, and mobile apps. 
• Generative AI enables the efficient repurposing of healthcare content across different channels and languages.
• Smart Voice combines the empathy of a voice channel with the automation of a virtual agent and the intelligence of a call center. 

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Vijay Verma on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about TeleVox Healthcare on their LinkedIn and website.

About PV SubbaRao:

PV SubbaRao is a global technology leader with 25+ years of experience, currently serving as Senior Vice President of Global Healthcare and Life Sciences at Rackspace Technology. He leads a $500M+ portfolio, driving growth and operations across the Americas, with a specific focus on Health IT, Providers, Health Plans, and Life Sciences. PV champions an integrated solutions approach, leveraging Rackspace's full range of cloud services for the healthcare industry. Prior to Rackspace, he held leadership roles at Dell Services/NTT DATA Services, growing the Healthcare Provider business significantly. Based in Orange County, California, PV holds an MBA from Emory University and a graduate degree from IIT Mumbai.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Rackspace offers a unique approach to cloud solutions, positioning itself as a single point of contact for healthcare organizations looking to integrate strategy and execution. 
• By offering a "do-with" rather than a "do-for" model, Rackspace acts as an extension of a healthcare organization's existing team, enabling easier integration and collaboration. 
• AI and machine learning are poised to revolutionize healthcare by unlocking the potential of vast datasets and improving decision-making. 
• Quantum computing holds promise for personalized medicine through drug discovery and individualized care protocols driven by genome profiling. 
• Adopting Rackspace's cloud solutions and managed services can potentially achieve significant cost savings, between 18% and 25%, for healthcare organizations. These savings can be reinvested into driving transformation and innovation within the organization.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow PV SubbaRao on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Rackspace Technology on their LinkedIn and website.

Are organizations harnessing the full potential of their technology investment?  Are they ready to adopt AI and integrated successfully, with impact, into their EHRs? Are they addressing technological impacts to care and business model design and adopting appropriate alternative care models to better compete in today’s market? To answer these critical questions, Sandy chats with Asher Perzigian, Managing Director in Accenture’s health Strategy & Consulting business and practice lead of Care Innovation. Asher shares a thoughtful approach to navigating the surge of AI applications and how his team is helping healthcare organizations address the challenges of implementing AI across the healthcare ecosystem. Together, they dive into the crucial role of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) as the digital backbone of healthcare systems, and the advancements needed for AI to achieve true interoperability across platforms.

In this episode, they talk about:

• What Accenture recommends when approaching the tsunami of AI applications
• How AI takes some burden off the care delivery (or any admin) process
• How does AI need to advance to achieve true interoperability
• What is AI’s role in the industry reset?
• Accenture’s latest exciting wins
• EHRs are the digital heartbeats of systems
• The biggest challenges for organizations when implementing AI
• What CIOs need to address to see how AI is necessary

A Little About Asher:

Asher Perzigian is a Managing Director in Accenture’s Strategy & Consulting Health Practice, where he is widely recognized for his expertise in commercializing and scaling innovative business transformation programs. He serves as the practice lead for Accenture’s North America Clinical Innovation practice. Throughout his career, Asher has partnered with top healthcare providers, payers, vendors, and life sciences organizations across North America. He is also responsible for managing Accenture’s relationship with one of the firm’s largest and most complex provider and care delivery clients. Based in Chicago, Asher enjoys live music, hockey, running, and spending quality time with his wife, son, daughter, and their extended family.

About Shay Perera:

Shay is the co-founder and CTO of Navina, with a decade of experience in elite intelligence units of the Israel Defense Forces, where he applied artificial intelligence from theory to real-world solutions. He contributed heavily to hands-on R&D efforts while assuming significant leadership roles. Armed with a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, specializing in machine learning, from the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Shay, alongside Ronen, earned the 2018 National Security Award for their groundbreaking work in AI.

Things You’ll Learn:

• AI is not just a futuristic concept but a current necessity for managing the overwhelming amount of healthcare data and streamlining clinical workflows, leading to improved patient outcomes and reduced administrative burdens for providers.
• The administrative burden is a significant pain point in healthcare, but AI can automate repetitive tasks, reduce the burden on providers, and streamline value-based care workflows, ultimately improving both clinical and economic outcomes.
• Emerging AI trends will change how physicians care for patients, saving time and enhancing knowledge of patient health.
• Clinical AI can act as a copilot, streamlining workflows and turning data into actionable insights for healthcare providers at the point of care and in the back office.  
• Healthcare organizations should focus on integrating AI solutions that can make physician life easier and ensure clinicians are involved as early as possible to gain trust in the process. 

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Shay Perera on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Navina on their LinkedIn and website.
• Email Shay directly here.

Sandy Vance and Jason Warrelmann, the VP of Healthcare & Life Sciences at UiPath, discuss how AI and agentic automation are transforming the healthcare space. Jason also offers customer use cases to expand on real-life digital transformations. UiPath and Jason were at the ViVe event in February; check out the recordings on the ViVE website.

• The role that automation plays in the healthcare space: 
  • Humans don’t like being interoperability engines. 
  • Automation is a good universal API and it doesn’t hallucinate. 
• Studies show a high failure rate for AI projects across industries, including healthcare. 
  • A small pilot turns into a big expensive project involving different vendors
  • Technology changes so quickly
  • What kind of ROI will CFOs see?
• Examples of how UiPath is helping healthcare organizations achieve their goals with AI and automation.

Jason Warrelmann leads the Healthcare and Life Sciences Practice at UiPath, which focuses on transforming the healthcare landscape and developing capabilities, integrations, and reusable components that make UiPath a healthcare automation platform, not just a tool that works in healthcare.

About Kali Arduini Ihde:

Kali Arduini Ihde is a dynamic, results-driven digital transformation leader with 18+ years of experience in advancing healthcare through innovative technologies. As Director of Innovation at Northwestern Medicine, she orchestrates multi-million-dollar portfolios, fosters cross-functional alignment, and implements data-driven strategies to deliver client-centric solutions. She previously oversaw ePMO, scheduling, physician referrals, and operational transitions for Epic, forging strategic partnerships and streamlining organizational workflows. Kali holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Missouri, complementing her robust project management acumen.

Things You’ll Learn:

• It's crucial to ground innovation work in the organization's biggest problems. This ensures that any new technology being explored is directly relevant to improving patient care, workforce experience, or other key challenges.
• Finding real solutions amidst the AI hype requires a rigorous vetting process. Organizations should focus on finding solutions that can make meaningful impacts.
• Scaling AI innovation requires a dedicated team focused on implementation and widespread adoption. Innovation shouldn’t stop at testing it out but be applied and expanded to the whole organization.
• AI is poised to revolutionize healthcare by identifying issues and risks earlier. Coupled with precision medicine, the next generation of AI promises a future where treatment is tailored to the individual. This means that in 5-10 years, healthcare will look vastly different.
• Healthcare is expensive and takes a lot of people to complete. This should be considered when implementing AI solutions and technology.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Kali Arduini Ihde on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about Northwestern Medicine on their LinkedIn and website.
• Discover more about Northwestern Medicine’s innovations here.

In this conversation, Dr. Ryan Vega, Chief Health Officer for Vantiq, discusses the transformative role of AI in healthcare, the innovative capabilities of the Vantiq platform, and the importance of personalized healthcare solutions. He shares insights on the transition from the Veterans Health Administration to Vantiq, the use cases for their technology, and how generative AI is enhancing clinical decision-making. Dr. Vega emphasizes the need for transparency, safety, and effective orchestration of AI systems in healthcare, as well as the importance of collaboration with systems integrators and startups to drive innovation.

In this episode , they discuss: 

• Dr. Vega emphasizes the importance of workflow customization in healthcare.
• Vantiq's platform allows for low-code, no-code application development.
• Real-time orchestration of complex healthcare systems is crucial.
• Generative AI can significantly enhance clinical decision-making.
• Vantiq focuses on creating transparency and safety in AI workflows.
• The platform is designed to operate securely within healthcare environments.
• AI can augment human capabilities in critical care settings. 

A Little about Dr Ryan Vega: 

Dr. Ryan Vega serves as the Chief Health Officer for Vantiq and is the former Chief Innovation Officer for the Veterans Health Administration where he led enterprise innovation efforts across the largest integrated health system in the United States.

His work has spanned large-scale digital modernization efforts, design and deployment of innovative care and payment models, and early design and development of healthcare software focused on improving health care delivery and experience for patients and providers.

Dr. Vega also currently sits as the Physician in Residence for the Digital Medicine Society and holds academic appointments as an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Administration at Georgetown University as well as a Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine at George Washington University. He is the recipient of many awards for his work in healthcare innovation and has published numerous articles on the topic.

In this episode, they discuss:

• Building consumer trust in generative AI is essential for its success in health care.
• Deloitte plays a significant role in the health care sector, serving various stakeholders.
• A majority of consumers believe generative AI can reduce wait times and costs.
• Skepticism towards generative AI has increased among consumers over the past year.
• Distrust in AI tools is linked to concerns about bias and privacy.
• Health care data is a high-value target for cyber adversaries.
• Generative AI can enhance the patient-physician relationship if used correctly.
• Transparency and ethics are crucial in the deployment of generative AI.
• Healthcare organizations must educate both patients and clinicians about AI.
• Deloitte assists organizations in navigating the complexities of AI implementation. 

Learn more about Deloittes research here : 

Building and maintaining health care consumers’ trust in generative AI

https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/health-care/consumer-trust-in-health-care-generative-ai.html

A little about Jen:

Jen Sullivan, Principal, Deloitte & Touche LLP, is a seasoned and innovative cyber strategy leader with 28 years of experience in technology and cybersecurity, with 24 years of deep focus in life sciences and health care. Her technical infrastructure background has expanded throughout her tenure to a range of security areas including cyber strategy, threat detection and response, data protection and privacy, regulatory compliance, and technical resiliency. Jen serves some of the industry’s largest and most complex clients and leads Deloitte’s Cyber Strategy and Transformation practice. Beyond client service, she has held pivotal leadership roles in talent and business transformation and has a deep passion around health equity. Jen serves on Deloitte’s Cyber executive leadership team, is a leader in Women in Cyber and is the Advisory Life Sciences & Health Care Generative AI leader.

In today’s episode, Sandy sits down with Dr. Dipul Patadia, MD, Senior Director, and Industry Advisor at Salesforce. Together, they explore how Salesforce is shaping the future of healthcare through Agentforce, an innovative AI tool designed to streamline healthcare processes and improve customer care.

As AI-powered agents become an everyday part of healthcare, Dr. Patadia addresses common concerns around their implementation for administrative tasks. He also shares insights into how Agentforce ensures smooth operations while maintaining essential safeguards for patient care.

• How Salesforce ensures safe use of AI agents with human oversight in healthcare
• Autonomous AI agents vs. assistive agents: How Salesforce is revolutionizing digital healthcare support
• Leveraging Salesforce’s AI expertise to create the most effective agents for healthcare
• The story behind Einstein: how Salesforce’s AI can transform healthcare operations

Dr. Patadia is a practicing emergency medicine physician. He serves as the Head of Health System Strategy and Innovation at Salesforce where he aids in contextualizing health systems’ needs with new and existing technology capabilities. Before joining Salesforce, Dr. Patadia came from Ascension and Advocate Health where he served as a Chief Medical Officer, leading clinical initiatives, and operations for two of its high-acuity hospitals. He has been instrumental in facilitating digital transformation, growing specialty service lines, improving quality outcomes, and designing innovative value-based care strategies.

In this episode, Sandy Vance speaks to Joseph Hernandez, VP of Channel Sales at BluIP, and Vivek Kuppuswamy, Principal Produce Manager at BluIP. They explore how BluIP’s Conversational AI and Virtual Agent solutions revolutionize healthcare workflows by automating patient interactions, streamlining appointment scheduling, and enhancing the patient experience. They also discuss how AI-driven communication reduces administrative burden, improves operational efficiency, and enables healthcare providers to move past organizational tasks and focus on delivering quality care.

Episode Notes

Beginning with a look at the history of automation in healthcare, Joseph and Vivek explain that the concept behind BluIP’s Conversational AI is not new; it fills a similar role to an automated voice menu. However, BluIP’s Conversational AI does not require callers to use specific language to understand their requests. It can also pick up on context and learn from new interactions. This technology helps to address populations who do not use apps like MyChart and want to interact with someone over the phone while streamlining workflows and reducing churn. Additionally, Joseph, Vivek, and Sandy discuss the future of AI at BlueIP and in health care in general.

In this episode, they discuss:

• How AI is transforming the patient experience
• The opportunities that conversational AI is creating for healthcare providers
• The primary use-cases for BluIP’s Conversational AI in the healthcare space
• How BlueIP works with organizations to integrate conversational AI to meet their individual needs
• The advances in virtual agent technology that solve for patient populations who want to interact over the phone
• The ROI for Conversational AI, which consists of a combination of tangible returns and a less tangible opportunity cost
• How Conversational AI reduces churn, increases patient satisfaction, and increases staff satisfaction
• The future of Conversational AI in healthcare communications
• BluIP’s continued efforts to innovate, including reducing implementation timelines and low-code applications

A little about Joseph and Vivek:

Joseph Hernandez is a patient satisfaction advocate and technologist who specializes in conversational Artificial Intelligence and optimizing healthcare workflows. With a deep understanding of both digital channel contact centers and healthcare technologies, he designs patient-centered healthcare solutions for national health systems and community health centers. Drawing on his experience and understanding of the relationships between payers, providers, patients, and population health initiatives, Joseph helps customers optimize their current technology and adopt innovative solutions for the evolving healthcare landscape.

Joseph is also an executive member of several healthcare organizations with a charter to close the gap in healthcare disparities and introduce technologies that lead to better patient outcomes; acting as a conduit between healthcare professionals and national healthcare organizations. At BluIP, Joseph is the VP of Channel Sales; matching clients with BluIP’s solutions.

Vivek is a Principal Product Manager at BluIP, and is driving the growth of BluIP’s AI product portfolio. Prior to working at BluIP, Vivek spent 14 years building enterprise-grade SaaS products, with expertise in entertainment, CPG, and high-tech industries.

About Marisa Cruz:

Dr. Marisa Cruz is the Vice President of Global Digital Medicine at AMGEN, a renowned global biotechnology company. An endocrinologist and internist, she continues to practice medicine at UCSF, bringing a clinical perspective to her work in digital health. Dr. Cruz oversees AMGEN’s digital health strategy, focusing on harnessing data and technology to improve patient outcomes and bridge healthcare accessibility gaps.

Things You’ll Learn:

• AMGEN is driving innovation in digital health with initiatives like the LATTICE Consortium, aiming to reduce cardiovascular incidents by 50%.
• AI and machine learning are playing a crucial role in improving clinical trial diversity and accessibility.
• Emerging digital health trends, including implementation science and patient-centered care, are reshaping the future of healthcare.
• AMGEN’s patient engagement platform, PARC, empowers patients to actively participate in their own healthcare journey.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Marisa Cruz on LinkedIn.
• Follow Amgen on LinkedIn and visit their website.
• Explore Amgen PARC website
• Discover the LATTICE Consortium website. 

About Kevin Mahoney:

Kevin B. Mahoney is the Chief Executive Officer of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, a cornerstone of Penn Medicine. Overseeing six hospitals, 13 multispecialty centers, and numerous outpatient facilities across Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, he leads efforts to advance patient care, medical education, and research. Since joining Penn Medicine in 1996, Mahoney has held key leadership roles, becoming CEO in 2019. He has spearheaded major initiatives, including the development of the 1.5-million-square-foot Pavilion and the integration of Penn Medicine’s electronic health records system. A champion of health equity, he established a partnership with Wharton to invest in businesses addressing social determinants of health. Recognized among the most influential figures in healthcare, Mahoney holds an MBA and doctorate from Temple University.

Things You’ll Learn:

• The healthcare field faces a critical talent shortage due to retiring baby boomers and a smaller subsequent generation demanding innovative solutions. 
• Cultural shifts are crucial to attracting talent to science and medicine, emphasizing the nobility of healthcare professions over purely financial incentives.
• Healthcare organizations must remain agile and adaptable, embracing new regulations and technological advancements while staying focused on what matters most: patient care.
• Artificial intelligence is a crucial tool for achieving precision medicine, enabling proactive healthcare interventions based on individual patient profiles.
• By repairing systems and improving clinical outcomes, healthcare systems can find ways to continue improving the landscape.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Kevin Mahoney on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Penn Medicine’s University of Pennsylvania Health System on their LinkedIn and website.

About Sasha Tyndale:

Sasha Tyndale is a seasoned leader in the pharmaceutical industry with over 20 years of experience spanning oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and more. As Director of Diversity and Patient Inclusion at AbbVie, she drives patient-centric strategies and innovative clinical operations. With expertise in precision medicine and personalized healthcare, she collaborates cross-functionally to enhance patient engagement and future-proof organizations. Previously, she held key roles at PAREXEL and Johnson & Johnson, specializing in strategic patient recruitment and clinical innovation. Sasha holds a Master’s and Bachelor’s degree in English Literature from Rutgers University. Passionate about advancing equitable healthcare, she is committed to transforming research and improving patient outcomes.

Things You’ll Learn:

• AbbVie is making clinical trials more inclusive by ensuring they represent diverse populations affected by the diseases being studied.
• Through programs like ADMIRE, AbbVie is expanding research access by involving underrepresented healthcare providers in clinical research.
• AbbVie is simplifying participation in clinical trials by making study materials clearer and designing studies that minimize patient burden.
• Patient voices are essential in humanizing research, providing valuable insights into real-life disease challenges, and encouraging greater participation in clinical trials.
• AbbVie is taking bold action to challenge traditional research practices, collaborate with community partners, and improve healthcare access and representation.
• Educating individuals about clinical trials empowers communities to make informed decisions about participation in medical research.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Sasha Tyndale on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about AbbVie on their LinkedIn and website.
• Sign up for the ADMIRE program here.
• If you are considering participating in AbbVie’s clinical research program, click here.

About Dr. Karin Tollefson:

Dr. Karin Tollefson is a highly accomplished pharmaceutical executive with over 30 years of experience dedicated to advancing cancer care. Currently serving as Chief Oncology Medical Officer at Pfizer, she leads the Oncology Global and US Medical Affairs Division. Before joining Pfizer in 2023, Dr. Tollefson held the role of Senior Vice President and Head of Global Medical Affairs at Seagen Inc., where she successfully launched three practice-changing medicines and built a global medical affairs organization. Her extensive career includes significant tenure at Eli Lilly and Company, where she held various leadership roles in clinical operations, development, and medical affairs. Throughout her career, she has contributed to the launch of eight new medicines, impacting patient care across multiple tumor types and therapeutic areas. Dr. Tollefson is an Independent Director on the Board for Verastem Oncology, and has also served on the boards of the American Lung Association and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She is a 2024 Healthcare Businesswomen's Association Luminary Award recipient, and is a strong advocate for women in the oncology field, being a sponsor of both the Oncology Women’s Network and the Pfizer Butterfly Community at Pfizer. She holds a Doctorate of Pharmacy from the University of Kansas and completed her undergraduate studies at Kansas State University.

Things You’ll Learn:

• The incidence of cancer in people under 50 has increased by 79% since 1990, marking a significant and alarming trend that needs immediate attention, especially with colorectal cancer now the leading cause of cancer death in men and second in women younger than 50 years. 
• Western lifestyle factors such as poor diet, obesity, sedentary behavior, and exposure to toxins are likely significant contributors to the rise of early-onset cancers, suggesting that shifts in lifestyle and public health initiatives could impact cancer rates.
• Younger cancer patients are often diagnosed at later stages due to a lack of preventative care and symptoms being easily dismissed.
• Increased screening accessibility is crucial for early detection and prevention. This includes molecular testing and colonoscopies, which offer the opportunity to remove precancerous polyps, preventing them from developing into something more serious.
• The battle against cancer requires collaborative efforts between healthcare providers, academic institutions, industry partners, and advocacy organizations. This is not just one organization's fight; collaborative efforts must continue.

Resources:

• Follow Dr. Karin Tollefson, Chief Oncology Medical Officer at Pfizer, on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Pfizer on their LinkedIn and website.
• Read more on Pfizer in Oncology here. 

Patient Resources/Advocacy Links:

• Explore This Is Living With Cancer’s Advocacy Support’s website.
• Visit the Global Colorectal Cancer Alliance’s website here. (Pfizer was one of their sponsors)
• Learn more about the transformative work CancerCare is doing.
• Find CancerCare’s guide on Biomarker Testing here.
• Read the best practices for Biomarker Testing Coverage here. (Pfizer had input and was a sponsor)
• Get AONN Biomarker Navigation here. For the Precision Medicine Toolkit, look here.
• Empower yourself or your patients with essential navigation resources–a site co-created with AONN, to find materials on breast, prostate, health equity, geriatric, and more. (Patient navigators can download and share educational tools for enhanced support.)
• Deepen your understanding of prostate cancer here. 

About Kimbery Powlell:

Kimberly Powell is the Vice President of Healthcare at NVIDIA, overseeing the global healthcare sector. She leads efforts to advance hardware and software platforms for accelerated computing, AI, and visualization, driving innovation in medical imaging, life sciences, drug discovery, and healthcare analytics. Before this role, Kim managed NVIDIA’s higher education and research initiatives, strategic evangelism programs, NVIDIA AI Labs, and the NVIDIA Inception program. Since joining NVIDIA in 2008, she has been instrumental in positioning NVIDIA GPUs as a foundational technology for medical imaging systems.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Generative AI is transforming surgical procedures by supporting all phases of the process, including pre-operative patient education, real-time surgical guidance, and automatic post-surgical documentation, resulting in safer and more efficient operations.
• Privacy and ethical concerns in healthcare AI are being addressed by embedding models directly into medical devices and introducing reasoning layers to ensure safe, responsible, and ethical operation.
• Ethical safeguards, or "guardrails," are essential for reducing AI-related risks by preventing the system from operating in unsafe or untrustworthy ways.
• AI should be seen as a "digital human" teammate in healthcare, enhancing staff efficiency and productivity while improving care quality.
• Evaluating the ROI of AI requires analyzing its ability to reduce costs from rescheduled surgeries and automate tasks, allowing healthcare staff to focus on patients with the greatest need.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Kimberly Powell on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about NVIDIA on their LinkedIn and website.

About Dr. Brian Anderson:

Dr. Brian Anderson is a leading voice in health AI as CEO and Co-Founder of the Coalition for Health AI (CHAI), guiding the development of national standards for safe and effective AI in healthcare. Formerly Chief Digital Health Physician at MITRE, he spearheaded crucial research initiatives, including advancements in clinical trials and oncology. An internationally recognized expert, Dr. Anderson speaks frequently on digital health, AI assurance, and interoperability. A Harvard Medical School graduate with an MD (honors) and a BA (cum laude), Dr. Anderson trained at Mass General, practiced at Greater Lawrence Family Health Center, and lives in Boston with his family.

Things You’ll Learn:

• A significant gap exists in the lack of independent labs to evaluate health AI, as these are already standard practice in other sectors with regulated technologies. The proposed national network of certified labs will fill this gap by providing independent assessments of AI models, promoting trust in their use.
• AI model cards are crucial for transparency because they detail the training methodologies and ingredients of AI models. This information helps users, such as physicians, make informed decisions about the tool’s appropriateness for their patients.
• Clinicians need upskilling to critically evaluate AI tools and make informed decisions about their use in patient care.
• Generative AI applications like ambient scribes have the potential to greatly mitigate physician burnout by streamlining administrative tasks. This can give them more time to focus on their patients and improve their work-life balance.
• The creation of quality assurance labs will be a critical first step in AI regulation, helping to bridge the gap between rapidly evolving technology and established safety standards.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Brian Anderson on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Coalition for Health AI (CHAI) on their LinkedIn and website.

About Dr. Maria Ryan: 

Maria Ryan, DDS, PhD, is the Executive Vice President and Chief Clinical Officer at Colgate-Palmolive Company, where she oversees the Dental and Dermal Clinical teams, as well as the Knowledge Management and Scientific Communications departments. Before joining Colgate-Palmolive, Dr. Ryan was a Professor and Chair of the Department of Oral Biology and Pathology at Stony Brook University, where she focused on teaching, practicing periodontology, and conducting research. She is the former President of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR) and has served on various academic and foundation boards. Dr. Ryan has earned several honors, including NIH National Research Service Awards and a Physician Scientist Award. She was also the recipient of the American Dental Association’s Achievement Award and the Victress Health Award for her contributions to women’s health research. Dr. Ryan is a renowned speaker and author, frequently appearing in media to highlight the connection between oral and overall health.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Oral diseases are a global health crisis affecting 50% of the world's population and significantly impacting overall health.
• There is a critical disconnect between medical and dental care, leading to neglect of oral health's importance in overall well-being.
• Untreated oral diseases, like cavities and gum disease, can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes, and adverse pregnancy outcomes.
• The "Oral Health Quotient" (OQ) aims to educate the public on their oral health knowledge and practices. Many people don't realize that cavities and gum disease are chronic inflammatory diseases that require treatment.
• Addressing periodontal disease can lead to reductions in medical costs related to conditions such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
• Preventive measures, like proper brushing, flossing, and limiting sugar, are crucial for avoiding most oral diseases.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Maria Ryan on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Colgate-Palmolive on LinkedIn and their website.

About Dr. Carolyn Jasik:

Carolyn is a board-certified physician with a background in health technology startups, multidisciplinary care, education, and research. As Chief Medical Officer at Omada, she uses her diverse expertise to improve user experience and introduce integrated healthcare solutions. Before joining Omada, Carolyn spent 14 years at the University of California as an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Clinical Instructor at San Francisco General Hospital. She also served as Vice President of Medical Outcomes at Mango Health, a digital health startup. Carolyn earned a Bachelor's in Public Policy from Princeton University, a Medical Degree from the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine, and completed her research training at the University of California, San Francisco. She is board-certified in clinical informatics, adolescent medicine, and pediatrics. At Omada, Carolyn supports clinical and research teams, contributing to the development of innovative healthcare solutions.

Things You’ll Learn:

• GLP-1 medications require comprehensive wraparound support, including lifestyle changes, mental health, and physical therapy, for effective and sustainable outcomes. The speed of weight loss, rather than the GLP-1 itself, is often the primary driver of muscle mass reduction.
• Many individuals on GLP-1s aim to eventually discontinue the medication, making long-term lifestyle planning a crucial part of the treatment.
• Stopping GLP-1s abruptly can trigger rebound weight gain due to the body's natural metabolic response.
• AI's role in healthcare should be focused on enhancing human care delivery, not replacing the crucial empathetic connection.
• The future of healthcare will include advanced primary care that addresses the gaps between traditional doctor visits.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Carolyn Jasik on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Omada Health on LinkedIn and their website.

About Andrew Adams:

Andrew Adams is the co-founder of Oak HC/FT, established in 2014 to focus exclusively on investing in healthcare and fintech startups. In 2023, the firm was ranked among the top ten venture capital firms globally. With over 25 years of experience, Andrew has been a key investor in numerous high-profile healthcare companies, including One Medical (acquired by Amazon), iHealth Technologies (merged with Connolly), Therapy Brands (acquired by KKR), and PharMEDium Healthcare (acquired by CD&R), among others. He serves on the boards of several healthcare organizations, including August Bioservices, DispatchHealth, and Unified Women's Healthcare. Andrew has been recognized as one of the Top 25 Healthcare Investors of 2024 by GrowthCap. Prior to co-founding Oak HC/FT, he began his career at Alex. Brown & Sons and holds a BA from Princeton University. His extensive track record highlights his deep expertise in healthcare investment and innovation.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Identifying and backing the best entrepreneurs with a strong track record is crucial for achieving impactful scale in healthcare.
• A blend of technology and personalized services is necessary to effectively engage patients and meet their diverse needs.
• Effective patient engagement involves an omnichannel approach, meeting patients where they are, whether virtually, in person, or at home.
• Companies should target specific patient populations with tailored tools, services, and a deep understanding of their needs.
• The future of healthcare investment lies in companies that deliver real value by addressing cost, quality, and the consumer experience across the healthcare continuum.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Andrew Adams on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about OAK HC/FT on LinkedIn and their website.

About Joyce Tung:

Joyce Tung, Ph.D., is the Vice President of Research at 23andMe, where she has been since 2007. She leads the research team responsible for consumer health and ancestry research, academic and industry collaborations, computational analyses for therapeutics, and the development of new research methods and tools. Prior to her work at 23andMe, Joyce was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University, where she focused on the genetics of mouse and human pigmentation. She earned her Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of California, San Francisco, where she was also a National Science Foundation graduate research fellow. Joyce's leadership at 23andMe has been instrumental in advancing genetic research and innovation in both consumer health and scientific development.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Current genetic research heavily favors people of European ancestry, hindering the application of findings to other populations.
• Large-scale genetic studies, driven by consumer participation, are revealing previously unknown health associations.
• Empowering consumers with their genetic information shifts the power dynamic in healthcare towards individual control.
• Genetic research findings are not universally applicable, making diverse participation critical for accuracy and benefit.
• Consumer participation in research provides individuals with a way to fight back against diseases and contribute to future advancements.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Joyce Tung on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about 23andMe on LinkedIn and their website.
• Read 23andMe’s depression report here.
• Learn more about 23andMe’s article on sickle cell trait here.

AI and automation in healthcare isn’t just efficient – it can improve patient and worker satisfaction. In this interview, Sandy Vance discusses AI and automation in healthcare with Ted Dinsmore, the Managing Director of SphereGen Technologies. Ted explains that while the concept of AI has recently exploded as it has seen widespread adoption on the consumer side, the technology that it is based on has existed for years and can help automate mundane processes in hospitals. It can also improve worker retention by removing unfulfilling and repetitive work, freeing up time to focus on higher-value aspects of their roles. Sandy and Ted also cover the downsides of waiting to adopt AI and automation technology, which are mostly related to stagnation and a loss of opportunity. 

In this episode, they discuss:

• Using AI automation to fill staffing shortages and increase job satisfaction by taking over mundane tasks
• Automating prior authorization, eligibility, and denial disputes while increasing patient satisfaction through human interaction
• Helping clients customize their automation and integration to match their workflow
• Use cases and ROI seen from organizations who adopt SphereGen automation
• Creating intelligent document processes to extract data from PDFs
• The downsides of waiting to adopt AI automation, which mostly relate to a loss of opportunity 

A little about Dinsmore:

Ted Dinsmore is the President of SphereGen. The software consulting firm drives digital transformation in the healthcare ecosystem by using AI and automation to make systems more efficient and effective. He helps clients in the US and Europe with automation, software development, and extended reality technology. 

When Ted founded his first consulting firm, he became invested in supporting Microsoft solutions for large multinational companies. Striving to stay ahead of new technology, Dinsmore embraced artificial intelligence and extended realities with a focus on improving healthcare processes. 

Under Dinsmore’s leadership since its inception, SphereGen has received multiple awards for its services, including the GNHCC Innovation Award and the Most Promising AR/VR Solutions Provider Award in 2023 from CIOReview. SphereGen guides clients throughout the US and Europe as they begin adopting AI, automation, and expanded realities; customizing technology to meet client needs. 

About Maria Torroella Carney: 

Dr. Maria Torroella Carney is a highly respected internist, geriatrician, and palliative care physician with a robust background in public health. She is the Chief of the Division of Geriatric and Palliative Medicine at the Zucker School of Medicine and an Associate Professor of Medicine. She also holds the position of Chief of Geriatric and Palliative Medicine for Northwell Health. As the first geriatrician to serve as a health department commissioner in New York State, Dr. Carney has made significant contributions to the field of longevity promotion and the care of vulnerable populations. Her research focuses on advanced care planning, shared decision-making, elder abuse, and capacity assessment. She has received numerous awards for her outstanding community service and leadership.

Things You’ll Learn:

• Hospice is a model of care focused on quality of life, not just end-of-life, and includes comprehensive support services. It's underutilized due to a lack of understanding and difficult decisions required regarding foregoing certain treatments.
• Patients should be able to explore hospice without feeling obligated to stop other care immediately.
• Family caregivers are an "invisible workforce" that requires more support, education, and resources. They are integral to the healthcare team yet often overlooked.
• Elder orphans, those aging without family support, are a growing concern and need early identification and tailored support.
• Geriatric medicine and palliative care are in their infancy and require more attention and specialists to meet their increasing needs. There's an insufficient number of professionals in these fields.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Maria Torroella Carney on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Northwell Health on LinkedIn and their website.
• Buy Maria Torroella Carney’s The Aging Revolution here.

About Dr. Richard Milani: 

Dr. Milani serves as the Chief Clinical Innovation Officer, at Sutter Health.  His background and research focus on population health with a special interest in chronic disease, medical informatics, preventive medicine, and healthcare technology. After receiving his Internal Medicine training at the University of Florida, Dr. Milani completed fellowships in Critical Care Medicine at the University of Florida, Preventive Medicine, and Clinical Epidemiology at Harvard University (Massachusetts General Hospital), and Cardiovascular Diseases at Ochsner Clinic Foundation. He has authored over 500 medical publications, is on the editorial board for several medical journals, and serves as a frequent lecturer for healthcare systems and Fortune 500 companies as well as an advisor to venture capital firms and emerging healthcare technology companies. 

Things You’ll Learn:

• AI and scribe companies are being used to reduce clinician documentation time, and reduce 'pajama time'.
• AI models can predict patient deterioration, such as cardiac arrest, and allow for early intervention, reducing cardiac arrests by 44%.
• AI should act as an assistant, with a human clinician always in the loop for evaluation and decision-making.
• Technology should point clinicians toward patients most in need, optimizing care and resource allocation.
• Digital tools that can monitor the activities of daily living unobtrusively are the future of patient care, especially for elderly patients living alone.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Dr. Richard Milani on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about Sutter Health on LinkedIn and visit their website.

In this conversation, Dr. David Carmouche discusses the critical transition from fee-for-service to value-based care in the healthcare industry, emphasizing the role of AI in enhancing primary care and improving patient outcomes. He highlights the financial pressures on health systems and the importance of aligning incentives to achieve sustainability. The discussion also covers the innovative solutions offered by Lumeris and the transformative potential of AI in automating care processes and improving patient engagement. Finally, Dr. Carmouche addresses the need for regulatory guardrails as AI becomes more integrated into healthcare delivery.

In this episode , they discuss:

• The shift from fee-for-service to value-based care is essential for financial sustainability.
• AI is poised to transform primary care delivery and patient engagement.
• Healthcare costs have been deemed unsustainable for decades, necessitating change.
• Aligning incentives is crucial for improving patient outcomes in healthcare.
• Lumeris has a decade-long history of partnering with health systems for value-based care.
• AI can automate and standardize care processes, enhancing efficiency.
• Data availability and interoperability are key to successful value-based care models.
• Generative AI can proactively engage patients and improve care delivery.
• Training clinicians to effectively use AI is vital for its successful integration.
• Regulatory guardrails will be necessary as AI becomes more prevalent in healthcare.

A little about Dr David Carmouche: 

David Carmouche, MD, is the Executive Vice President & Chief Clinical Transformation Officer at Lumeris. Dr. Carmouche is a visionary leader in transformational healthcare delivery, with a unique blend of provider, payer, retail, and integrated delivery network leadership experience.

Prior to joining Lumeris, Dr. Carmouche served as Walmart’s Senior Vice President of Healthcare Delivery, where he led the fleet of Walmart Health centers, Walmart Health Virtual Care, a value-based care partnership with Optum, and Walmart’s work to address Social Determinants of Health. Dr. Carmouche has also held significant leadership roles with Ochsner Health, the largest nonprofit academic healthcare system in the Gulf South, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Louisiana, where he introduced the company’s first value-based care contracts. Earlier in his career, he built and led a multidisciplinary internal medicine and preventive cardiology practice.

Dr. Carmouche attended Tulane University and LSU Medical School in New Orleans. Board-certified in Internal Medicine, he completed his residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he later served as Chief Resident. He serves as President of the Board of the Consortium for Southeastern Healthcare Quality and on the advisory board at Stellar Health. He has served on the board of the National Association of Accountable Care Organizations.

About Chris Moniz: Chris Moniz is a Managing Director at HSBC Holdings. Previously, he was a Managing Director and Market Manager at SVB Financial Group, leading Northwest & Northeast HealthTech & Medical Devices. A contributing author to HSBC Innovation Banking's 1H 2023 Venture Healthcare Report, Chris offers expertise and actionable insights to healthcare companies and investors.

About Kristin Apple: Kristin Apple is President of LINUS, guiding leaders in health, wellness, and life sciences through transformative decisions. With 20+ years of experience advising major healthcare, pharmaceutical, and CPG companies, she's passionate about healthcare innovation. Previously, she led the healthcare vertical at Egg Strategy. Her background includes nearly six years at Eli Lilly, launching blockbuster drugs. Kristin holds an MBA from the University of Colorado and a degree from Indiana University.

Things You’ll Learn:

• There is a growing concern among young physicians that patient trust is eroding, coupled with a mirroring lack of trust in patients.
• Young physicians are eager to incorporate AI into their practices for diagnosis and therapeutic decision-making while maintaining the human connection as an essential aspect of the patient-physician relationship.
• Technology should be used to enhance patient connection and streamline administrative tasks, not to replace human interaction.
• The future of healthcare involves a community-centric approach, with care delivered where people are, integrating their support systems.
• The healthcare industry must embrace and shape inevitable changes rather than be overtaken by them.

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Chris Moniz on LinkedIn.
• Discover more about HSBC on LinkedIn and visit their website.
• Follow and connect with Kristin Apple on LinkedIn.
• Learn more about LINUS on their LinkedIn and website.
• Check out the Health 2035 Report here. 

Sandy and Craig discuss how Wellsheet achieves high clinician satisfaction, how it improves over time, and how it has earned the trust of hospitals across the country. Craig Limoli co-founded Wellsheet as a solution to the frustrations he noticed clinicians had with existing technologies, particularly around accessing patient data in a user-friendly format. Wellsheet’s patient summaries are preferred by 94% of clinicians for chart review, reducing chart review time by 50% and length of stay by 16.3%. Sandy and Craig also discuss Wellsheet’s recent partnership with UpToDate, allowing clinicians to access contextually relevant data faster. 

In this episode, they discuss:

• How Wellsheet contextualizes data to give clinicians the most relevant information to make treatment decisions
• Wellsheet’s impact on the inpatient side of healthcare, delivering ROI on clinician satisfaction and burnout while increasing productivity
• How Wellsheet addresses workflow bottlenecks at hospitals
• The money hospitals are saving by implementing Wellsheet’s AI solution, which mainly comes from reducing the patient length-of-stays 
• The breadth of adoption across healthcare systems that differentiates Wellsheet as an AI solution
• Different use-cases for Wellsheet throughout healthcare practices
• Wellsheet’s partnership with UpToDate, allowing for integration and seamless workflows 

A little about Craig:

Craig Limoli founded Wellsheet after seeing the frustration that clinicians faced with existing technologies while he worked at IBM in their Watson Health division. He left his MBA program at Wharton to found Wellsheet with a mission to create a better experience for physicians and care teams.

Aligning his solutions with the problems clinicians identified, Craig built Wellsheet’s AI solution to help clinicians access relevant patient information in a contextualized, user-friendly format. In 2017, Craig brought Wellsheet to the market, primarily serving small practices. Since then, Wellsheet's AI solution has been deployed to hundreds of hospitals across some of the largest health systems in the country and has delivered vast improvements in clinician productivity and experience.