- Integrating AI in healthcare requires a strategic approach focused on patient needs and successful partnerships, according to panelists at the HIMSS AI Conference in San Diego.
- Healthcare providers should determine strategic priorities and set clear goals for AI investment and implementation.
- Adopting AI can increase provider productivity, support clinician quality of life, and improve back-end office work, such as clinical coding and revenue cycle.
- Small, manageable success at the beginning can pave the way for larger AI projects.
- Collaborations with other organizations, industries, and internally developing talent, are critical for successful AI adoption in healthcare.
The panelists emphasized the importance of clear strategic priorities and goals for AI investment and implementation. Anne Snowdon, CEO of Scan Health and chief research officer at HIMSS, underscored the need to understand what success looks like and establish tools to measure it. Cleveland Clinic’s Chief Analytics Officer Albert Marinez highlighted the significant impact of AI on provider productivity and healthcare providers’ quality of life. He also discussed the extensive opportunities of AI in back-end office work to enhance efficiency and accuracy in areas such as clinical coding and revenue cycle.
Cutting through the hype surrounding AI, Chris Larkin, the Chief Technical Officer at Concord Technologies, suggested starting small with manageable projects that demonstrate results, which garner both clinical and financial sponsorship. He added that partnering with other organizations, industries, and nurturing internal talent is crucial for AI integration.
As AI continues to interact with patient and clinical data, Thomas Hallisey, Digital Health Strategy Lead at HANYS, noted the need to design systems that store data differently. Snowdon emphasized the importance of keeping a “razor-sharp focus” on using AI to help patients achieve their health goals, stressing that a patient-centric approach should drive AI implementation in healthcare.
The discussion highlighted the potential of AI to transform healthcare, but it also underscored the importance of a strategic, patient-focused approach to AI adoption and the significant role of successful partnerships in driving AI integration.