1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:02,580 Imagine this. You're in the heart of Chicago 2 00:00:02,639 --> 00:00:05,059 mingling with the brightest minds in health IT. 3 00:00:05,279 --> 00:00:07,825 You've arrived at the 9th Annual Health IT 4 00:00:07,904 --> 00:00:10,484 plus Digital Health plus RCM conference 5 00:00:10,785 --> 00:00:13,344 taking place October 1st through 4th at the 6 00:00:13,344 --> 00:00:15,525 luxurious Hyatt Regency Chicago. 7 00:00:15,939 --> 00:00:18,660 Picture the excitement as you collect countless business 8 00:00:18,660 --> 00:00:22,339 cards forging invaluable connections with over 25 100 9 00:00:22,339 --> 00:00:23,804 executive level attendees. 10 00:00:24,364 --> 00:00:26,605 Feel the buzz of ideas flowing as you 11 00:00:26,605 --> 00:00:29,405 engage in meaningful conversations about the future of 12 00:00:29,405 --> 00:00:30,385 healthcare technology. 13 00:00:30,925 --> 00:00:34,250 Envision yourself attending sessions led by over 415 14 00:00:35,109 --> 00:00:36,009 elite speakers 15 00:00:36,469 --> 00:00:39,049 gaining insights that could transform your organization. 16 00:00:39,509 --> 00:00:43,015 From digital transformation and telehealth to clinician burnout 17 00:00:43,015 --> 00:00:43,835 and cybersecurity, 18 00:00:44,614 --> 00:00:47,094 each topic is designed to spark new ideas 19 00:00:47,094 --> 00:00:49,894 and provide actionable takeaways, but it doesn't stop 20 00:00:49,894 --> 00:00:53,000 there. Imagine sitting in a packed auditorium listening 21 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:55,239 to motivating keynotes from some of the biggest 22 00:00:55,239 --> 00:00:58,199 names in sports. Four time Super Bowl champion, 23 00:00:58,199 --> 00:00:58,939 Rob Gronkowski, 24 00:00:59,734 --> 00:01:03,734 WNBA champion, and author, Lisa Leslie, and NFL 25 00:01:03,734 --> 00:01:04,875 legend and ESPN 26 00:01:05,254 --> 00:01:05,754 analyst, 27 00:01:06,055 --> 00:01:08,569 Eli Manning, will be there sharing their stories 28 00:01:08,569 --> 00:01:11,530 and inspiring you to reach new heights. All 29 00:01:11,530 --> 00:01:14,250 around you, the future of Health IT unfolds, 30 00:01:14,250 --> 00:01:15,789 and you're not just a spectator. 31 00:01:16,170 --> 00:01:17,789 You're an active participant. 32 00:01:18,314 --> 00:01:20,555 Don't wait. You can find the event website 33 00:01:20,555 --> 00:01:22,974 and get registered by visiting beckershospitalreview.com 34 00:01:25,114 --> 00:01:27,880 and clicking on the events page. That's the 35 00:01:27,939 --> 00:01:28,439 beckershospitalreview.com 36 00:01:30,260 --> 00:01:31,240 events page. 37 00:01:39,834 --> 00:01:41,915 This is Laura Dierda with the Becker's Health 38 00:01:41,915 --> 00:01:42,655 Care podcast. 39 00:01:42,980 --> 00:01:44,579 I'm thrilled today to be joined by Chuck 40 00:01:44,579 --> 00:01:47,219 Podesta, chief information officer at Renown Health. Chuck, 41 00:01:47,219 --> 00:01:48,260 it's a pleasure to have you on the 42 00:01:48,260 --> 00:01:49,159 podcast today. 43 00:01:50,635 --> 00:01:52,715 Thank you. Thank you very much. I'm, happy 44 00:01:52,715 --> 00:01:53,454 to be here. 45 00:01:54,394 --> 00:01:55,674 Now I know we've got a lot to 46 00:01:55,674 --> 00:01:57,650 talk about. There's so much happening in health 47 00:01:57,730 --> 00:01:59,890 care and technology right now and really, you 48 00:01:59,890 --> 00:02:01,730 know, cool things you're doing at Renown as 49 00:02:01,730 --> 00:02:03,650 well. But before we dive into our discussion, 50 00:02:03,650 --> 00:02:04,849 can you tell us a little bit more 51 00:02:04,849 --> 00:02:06,150 about yourself and your background? 52 00:02:07,784 --> 00:02:10,025 Sure. Yeah. So I've been here at Renown 53 00:02:10,025 --> 00:02:12,504 Health for about 3 years now. Started actually, 54 00:02:12,504 --> 00:02:14,425 I just had my anniversary 3 years in 55 00:02:14,425 --> 00:02:14,925 July. 56 00:02:15,360 --> 00:02:17,520 But I've been a CIO now for almost 57 00:02:17,520 --> 00:02:18,259 30 years 58 00:02:18,719 --> 00:02:19,219 and, 59 00:02:20,159 --> 00:02:22,319 and almost 40 a little over 40 years 60 00:02:22,319 --> 00:02:23,780 in health care, IT, 61 00:02:24,784 --> 00:02:26,944 in my career, and I used to introduce 62 00:02:26,944 --> 00:02:28,704 myself and say that just makes me old, 63 00:02:28,704 --> 00:02:30,784 but somebody stopped me one day and said, 64 00:02:30,784 --> 00:02:32,164 no. That makes you wise. 65 00:02:32,650 --> 00:02:35,450 So I'm gonna go with wisdom over age, 66 00:02:35,689 --> 00:02:37,870 in my introduction from now on. So, 67 00:02:38,330 --> 00:02:40,010 but the last, I would say, 15 years 68 00:02:40,010 --> 00:02:42,084 have been in academic medicine, and now at 69 00:02:42,084 --> 00:02:44,805 Renown Health, for 3 years. We're an integrated 70 00:02:44,805 --> 00:02:45,705 delivery system 71 00:02:46,164 --> 00:02:49,219 in, Northern Nevada. Also have a, we have 72 00:02:49,300 --> 00:02:51,960 2 acute care centers along with, children's hospital, 73 00:02:52,580 --> 00:02:53,479 all the ambulatory 74 00:02:53,780 --> 00:02:55,540 clinics that you would imagine that would be 75 00:02:55,540 --> 00:02:57,400 part of an integrated delivery 76 00:02:58,025 --> 00:02:59,965 network. We also have a very tight affiliation 77 00:03:00,025 --> 00:03:01,884 with University of Nevada Reno, 78 00:03:02,585 --> 00:03:04,125 School of Medicine. So, 79 00:03:04,824 --> 00:03:07,165 we are rapidly, you know, moving 80 00:03:07,569 --> 00:03:08,389 academic affiliation, 81 00:03:09,569 --> 00:03:10,449 you know, with, 82 00:03:10,849 --> 00:03:12,870 residency programs and and, 83 00:03:13,330 --> 00:03:13,830 certainly, 84 00:03:14,290 --> 00:03:17,715 focused on research activities, clinical trials, and things 85 00:03:17,715 --> 00:03:19,474 like that. So I'm excited about that since 86 00:03:19,474 --> 00:03:20,935 I I do have a background 87 00:03:21,395 --> 00:03:24,069 in academic medicine. And, you know, we are 88 00:03:24,310 --> 00:03:25,989 this is good timing for this because we 89 00:03:25,989 --> 00:03:28,789 actually are embarked on a a multiyear strategic 90 00:03:28,789 --> 00:03:31,349 planning effort, and we're actually getting towards the 91 00:03:31,349 --> 00:03:33,865 end of that, coming down to the actual 92 00:03:34,325 --> 00:03:36,425 initiatives that will start in 2025. 93 00:03:36,805 --> 00:03:37,305 So 94 00:03:37,605 --> 00:03:39,305 happy to talk about those. 95 00:03:40,199 --> 00:03:42,599 That's fantastic. Well, we can dive right in. 96 00:03:42,599 --> 00:03:44,680 What are some of the big opportunities and 97 00:03:44,680 --> 00:03:46,039 headwinds that you have your eye on right 98 00:03:46,039 --> 00:03:47,885 now? What's top of mind for you, especially 99 00:03:47,885 --> 00:03:51,085 as you mentioned, some of that strategic planning 100 00:03:51,085 --> 00:03:51,824 for the future? 101 00:03:53,245 --> 00:03:54,365 Yeah. I think it you know, it's a 102 00:03:54,444 --> 00:03:56,224 it definitely is a growth strategy, 103 00:03:57,900 --> 00:03:59,819 that that we're embarked on in serving our 104 00:03:59,819 --> 00:04:02,539 our community here in Northern Nevada. And if 105 00:04:02,539 --> 00:04:04,834 you know anything about, the Reno area, it 106 00:04:04,834 --> 00:04:06,534 is from a a population 107 00:04:07,235 --> 00:04:07,715 perspective. 108 00:04:08,275 --> 00:04:10,454 We have an influx of people from, 109 00:04:11,155 --> 00:04:13,094 a lot of different states, but, particularly 110 00:04:13,620 --> 00:04:14,360 California right now. 111 00:04:14,980 --> 00:04:15,480 So, 112 00:04:16,100 --> 00:04:17,860 every time I drive around, I see new 113 00:04:17,860 --> 00:04:19,319 housing units going up, 114 00:04:19,699 --> 00:04:20,995 and, it's really, 115 00:04:21,634 --> 00:04:24,355 the population is expanding. So we have to 116 00:04:24,355 --> 00:04:26,194 expand with that and make sure that we're 117 00:04:26,435 --> 00:04:28,915 we have facilities available in in the various 118 00:04:28,915 --> 00:04:31,589 areas of Northern Nevada that serve our patients, 119 00:04:32,370 --> 00:04:34,850 and community. We also have a a large 120 00:04:34,850 --> 00:04:36,710 rural population as you can imagine, 121 00:04:37,154 --> 00:04:39,095 with a lot of critical access hospitals, 122 00:04:39,795 --> 00:04:40,514 that we, 123 00:04:41,475 --> 00:04:43,634 work closely with as well. So that needs 124 00:04:43,634 --> 00:04:45,654 to be part of the strategy. I think 125 00:04:45,879 --> 00:04:47,800 in in just to name a few areas 126 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:49,740 we're focused on, I think this will mirror 127 00:04:50,279 --> 00:04:52,120 a lot of what's happening with health care, 128 00:04:52,199 --> 00:04:53,500 you know, across the 129 00:04:54,120 --> 00:04:55,020 United States 130 00:04:55,634 --> 00:04:56,694 right now is, 131 00:04:57,474 --> 00:04:59,414 so in areas of virtual care, 132 00:04:59,954 --> 00:05:01,394 you know, which a lot of that started 133 00:05:01,394 --> 00:05:02,214 with COVID 134 00:05:02,810 --> 00:05:04,649 and kind of petered out a little bit, 135 00:05:04,889 --> 00:05:07,050 post post COVID. Although, I don't know if 136 00:05:07,050 --> 00:05:08,589 I can say post COVID because, 137 00:05:09,129 --> 00:05:10,430 COVID's here to stay. 138 00:05:10,995 --> 00:05:13,254 But things like, you know, telehealth, telemedicine, 139 00:05:13,794 --> 00:05:14,854 hospital home, 140 00:05:15,634 --> 00:05:17,474 virtual nursing, all those things come under kind 141 00:05:17,474 --> 00:05:18,694 of a virtual care 142 00:05:19,240 --> 00:05:19,740 umbrella. 143 00:05:20,360 --> 00:05:21,900 And as organizations, 144 00:05:23,080 --> 00:05:23,580 move 145 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:26,620 more towards a a value based care 146 00:05:27,134 --> 00:05:28,035 model versus 147 00:05:28,495 --> 00:05:30,914 fee for service. These types of 148 00:05:31,214 --> 00:05:33,694 technologies and initiatives come into play, and that's, 149 00:05:34,014 --> 00:05:36,449 no different here. But now we also I 150 00:05:36,449 --> 00:05:37,990 I should have mentioned, we also have, 151 00:05:39,330 --> 00:05:41,509 an insurance company, Hometown Health. 152 00:05:41,810 --> 00:05:43,110 So we are in the 153 00:05:43,490 --> 00:05:45,955 payer space as well, and we do have 154 00:05:46,095 --> 00:05:48,975 value based care models for some of our 155 00:05:48,975 --> 00:05:51,134 patients. So we have to look at these 156 00:05:51,134 --> 00:05:53,214 type of virtual care strategies to help in 157 00:05:53,214 --> 00:05:55,319 that area. But also from a rural care 158 00:05:55,319 --> 00:05:57,819 perspective, when you think of telehealth and telemedicine 159 00:05:58,040 --> 00:06:00,439 expanding out into those areas, it certainly makes 160 00:06:00,439 --> 00:06:01,740 a lot of sense. So 161 00:06:02,985 --> 00:06:05,145 I know that's something that's being discussed, you 162 00:06:05,145 --> 00:06:06,745 know, across the country. A lot of, 163 00:06:07,305 --> 00:06:09,545 organization already moved in that direction. We're going 164 00:06:09,545 --> 00:06:11,550 there as well. And I would say the 165 00:06:11,550 --> 00:06:13,250 next thing is data analytics. 166 00:06:14,509 --> 00:06:15,490 We hear that 167 00:06:16,269 --> 00:06:17,730 across all of health care. 168 00:06:18,615 --> 00:06:20,214 That will be the engine, I think, that 169 00:06:20,214 --> 00:06:23,115 drives everything. You've gotta have quality data 170 00:06:23,495 --> 00:06:25,654 to do a lot of different things, you 171 00:06:25,654 --> 00:06:27,035 know, when it comes to 172 00:06:27,379 --> 00:06:29,000 looking at personalized medicine, 173 00:06:30,180 --> 00:06:32,740 certainly disease outbreaks. We learned that from our 174 00:06:32,740 --> 00:06:33,639 COVID experience. 175 00:06:34,660 --> 00:06:36,920 Operational efficiencies within the organization 176 00:06:37,284 --> 00:06:38,664 itself, patient experience, 177 00:06:39,524 --> 00:06:40,264 and safety. 178 00:06:40,724 --> 00:06:43,224 You know, data analytics plays a huge role, 179 00:06:44,004 --> 00:06:46,404 in all of those areas. And, of course, 180 00:06:46,404 --> 00:06:46,680 with 181 00:06:47,479 --> 00:06:49,819 the buzzwords now with AI and ML, 182 00:06:50,839 --> 00:06:51,339 without 183 00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:53,660 a solid data analytics program, 184 00:06:54,785 --> 00:06:57,584 you can't really venture into the AI ML 185 00:06:57,584 --> 00:06:58,725 space without it. 186 00:06:59,264 --> 00:07:00,964 So that's big. Interoperability, 187 00:07:01,425 --> 00:07:03,319 again, again, the government's got involved in that 188 00:07:03,319 --> 00:07:05,000 as well and and requiring a lot of 189 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:05,500 interoperability 190 00:07:05,879 --> 00:07:06,860 between systems. 191 00:07:07,480 --> 00:07:08,939 Lots of challenges there. 192 00:07:09,645 --> 00:07:12,004 But from a coordination of care aspect, you 193 00:07:12,004 --> 00:07:13,404 you really need to be able to move 194 00:07:13,404 --> 00:07:13,904 information 195 00:07:14,285 --> 00:07:16,285 in and out of your electronic health records 196 00:07:16,285 --> 00:07:17,585 in a seamless fashion 197 00:07:18,039 --> 00:07:19,659 to a variety of other systems, 198 00:07:20,519 --> 00:07:22,599 both within your organization, but outside of your 199 00:07:22,599 --> 00:07:23,819 organization as well. 200 00:07:24,519 --> 00:07:26,915 I mentioned briefly AI machine learning. That's, 201 00:07:27,555 --> 00:07:28,615 without question, 202 00:07:28,995 --> 00:07:31,475 probably the biggest thing that's going to impact 203 00:07:31,475 --> 00:07:33,735 health care in the next 5 years 204 00:07:34,610 --> 00:07:35,110 around. 205 00:07:36,209 --> 00:07:37,490 Right now, it's you know, a lot of 206 00:07:37,490 --> 00:07:40,229 it's focused on administrative processes, which is great, 207 00:07:41,250 --> 00:07:44,214 saving people time, productivity, things like that. 208 00:07:44,514 --> 00:07:47,235 But we're also getting into diagnostics and treatment 209 00:07:47,235 --> 00:07:49,735 plans and things like that, going forward. 210 00:07:50,194 --> 00:07:52,214 Research will also be big in the space. 211 00:07:52,979 --> 00:07:53,939 Wearable tech, which, 212 00:07:54,659 --> 00:07:56,839 has been around for for quite a while, 213 00:07:57,379 --> 00:07:58,279 but it's getting, 214 00:07:59,379 --> 00:08:01,300 I think a little more play post COVID 215 00:08:01,300 --> 00:08:02,805 as well as part of the tide of 216 00:08:02,805 --> 00:08:05,785 virtual care, hospital or home. Also, the technology, 217 00:08:05,845 --> 00:08:07,144 I think, has caught up a bit. 218 00:08:07,925 --> 00:08:09,785 Better technology, better wearables. 219 00:08:10,790 --> 00:08:11,769 I think the focus, 220 00:08:12,790 --> 00:08:14,709 for us and and and others from what 221 00:08:14,709 --> 00:08:17,430 I'm hearing is is that continuous monitoring of 222 00:08:17,430 --> 00:08:19,269 chronic diseases will be big. If you think 223 00:08:19,269 --> 00:08:21,654 about, you know, chronic diseases like, 224 00:08:22,375 --> 00:08:22,954 like diabetes, 225 00:08:23,735 --> 00:08:24,235 COPD, 226 00:08:25,254 --> 00:08:26,474 congestive heart failure, 227 00:08:27,414 --> 00:08:29,595 things like that, those are the highest cost 228 00:08:30,139 --> 00:08:32,399 diseases that states that are out there. 229 00:08:32,700 --> 00:08:35,100 And so continuous monitoring of those, I think, 230 00:08:35,100 --> 00:08:36,080 gives us a 231 00:08:36,620 --> 00:08:39,325 window into what's happening to those patients, but 232 00:08:39,325 --> 00:08:40,304 also allows us to intervene 233 00:08:40,924 --> 00:08:42,285 in lower cost settings, 234 00:08:42,684 --> 00:08:44,684 for them and hopefully drive the cost down. 235 00:08:44,684 --> 00:08:45,745 So that will be, 236 00:08:46,365 --> 00:08:48,529 I think you'll see wearable tech kick off 237 00:08:48,529 --> 00:08:49,669 more than it has. 238 00:08:50,529 --> 00:08:51,909 And then certainly cybersecurity, 239 00:08:53,490 --> 00:08:55,570 you know, that's we every time we turn 240 00:08:55,570 --> 00:08:56,870 around, we just had a, 241 00:08:57,335 --> 00:08:59,174 the issue with Change Healthcare. That was the 242 00:08:59,174 --> 00:08:59,995 biggest thing, 243 00:09:00,695 --> 00:09:02,375 I would think in the past year, but 244 00:09:02,375 --> 00:09:04,235 also variety of other ransomware 245 00:09:04,695 --> 00:09:07,190 attacks that have taken place. I think one 246 00:09:07,190 --> 00:09:08,629 of the technologies that you're gonna hear more 247 00:09:08,629 --> 00:09:09,529 about is blockchain. 248 00:09:10,549 --> 00:09:12,330 It's been around for quite a while, 249 00:09:13,884 --> 00:09:16,384 and used in, like, claims processing 250 00:09:16,764 --> 00:09:19,485 and some other types of applications. But I 251 00:09:19,485 --> 00:09:21,715 think, securing patient data, it's it's gonna have 252 00:09:21,715 --> 00:09:22,784 a role just 253 00:09:23,210 --> 00:09:25,210 based on the way it's architected. And I 254 00:09:25,210 --> 00:09:26,889 know a lot of companies are starting to 255 00:09:26,889 --> 00:09:28,809 look at that, and I think that that 256 00:09:28,809 --> 00:09:30,649 will play a role for us. And in 257 00:09:30,649 --> 00:09:32,730 cloud computing, you've gotta have a strategy around 258 00:09:32,730 --> 00:09:33,115 that 259 00:09:33,674 --> 00:09:34,334 as well, 260 00:09:35,754 --> 00:09:37,595 just to be able to be scalable in 261 00:09:37,595 --> 00:09:39,294 your technology as you're implementing, 262 00:09:39,754 --> 00:09:40,815 the different applications. 263 00:09:41,819 --> 00:09:44,639 But, you know, there's risks associated with that, 264 00:09:45,019 --> 00:09:46,480 as well as we all know, 265 00:09:47,419 --> 00:09:50,305 with the, you know, the various cloud type 266 00:09:50,305 --> 00:09:51,764 systems that have gone down, 267 00:09:52,865 --> 00:09:55,205 and, you know, with the change health care 268 00:09:55,345 --> 00:09:56,325 issue and, 269 00:09:57,425 --> 00:09:58,485 merger and acquisitions 270 00:09:58,865 --> 00:10:00,309 in in the industry, 271 00:10:00,930 --> 00:10:02,710 it's very difficult to have 272 00:10:03,490 --> 00:10:05,190 backup plans. And so, 273 00:10:05,649 --> 00:10:06,629 you need to have, 274 00:10:07,105 --> 00:10:08,725 you know, some sort of business continuity 275 00:10:09,105 --> 00:10:11,845 tied to, that cloud computing. So, 276 00:10:12,785 --> 00:10:13,684 lots of challenges, 277 00:10:14,465 --> 00:10:15,684 I can touch on, 278 00:10:16,110 --> 00:10:17,889 you know, the data security 279 00:10:18,429 --> 00:10:19,329 and and privacy's, 280 00:10:20,029 --> 00:10:21,329 on everybody's mind. 281 00:10:22,029 --> 00:10:22,690 Right now, 282 00:10:23,470 --> 00:10:24,704 I talked about interoperability 283 00:10:25,245 --> 00:10:27,485 and just, there's just so many diverse systems 284 00:10:27,485 --> 00:10:29,964 out there and moving data around. Again, that's 285 00:10:29,964 --> 00:10:31,985 a data security issue as well. 286 00:10:32,570 --> 00:10:35,389 Regulatory compliance, I think that just will increase 287 00:10:35,610 --> 00:10:37,070 and become more complex, 288 00:10:38,170 --> 00:10:40,570 as we go forward, especially with AI and 289 00:10:40,570 --> 00:10:41,070 ML. 290 00:10:42,705 --> 00:10:45,105 That that will add cost certainly to an 291 00:10:45,105 --> 00:10:45,605 organization, 292 00:10:46,065 --> 00:10:47,125 especially to IT. 293 00:10:48,065 --> 00:10:49,960 The implementation costs as well, I think are 294 00:10:49,960 --> 00:10:51,080 gonna be a challenge to a lot of 295 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:52,059 these new technologies. 296 00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:53,980 When you think about cybersecurity, 297 00:10:55,240 --> 00:10:57,559 I'm seeing some statistics around, you know, the 298 00:10:57,559 --> 00:10:58,059 average 299 00:10:59,184 --> 00:11:01,105 budget for cyber is 4 to 6 percent 300 00:11:01,105 --> 00:11:03,365 of the total IT spend in an organization. 301 00:11:04,544 --> 00:11:07,264 That's going up to a 7 7 to 302 00:11:07,264 --> 00:11:08,404 10% spend. 303 00:11:09,570 --> 00:11:10,070 So, 304 00:11:10,450 --> 00:11:12,289 you know, does your IT budget go up 305 00:11:12,289 --> 00:11:13,889 to account for that, or do you have 306 00:11:13,889 --> 00:11:15,990 to make cuts in other areas? 307 00:11:16,625 --> 00:11:17,924 So that's gonna be interesting. 308 00:11:18,384 --> 00:11:20,485 And also the impact on smaller providers, 309 00:11:21,105 --> 00:11:22,164 they can't afford 310 00:11:22,784 --> 00:11:24,919 a lot of these technologies. So, you know, 311 00:11:24,919 --> 00:11:26,440 what are we gonna do in in those 312 00:11:26,440 --> 00:11:28,379 spaces as well, and how can we help? 313 00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:31,720 Training challenges, you know, the user adoption of 314 00:11:31,720 --> 00:11:34,120 these new technologies, I think, are is gonna 315 00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:34,620 be 316 00:11:35,225 --> 00:11:36,845 interesting. And how do we train, 317 00:11:37,945 --> 00:11:40,924 especially our clinician clinicians to use these technologies 318 00:11:43,600 --> 00:11:45,539 in in a patient care settings. 319 00:11:46,320 --> 00:11:48,559 Data management and the quality of that data, 320 00:11:48,559 --> 00:11:50,820 that's key. As I said, that's gonna drive, 321 00:11:52,295 --> 00:11:53,995 especially the AI and ML 322 00:11:54,774 --> 00:11:56,554 aspects of of what we do. 323 00:11:58,295 --> 00:12:00,215 Just AI if we just touch on AI 324 00:12:00,215 --> 00:12:02,279 and ML just a bit too. You know, 325 00:12:02,279 --> 00:12:03,660 you're hearing a lot about 326 00:12:05,320 --> 00:12:07,899 security around that as well, but also 327 00:12:08,415 --> 00:12:10,995 the ethical use of of that technology 328 00:12:12,095 --> 00:12:14,975 and things like algorithm bias. And and, so 329 00:12:14,975 --> 00:12:16,254 those are the things we're gonna have to 330 00:12:16,254 --> 00:12:16,915 be really 331 00:12:17,389 --> 00:12:18,670 careful and watch over, 332 00:12:19,070 --> 00:12:21,550 as you implement those types of technologies as 333 00:12:21,550 --> 00:12:22,050 well. 334 00:12:22,509 --> 00:12:24,110 And then we've got a bunch of legacy 335 00:12:24,110 --> 00:12:25,245 systems sitting out there. 336 00:12:26,044 --> 00:12:27,164 We gotta figure out what to do with 337 00:12:27,164 --> 00:12:28,445 those. A lot of them fit. A lot 338 00:12:28,445 --> 00:12:28,924 of them don't. 339 00:12:29,804 --> 00:12:32,225 Again, costs associated with doing that. So, 340 00:12:32,960 --> 00:12:34,720 I would say that, you know, from my 341 00:12:34,720 --> 00:12:36,960 standpoint, when we look at the initiatives here, 342 00:12:36,960 --> 00:12:38,639 right now, and I think across the country 343 00:12:38,639 --> 00:12:39,139 that, 344 00:12:39,600 --> 00:12:41,779 probably gives you a pretty good summary of 345 00:12:42,264 --> 00:12:44,585 where we're heading, but also, you know, some 346 00:12:44,585 --> 00:12:46,664 of the challenges involved in it. So I'll 347 00:12:46,664 --> 00:12:47,884 stop there for a minute. 348 00:12:48,664 --> 00:12:50,764 Yeah. Yeah. No. That was a fascinating overview. 349 00:12:50,960 --> 00:12:53,519 Think especially you mentioning just so many different 350 00:12:53,519 --> 00:12:54,419 areas, whether 351 00:12:54,799 --> 00:12:56,639 it's virtual care and looking at how, you 352 00:12:56,639 --> 00:12:59,299 know, that strategy will continue to evolve as, 353 00:12:59,924 --> 00:13:02,424 value based care becomes more prominent and then 354 00:13:02,565 --> 00:13:06,264 talking through artificial intelligence, machine learning, and data 355 00:13:06,539 --> 00:13:09,279 analytics infrastructure that health systems need. I know 356 00:13:09,340 --> 00:13:11,340 a lot of organizations across the country are 357 00:13:11,340 --> 00:13:13,455 in various stages of trying to figure out 358 00:13:13,535 --> 00:13:15,375 what makes the most sense for them, what 359 00:13:15,375 --> 00:13:18,195 investments are are gonna be primary. And, 360 00:13:18,654 --> 00:13:21,389 the most important is they're evolving their organizations, 361 00:13:21,870 --> 00:13:24,029 to really incorporate those tools in a meaningful 362 00:13:24,029 --> 00:13:26,429 way. And then the security piece of it 363 00:13:26,429 --> 00:13:28,850 too. Yeah. I think it's just so fascinating, 364 00:13:29,309 --> 00:13:31,735 to try to pin down, you know, how 365 00:13:31,735 --> 00:13:32,394 you can 366 00:13:33,335 --> 00:13:35,514 continue to build out and create these systems, 367 00:13:36,215 --> 00:13:38,554 that are also then secure and the partnerships 368 00:13:38,615 --> 00:13:41,190 that are going to be most beneficial while 369 00:13:41,190 --> 00:13:41,690 also 370 00:13:42,070 --> 00:13:43,210 understanding the risks, 371 00:13:43,669 --> 00:13:45,509 that are are clearly out there no matter 372 00:13:45,509 --> 00:13:46,764 who your partner is or, 373 00:13:47,725 --> 00:13:48,524 how, you know, 374 00:13:49,004 --> 00:13:50,845 secure it seems at the moment. So I 375 00:13:50,845 --> 00:13:52,285 think it's just been fascinating to hear you 376 00:13:52,285 --> 00:13:54,065 talk about some of those different areas, 377 00:13:55,089 --> 00:13:56,070 in really highlighting 378 00:13:56,529 --> 00:13:57,889 what's top of mind for you. 379 00:13:58,929 --> 00:14:01,250 So that's been really interesting to hear. When 380 00:14:01,250 --> 00:14:03,565 you think about just, you know, that continued 381 00:14:03,565 --> 00:14:06,445 growth, talking about wanting to grow both in 382 00:14:06,445 --> 00:14:08,065 the urban as well as rural setting, 383 00:14:08,445 --> 00:14:11,264 and then obviously add value to Renown overall, 384 00:14:12,410 --> 00:14:14,170 How do you think about that? What's really, 385 00:14:14,649 --> 00:14:16,410 how do those things play together? And then 386 00:14:16,410 --> 00:14:18,009 I I know every helped your dollar is 387 00:14:18,009 --> 00:14:19,384 precious. So how do you, 388 00:14:20,024 --> 00:14:22,665 make sure that as you're growing and making 389 00:14:22,665 --> 00:14:25,065 the right IT investments, you can really show 390 00:14:25,065 --> 00:14:25,804 that return? 391 00:14:27,040 --> 00:14:28,879 Yeah. So I it's a great question. I 392 00:14:28,879 --> 00:14:30,879 mean, you have to be careful because, you 393 00:14:30,879 --> 00:14:32,480 know, you depending on the size of the 394 00:14:32,480 --> 00:14:34,340 organization, you know, you 395 00:14:35,835 --> 00:14:37,615 you can only do so much. Right? 396 00:14:38,875 --> 00:14:41,835 You from a financing standpoint, depending on what 397 00:14:41,835 --> 00:14:44,394 your, you know, your bottom line is, what 398 00:14:44,394 --> 00:14:46,350 you look like s and p, if you're 399 00:14:46,350 --> 00:14:49,149 gonna do debt financing, and what your capital 400 00:14:49,149 --> 00:14:50,750 spends can be. And and, of course, you 401 00:14:50,750 --> 00:14:52,269 have your, you know, your keep the lights 402 00:14:52,269 --> 00:14:53,490 on types of spend. 403 00:14:54,784 --> 00:14:56,705 Every year, you've got to keep your medical 404 00:14:56,705 --> 00:14:59,264 equipment up, new medical equipment coming in certainly 405 00:14:59,264 --> 00:15:02,404 in the IT space around networks and infrastructure. 406 00:15:02,784 --> 00:15:04,519 So you've got all these other costs that 407 00:15:04,519 --> 00:15:06,039 you have to make sure that you account 408 00:15:06,039 --> 00:15:07,980 for before you can do the growth strategies. 409 00:15:08,839 --> 00:15:10,940 So you really gotta focus in on, 410 00:15:11,504 --> 00:15:13,664 you know, what what can you what, you 411 00:15:13,664 --> 00:15:14,944 know, what do you wanna be when you 412 00:15:14,944 --> 00:15:17,904 grow up, but also what what can you 413 00:15:17,904 --> 00:15:19,745 be and what you can't be, right, you 414 00:15:19,745 --> 00:15:20,804 know, based on 415 00:15:21,110 --> 00:15:23,529 where you are from a financial perspective. So 416 00:15:23,670 --> 00:15:25,430 you gotta take that all that into account, 417 00:15:25,430 --> 00:15:27,269 and and we're doing that that here as 418 00:15:27,269 --> 00:15:28,970 well. But you can there's some medication 419 00:15:29,875 --> 00:15:31,815 strategies around some of this that 420 00:15:32,195 --> 00:15:34,215 can help you make the right investments, 421 00:15:35,154 --> 00:15:35,975 going forward 422 00:15:36,514 --> 00:15:38,115 and not try to be all things to 423 00:15:38,115 --> 00:15:38,615 everybody. 424 00:15:40,610 --> 00:15:42,129 And and one of them is is around 425 00:15:42,129 --> 00:15:43,889 if you think about the IT, some of 426 00:15:43,889 --> 00:15:44,389 these, 427 00:15:44,929 --> 00:15:47,284 technologies I talked about is is to really 428 00:15:47,284 --> 00:15:48,664 have a pilot mentality 429 00:15:49,365 --> 00:15:51,784 on everything that you do. So, you know, 430 00:15:51,845 --> 00:15:53,144 don't go all in and 431 00:15:53,580 --> 00:15:55,019 and and really look at the size of 432 00:15:55,019 --> 00:15:57,659 your organization. You know? Most of health care 433 00:15:57,659 --> 00:16:00,299 is not Mayo and Cleveland Clinic and and 434 00:16:00,299 --> 00:16:02,675 Stanford's of the world. Right? Most of health 435 00:16:02,675 --> 00:16:05,575 care is is renowned and smaller. And so 436 00:16:05,795 --> 00:16:07,715 you have to be very careful. You know, 437 00:16:07,715 --> 00:16:09,955 you hear the term chasing, you know, shiny 438 00:16:09,955 --> 00:16:12,379 bright objects all the time. And I I 439 00:16:12,379 --> 00:16:13,160 think CIOs, 440 00:16:13,700 --> 00:16:15,480 a lot of ways, fall into that trap, 441 00:16:15,700 --> 00:16:18,100 especially younger CIOs trying to build up their 442 00:16:18,100 --> 00:16:21,105 their careers and resumes and and 443 00:16:22,044 --> 00:16:22,544 and 444 00:16:23,565 --> 00:16:25,084 and and going for that, you know, kind 445 00:16:25,084 --> 00:16:27,024 of bleeding edge next best thing. 446 00:16:28,204 --> 00:16:30,384 And you gotta be very careful about that 447 00:16:30,670 --> 00:16:32,690 because you can make a break, an organization, 448 00:16:33,710 --> 00:16:36,430 by making the wrong decision on some of 449 00:16:36,430 --> 00:16:39,074 these newer technologies. So I I urge a 450 00:16:39,074 --> 00:16:40,434 lot of CIOs. I do a lot of 451 00:16:40,434 --> 00:16:40,934 mentoring, 452 00:16:41,315 --> 00:16:44,355 that, you know, be very careful about chasing 453 00:16:44,355 --> 00:16:46,454 those shiny bright objects to build your resume 454 00:16:46,659 --> 00:16:48,600 on the backs of the of the organization 455 00:16:49,220 --> 00:16:50,279 that you work for 456 00:16:51,299 --> 00:16:53,139 and really focus on doing the right thing 457 00:16:53,139 --> 00:16:54,980 for the organization. And that will build your 458 00:16:54,980 --> 00:16:57,565 career, not the shiny bright objects. So 459 00:16:57,945 --> 00:16:58,605 the piloting, 460 00:16:58,985 --> 00:17:00,585 and the and the strategy we have here 461 00:17:00,585 --> 00:17:02,585 at Renown is really to see what the 462 00:17:02,585 --> 00:17:04,880 mayos of the world are doing in the 463 00:17:04,880 --> 00:17:07,360 Stanford. I want them to be chasing those 464 00:17:07,360 --> 00:17:07,860 objects. 465 00:17:08,480 --> 00:17:10,640 I want them to be innovative and doing 466 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:12,454 all that work, And then I wanna stay 467 00:17:12,454 --> 00:17:14,315 close to what they're doing and and 468 00:17:14,615 --> 00:17:16,554 see and and see what works 469 00:17:16,855 --> 00:17:18,855 and what and more importantly, what doesn't work 470 00:17:18,855 --> 00:17:20,839 so I don't fall into that trap. And 471 00:17:20,839 --> 00:17:23,339 then pilot the things that that do work, 472 00:17:23,960 --> 00:17:25,720 or look like they work. And and that's 473 00:17:25,720 --> 00:17:27,410 what we're doing here. We're not afraid of, 474 00:17:28,264 --> 00:17:30,264 some of the newer technologies. We're doing some 475 00:17:30,264 --> 00:17:31,244 things in ambient 476 00:17:31,704 --> 00:17:34,024 listening with our providers that's, 477 00:17:34,744 --> 00:17:36,990 that has a lot of promise rolling that 478 00:17:36,990 --> 00:17:38,210 out right now on, 479 00:17:39,150 --> 00:17:42,369 around clinical content and and productivity for our 480 00:17:42,509 --> 00:17:44,210 our providers and and also, 481 00:17:45,365 --> 00:17:46,404 some virtual nursing, 482 00:17:46,805 --> 00:17:48,644 piloting that we have. But, again, these are 483 00:17:48,644 --> 00:17:49,144 not, 484 00:17:49,845 --> 00:17:50,345 companies 485 00:17:50,724 --> 00:17:51,224 that 486 00:17:52,140 --> 00:17:52,640 are, 487 00:17:53,019 --> 00:17:55,500 just on the market. They've been working with 488 00:17:55,500 --> 00:17:56,320 other organizations, 489 00:17:56,779 --> 00:17:59,599 so we're following that lead. That's okay, 490 00:18:00,059 --> 00:18:00,720 to do. 491 00:18:01,855 --> 00:18:03,455 As a CIO, you don't need to be 492 00:18:03,455 --> 00:18:05,234 on that that leading edge, 493 00:18:06,174 --> 00:18:07,615 unless you do work for, 494 00:18:07,934 --> 00:18:10,130 Aimeo or a Cleveland Clinic or those types 495 00:18:10,210 --> 00:18:10,789 of organizations. 496 00:18:11,170 --> 00:18:11,670 So 497 00:18:12,210 --> 00:18:13,829 so, again, following others, 498 00:18:14,210 --> 00:18:16,710 focus on data quality and security in everything 499 00:18:16,769 --> 00:18:19,734 that you do. Right? So whatever these pilots 500 00:18:19,734 --> 00:18:22,134 are, whether this new technology is, you've gotta 501 00:18:22,134 --> 00:18:24,234 have a data quality program around that, 502 00:18:24,535 --> 00:18:26,535 and you've gotta have a security program around 503 00:18:26,535 --> 00:18:27,670 that as well. 504 00:18:27,990 --> 00:18:29,509 You also have to be able to train. 505 00:18:29,509 --> 00:18:31,910 Right? You've got all these, for example, using 506 00:18:31,910 --> 00:18:33,509 a you've got physicians using, 507 00:18:33,910 --> 00:18:34,410 ambient 508 00:18:34,924 --> 00:18:36,765 listening technology with their patients. How do you 509 00:18:36,765 --> 00:18:38,924 train for that? How do you train IT 510 00:18:38,924 --> 00:18:40,605 to support it? What kind of staff do 511 00:18:40,605 --> 00:18:42,625 you need? So your workforce evaluation 512 00:18:42,924 --> 00:18:45,759 involved in that is super important. And then 513 00:18:45,759 --> 00:18:48,799 the continuous monitoring and evaluation, you know, auditing 514 00:18:48,799 --> 00:18:49,539 your programs, 515 00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:51,539 monitoring your programs, 516 00:18:52,105 --> 00:18:54,424 things that are working continue, things that are 517 00:18:54,424 --> 00:18:55,325 not stop 518 00:18:55,704 --> 00:18:58,105 before they do get too expensive, and just 519 00:18:58,105 --> 00:19:00,904 the evaluation, the constant evaluation of that going 520 00:19:00,904 --> 00:19:02,670 forward. So I think if you put those 521 00:19:02,670 --> 00:19:03,890 kind of mitigation 522 00:19:04,590 --> 00:19:07,390 strategies together around all the you know, whether 523 00:19:07,390 --> 00:19:09,764 it's virtual care, whether data analytics, whether it's 524 00:19:09,764 --> 00:19:10,264 interoperability, 525 00:19:10,724 --> 00:19:12,724 AI, you know, wearable tech. We talked about 526 00:19:12,724 --> 00:19:13,865 all these things, cyber. 527 00:19:14,565 --> 00:19:16,264 If you add in, you know, the piloting, 528 00:19:17,289 --> 00:19:19,529 focus on data quality and security, train, train, 529 00:19:19,529 --> 00:19:20,190 train, train, 530 00:19:20,650 --> 00:19:23,529 continuous monitoring evaluation of every single one of 531 00:19:23,529 --> 00:19:24,029 those, 532 00:19:24,875 --> 00:19:26,634 then you have a, you know, a high 533 00:19:26,634 --> 00:19:27,934 likelihood of success, 534 00:19:28,634 --> 00:19:29,695 in those areas. 535 00:19:30,154 --> 00:19:32,795 If you don't put those mitigation strategies in 536 00:19:32,795 --> 00:19:33,295 place, 537 00:19:34,119 --> 00:19:35,880 then there's a lot of risk involved with 538 00:19:35,880 --> 00:19:37,799 a lot of these newer technologies that are 539 00:19:37,799 --> 00:19:39,559 coming out, and you could end up in 540 00:19:39,559 --> 00:19:41,500 a situation of, you know, spending 541 00:19:42,174 --> 00:19:44,174 money that, you know, you don't have in 542 00:19:44,174 --> 00:19:45,795 an organization on things 543 00:19:46,335 --> 00:19:47,555 that don't actually work. 544 00:19:48,335 --> 00:19:50,515 So so that's that's super important. 545 00:19:51,710 --> 00:19:53,069 That makes a lot of sense. You know, 546 00:19:53,069 --> 00:19:55,230 it's great advice. I think with our last 547 00:19:55,230 --> 00:19:56,829 minute or 2 here, I was wondering if 548 00:19:56,829 --> 00:19:58,269 you could talk about where you see some 549 00:19:58,269 --> 00:20:00,269 of the best opportunities to grow in the 550 00:20:00,269 --> 00:20:01,154 future. What's, 551 00:20:01,634 --> 00:20:03,234 do you see as being really the space 552 00:20:03,234 --> 00:20:03,734 where, 553 00:20:04,195 --> 00:20:06,595 leaders, CIOs, and other health care executives should 554 00:20:06,595 --> 00:20:07,335 lean in? 555 00:20:08,339 --> 00:20:11,140 Mhmm. I I think the biggest the biggest 556 00:20:11,140 --> 00:20:12,820 thing, and we we've already talked about it, 557 00:20:12,820 --> 00:20:13,559 is AI, 558 00:20:14,259 --> 00:20:14,759 AIML 559 00:20:15,140 --> 00:20:16,980 and everything that goes with it, whether you're 560 00:20:16,980 --> 00:20:17,799 talking about 561 00:20:18,244 --> 00:20:20,325 ambient technologies and the things that are kind 562 00:20:20,325 --> 00:20:21,704 of offshoots from that, 563 00:20:22,325 --> 00:20:24,325 along with the, you know, certainly the data 564 00:20:24,325 --> 00:20:26,880 analytics play that goes with that. Because if 565 00:20:26,880 --> 00:20:28,640 you think about it in the next 5 566 00:20:28,640 --> 00:20:29,140 years, 567 00:20:29,839 --> 00:20:31,759 you know, you think about 5 years ago, 568 00:20:31,759 --> 00:20:34,559 what we were doing with AIML even maybe 569 00:20:34,559 --> 00:20:35,539 3 years ago, 570 00:20:36,025 --> 00:20:38,585 and and where what we've done just in 571 00:20:38,585 --> 00:20:40,345 the past couple of years and and where 572 00:20:40,345 --> 00:20:42,904 that whole technology is going. And I know 573 00:20:42,904 --> 00:20:45,070 there's there's certainly a lot of challenges with 574 00:20:45,070 --> 00:20:47,549 it. We talked about the the ethical aspects 575 00:20:47,549 --> 00:20:48,610 of it, safety, 576 00:20:50,964 --> 00:20:52,804 algorithm bias, and things like that that all 577 00:20:52,804 --> 00:20:54,004 need to be worked out. And there's a 578 00:20:54,004 --> 00:20:56,964 lot of organizations, you know, IEEE and some 579 00:20:56,964 --> 00:20:59,329 others that are and even government organizations that 580 00:20:59,329 --> 00:21:00,950 are focusing on that. So 581 00:21:01,329 --> 00:21:01,990 I'm hopeful, 582 00:21:02,609 --> 00:21:04,630 that we, you know, put 583 00:21:05,025 --> 00:21:06,865 a fence around this thing so that we 584 00:21:06,944 --> 00:21:08,565 we're using it in the right way. 585 00:21:08,865 --> 00:21:11,265 But when you think about it, gosh, it 586 00:21:11,265 --> 00:21:12,304 it has the biggest, 587 00:21:12,704 --> 00:21:14,549 impact, I think. You know, when you think 588 00:21:14,549 --> 00:21:16,490 about personalized medicine, right, 589 00:21:16,950 --> 00:21:19,909 and AI and ML impact on personalized medicine, 590 00:21:19,909 --> 00:21:20,809 predictive analytics 591 00:21:21,284 --> 00:21:23,704 and helping clinicians do the right thing for 592 00:21:23,845 --> 00:21:24,904 for their patients, 593 00:21:25,204 --> 00:21:27,384 a huge impact in that area as well. 594 00:21:27,444 --> 00:21:29,065 And you can't forget about research. 595 00:21:30,679 --> 00:21:33,819 AI and ML will play in accelerating research 596 00:21:34,200 --> 00:21:36,059 and getting, you know, pharmaceuticals, 597 00:21:36,440 --> 00:21:38,059 you know, to the market faster, 598 00:21:38,474 --> 00:21:40,575 getting different types of procedures and care 599 00:21:40,954 --> 00:21:43,375 to the market faster back into health care 600 00:21:43,595 --> 00:21:45,775 in a translational way that can be used 601 00:21:46,369 --> 00:21:47,829 a lot faster than, 602 00:21:48,210 --> 00:21:50,150 you know, when you think about the timelines 603 00:21:50,210 --> 00:21:51,349 for research from 604 00:21:51,650 --> 00:21:54,069 beginning basic research to be able to use 605 00:21:54,355 --> 00:21:55,955 whatever comes out of that is like 13 606 00:21:55,955 --> 00:21:57,974 to 15 years same with drugs 607 00:21:58,515 --> 00:22:01,555 and imagine shortening that down to 3 or 608 00:22:01,555 --> 00:22:03,819 4 or 5 years what the impact of 609 00:22:03,819 --> 00:22:05,339 that is gonna be to health care, 610 00:22:06,299 --> 00:22:07,279 you know, across 611 00:22:07,740 --> 00:22:10,139 the across the United States. So to me 612 00:22:10,139 --> 00:22:11,875 that that is where 613 00:22:12,575 --> 00:22:13,234 the focus, 614 00:22:14,255 --> 00:22:16,654 needs to be. And, again, all these other 615 00:22:16,654 --> 00:22:17,795 things I've talked about 616 00:22:18,575 --> 00:22:20,434 aren't of less importance, but 617 00:22:21,279 --> 00:22:23,519 need to, you know, be shored up so 618 00:22:23,519 --> 00:22:24,900 that we can focus on, 619 00:22:25,519 --> 00:22:27,779 some of these other, you know, bigger technologies. 620 00:22:27,839 --> 00:22:28,579 And, again, 621 00:22:29,365 --> 00:22:31,684 again, when we think about AIML too, it's 622 00:22:31,684 --> 00:22:32,585 around cybersecurity. 623 00:22:32,964 --> 00:22:34,404 I think it'll have a big impact in 624 00:22:34,404 --> 00:22:36,325 that area, both good and bad because the 625 00:22:36,325 --> 00:22:38,025 bad actors will use it as well. 626 00:22:38,330 --> 00:22:38,990 And then, 627 00:22:39,769 --> 00:22:41,690 you know, we'll have to respond using these 628 00:22:41,690 --> 00:22:42,670 tools as well. 629 00:22:42,970 --> 00:22:44,890 And so that that'll be interesting to see 630 00:22:44,890 --> 00:22:47,204 how that plays out, but yeah, but that's 631 00:22:47,204 --> 00:22:48,345 why I think it's going. 632 00:22:49,764 --> 00:22:51,764 That's fascinating to hear. Chuck, thank you so 633 00:22:51,764 --> 00:22:53,524 much for joining us on the podcast today. 634 00:22:53,524 --> 00:22:55,369 This has been a really interesting discussion, and 635 00:22:55,369 --> 00:22:56,970 I look forward to connecting with you again 636 00:22:56,970 --> 00:22:57,470 soon. 637 00:22:58,410 --> 00:23:01,456 Absolutely. Thank you. And, I I appreciate it.