1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:03,279 The Becker's team is excited to announce the 2 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:06,160 launch of our new CFO and Revenue Cycle 3 00:00:06,160 --> 00:00:06,660 podcast. 4 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:10,240 Tune in for conversations with finance experts from 5 00:00:10,240 --> 00:00:13,119 the top hospitals and health systems. We'll discuss 6 00:00:13,119 --> 00:00:15,679 key trends and ideas to drive meaningful change 7 00:00:15,679 --> 00:00:18,855 in the industry. Look for Becker's CFO and 8 00:00:18,855 --> 00:00:21,995 revenue cycle podcast wherever you listen to episodes. 9 00:00:24,614 --> 00:00:26,775 This is Laura Dierdahl with the Becker's Healthcare 10 00:00:26,775 --> 00:00:28,855 podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by 11 00:00:28,855 --> 00:00:31,755 doctor Richard Zane, chief innovation officer at UCHealth. 12 00:00:31,910 --> 00:00:33,109 Doctor Zane, it's a pleasure to have you 13 00:00:33,109 --> 00:00:34,250 on the podcast today. 14 00:00:34,789 --> 00:00:36,229 Thrilled to be here. Thank you for having 15 00:00:36,229 --> 00:00:39,289 me. Absolutely. Now I'm excited to dig into 16 00:00:39,429 --> 00:00:40,789 some of the cool things that you're doing 17 00:00:40,789 --> 00:00:42,710 at UCHealth. I know really on the forefront 18 00:00:42,710 --> 00:00:44,229 of a lot going on with AI and 19 00:00:44,229 --> 00:00:46,155 and more. But before we dive into that, 20 00:00:46,314 --> 00:00:47,754 can you tell us a bit more about 21 00:00:47,754 --> 00:00:49,454 UCHealth and what makes it unique? 22 00:00:50,394 --> 00:00:52,475 Yeah. I'd love to. UCHealth is a relatively 23 00:00:52,475 --> 00:00:54,714 new system in Colorado having been formed in 24 00:00:54,714 --> 00:00:55,774 02/2012. 25 00:00:55,994 --> 00:00:59,054 We are 14 hospitals, approximately 9,000,000,000 26 00:00:59,434 --> 00:01:01,980 or so in revenue. And despite being a 27 00:01:01,980 --> 00:01:03,200 relatively new system, 28 00:01:03,740 --> 00:01:05,900 we are the dominant health care provider in 29 00:01:05,900 --> 00:01:06,400 Colorado. 30 00:01:07,180 --> 00:01:09,439 Lots of unique things about UCHealth. 31 00:01:09,980 --> 00:01:11,359 One, first and foremost, 32 00:01:12,060 --> 00:01:14,560 we are an operating company, which means 33 00:01:14,939 --> 00:01:18,115 that we exist for our patients. We believe 34 00:01:18,115 --> 00:01:18,615 that 35 00:01:19,715 --> 00:01:21,415 we believe in patient centricity. 36 00:01:22,034 --> 00:01:24,215 We use data to inform decisions, 37 00:01:25,075 --> 00:01:26,055 and we 38 00:01:26,834 --> 00:01:27,334 fundamentally 39 00:01:28,420 --> 00:01:29,959 say that we exist for Coloradans. 40 00:01:30,819 --> 00:01:31,959 Also, fun fact, 41 00:01:32,500 --> 00:01:34,260 unlike a lot of other health care systems, 42 00:01:34,260 --> 00:01:35,480 over our 14 hospitals, 43 00:01:36,020 --> 00:01:37,700 six are from the ground up built in 44 00:01:37,700 --> 00:01:40,340 the last twelve years. So pretty unique, and 45 00:01:40,340 --> 00:01:41,640 it matches the growth 46 00:01:41,974 --> 00:01:43,894 and, frankly, the excitement of the state of 47 00:01:43,894 --> 00:01:44,394 Colorado. 48 00:01:45,974 --> 00:01:48,135 Absolutely. That's amazing to hear, you know, and 49 00:01:48,135 --> 00:01:50,295 really a lot of expansion as you mentioned 50 00:01:50,295 --> 00:01:52,134 in the last few years. And so it'll 51 00:01:52,134 --> 00:01:52,634 be, 52 00:01:53,094 --> 00:01:55,560 really, really interesting to hear your perspective on, 53 00:01:55,879 --> 00:01:57,479 some of the things that, you know, you've 54 00:01:57,479 --> 00:01:58,920 done in the last year or so. Is 55 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:00,599 there an accomplishment you can share with us 56 00:02:00,599 --> 00:02:01,979 that you're most proud of? 57 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:04,599 You know, that's a hard question because there 58 00:02:04,599 --> 00:02:05,420 are so many, 59 00:02:05,719 --> 00:02:07,420 that I'm proud of. But 60 00:02:07,924 --> 00:02:09,944 we like to say that our innovation strategy 61 00:02:10,405 --> 00:02:12,025 is our IT strategy, 62 00:02:13,444 --> 00:02:16,405 is our quality strategy, is our virtual health 63 00:02:16,405 --> 00:02:16,905 strategy. 64 00:02:17,525 --> 00:02:18,585 So with that, 65 00:02:19,205 --> 00:02:21,044 one of the things that we have done 66 00:02:21,044 --> 00:02:21,544 is 67 00:02:22,299 --> 00:02:22,799 substantively 68 00:02:23,579 --> 00:02:24,799 reduce mortality 69 00:02:25,979 --> 00:02:28,000 across our whole health care system, 70 00:02:28,539 --> 00:02:31,759 specifically from sepsis. And then in general, 71 00:02:32,459 --> 00:02:33,759 using a central 72 00:02:34,365 --> 00:02:37,585 disciplined approach to sepsis and to deterioration. 73 00:02:38,444 --> 00:02:40,944 What we do is from a central location, 74 00:02:41,164 --> 00:02:42,705 a nondescript building 75 00:02:43,004 --> 00:02:45,405 that's about three miles from where I am, 76 00:02:45,405 --> 00:02:47,104 there are four fifty people 77 00:02:47,480 --> 00:02:48,939 that look at delivering 78 00:02:49,240 --> 00:02:50,860 virtual care across the spectrum, 79 00:02:51,240 --> 00:02:51,740 whether 80 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:55,800 that's virtual critical care, virtual primary care, virtual 81 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:57,900 urgent care, virtual nursing, 82 00:02:58,599 --> 00:02:59,740 sepsis and deterioration, 83 00:03:00,794 --> 00:03:03,134 completely centralized telemetry and capnography, 84 00:03:04,794 --> 00:03:05,294 virtual 85 00:03:05,914 --> 00:03:08,974 admission nurses and discharge nurses, urgent care. 86 00:03:09,594 --> 00:03:11,055 We look at fall prevention, 87 00:03:12,394 --> 00:03:14,174 centralized respiratory therapy, 88 00:03:14,715 --> 00:03:15,694 wound care, 89 00:03:16,090 --> 00:03:17,709 really across the spectrum. 90 00:03:18,090 --> 00:03:20,009 So what we're able to do is to 91 00:03:20,009 --> 00:03:20,909 monitor patients 92 00:03:21,289 --> 00:03:22,750 who are at risk for sepsis 93 00:03:23,209 --> 00:03:25,069 and think about how we have deployed 94 00:03:25,769 --> 00:03:28,590 AI and prescriptive analytics to identify them 95 00:03:29,044 --> 00:03:32,344 and then intervene sooner. So we will centrally 96 00:03:33,044 --> 00:03:34,905 order the bundle for sepsis, 97 00:03:35,604 --> 00:03:36,504 order CBCs, 98 00:03:36,805 --> 00:03:39,305 order lactate, initiate fluid resuscitation, 99 00:03:39,685 --> 00:03:40,824 initiate antibiotics, 100 00:03:41,685 --> 00:03:43,064 and really get 101 00:03:43,620 --> 00:03:46,760 time dependent therapy to people with high consequence 102 00:03:47,060 --> 00:03:48,360 time dependent disease. 103 00:03:48,900 --> 00:03:51,300 And now we're doing that for deterioration writ 104 00:03:51,300 --> 00:03:53,060 large. So patients who are in the hospital 105 00:03:53,060 --> 00:03:53,560 where, 106 00:03:54,020 --> 00:03:56,360 they would not or do not manifest 107 00:03:56,995 --> 00:03:59,955 symptoms of deterioration but recognize it earlier. So 108 00:03:59,955 --> 00:04:01,735 preventing escalations in care, 109 00:04:02,194 --> 00:04:03,974 preventing unexpected operations, 110 00:04:04,754 --> 00:04:06,855 and getting patients home faster. 111 00:04:08,194 --> 00:04:10,435 That's amazing to hear, you know, and really, 112 00:04:10,675 --> 00:04:12,909 an important mission, as you said, not only 113 00:04:12,909 --> 00:04:14,849 for the patient care, but for 114 00:04:15,150 --> 00:04:17,550 the organization as a whole. And, you know, 115 00:04:17,550 --> 00:04:19,709 when you make this, change, I can imagine 116 00:04:19,709 --> 00:04:21,790 some of it's technology, some of it's the 117 00:04:21,790 --> 00:04:23,714 innovation, as you mentioned, and the people, 118 00:04:24,035 --> 00:04:26,134 that are part of these types of projects. 119 00:04:26,834 --> 00:04:28,454 How do you make sure that it's successful 120 00:04:28,834 --> 00:04:30,535 and really have everybody 121 00:04:30,915 --> 00:04:33,975 in a position where they can innovate but 122 00:04:34,115 --> 00:04:35,654 do it in a meaningful way? 123 00:04:36,689 --> 00:04:39,009 The most important thing is identifying what the 124 00:04:39,009 --> 00:04:40,790 problem is that we're trying to solve. 125 00:04:41,170 --> 00:04:42,870 So the most important innovations 126 00:04:43,490 --> 00:04:45,569 come from the frontline, the people doing the 127 00:04:45,569 --> 00:04:47,110 work, whether it's 128 00:04:47,810 --> 00:04:49,990 choosing pharmacotherapy at the bedside, 129 00:04:50,834 --> 00:04:53,735 whether it's thinking about how to better 130 00:04:54,194 --> 00:04:56,855 organize operating rooms and infusion centers, 131 00:04:57,475 --> 00:04:59,475 whether it's thinking about how best to deploy 132 00:04:59,475 --> 00:05:01,334 capital. The problem statements 133 00:05:02,194 --> 00:05:04,035 must come from the people doing the actual 134 00:05:04,035 --> 00:05:06,100 work. And then it's thinking about what the 135 00:05:06,100 --> 00:05:07,000 guiding principles 136 00:05:07,699 --> 00:05:09,400 are about how you rationally 137 00:05:09,779 --> 00:05:11,400 use and deploy technology. 138 00:05:12,020 --> 00:05:13,560 So one of the things that's 139 00:05:13,939 --> 00:05:14,920 crucially important 140 00:05:15,300 --> 00:05:17,355 is that health care cannot be the last 141 00:05:17,514 --> 00:05:18,495 bastion of industry 142 00:05:18,875 --> 00:05:20,175 where deploying technology 143 00:05:20,555 --> 00:05:23,595 increases cost and complexity. So that's guiding principle 144 00:05:23,595 --> 00:05:26,495 number one. The next guiding principle is 145 00:05:26,795 --> 00:05:29,295 deploying technology has to make your life easier, 146 00:05:29,435 --> 00:05:30,254 not harder, 147 00:05:30,800 --> 00:05:32,879 has to be fewer clicks and not more 148 00:05:32,879 --> 00:05:35,300 clicks, and has to be bulletproof right. 149 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:36,100 So 150 00:05:36,720 --> 00:05:39,920 that's pretty simplistic, but hard to adhere to 151 00:05:39,920 --> 00:05:40,899 guiding principles. 152 00:05:41,279 --> 00:05:42,420 We think about workflows. 153 00:05:42,764 --> 00:05:44,845 We think about how we integrate into what 154 00:05:44,845 --> 00:05:46,764 people are doing to make their job better 155 00:05:46,764 --> 00:05:48,865 and to make our patients' lives easier. 156 00:05:49,884 --> 00:05:51,805 That's helpful to know. Thank you so much, 157 00:05:51,805 --> 00:05:54,045 doctor Zane. Now I'm wondering too, when you 158 00:05:54,045 --> 00:05:55,725 look into the future, where do you see 159 00:05:55,725 --> 00:05:57,105 some of the big growth opportunities 160 00:05:57,405 --> 00:05:58,920 for your team in the next twelve months 161 00:05:58,920 --> 00:05:59,660 or so? 162 00:06:00,920 --> 00:06:03,480 So where we are focusing in the next 163 00:06:03,480 --> 00:06:04,860 twelve months is 164 00:06:05,560 --> 00:06:06,060 deploying 165 00:06:06,600 --> 00:06:09,399 AI however you describe AI, and you're not 166 00:06:09,399 --> 00:06:11,259 gonna see in a single 167 00:06:11,915 --> 00:06:14,314 strategy from a health care system that doesn't 168 00:06:14,314 --> 00:06:17,274 include the term AI. And whether it's machine 169 00:06:17,274 --> 00:06:21,055 learning, prescriptive analytics, computational linguistics, national, 170 00:06:21,514 --> 00:06:22,814 natural language processing, 171 00:06:24,189 --> 00:06:27,389 generative AI, whatever it is. We want to 172 00:06:27,389 --> 00:06:29,389 apply it to the routine and the and 173 00:06:29,389 --> 00:06:30,050 the mundane. 174 00:06:30,670 --> 00:06:33,069 So we want humans working to the top 175 00:06:33,069 --> 00:06:35,169 of their scope, and we want 176 00:06:35,550 --> 00:06:37,310 whether it's a line of code or a 177 00:06:37,310 --> 00:06:38,805 bot to work to the top of their 178 00:06:38,805 --> 00:06:40,264 scope. So we are 179 00:06:41,524 --> 00:06:44,644 laser focused on making the routine and the 180 00:06:44,644 --> 00:06:45,144 mundane 181 00:06:45,444 --> 00:06:45,944 easier, 182 00:06:46,324 --> 00:06:47,625 simpler, more efficient, 183 00:06:48,084 --> 00:06:49,305 cheaper, and better. 184 00:06:50,485 --> 00:06:53,384 That's fascinating to hear. And AI is simply, 185 00:06:53,659 --> 00:06:56,220 I know, something that's transforming health care across 186 00:06:56,220 --> 00:06:58,699 the board and, in almost everything, it seems 187 00:06:58,699 --> 00:07:01,419 like that new technologies and applications that are 188 00:07:01,419 --> 00:07:03,759 coming up. So I can imagine it's critical, 189 00:07:04,379 --> 00:07:05,599 for the entire organization 190 00:07:05,899 --> 00:07:08,625 to have an understanding of what they can 191 00:07:08,625 --> 00:07:10,464 do with AI and how to use it 192 00:07:10,464 --> 00:07:10,964 safely. 193 00:07:12,145 --> 00:07:14,944 Exactly. And it's very important to understand that, 194 00:07:14,944 --> 00:07:16,564 you know, AI is not magical. 195 00:07:16,865 --> 00:07:18,245 Right? It's just math. 196 00:07:18,625 --> 00:07:19,125 And 197 00:07:19,504 --> 00:07:21,899 there's a lot of constraints within AI, and 198 00:07:21,899 --> 00:07:24,274 it can be scary or it can be 199 00:07:24,274 --> 00:07:26,648 exciting. And we are right at the peak 200 00:07:26,648 --> 00:07:29,022 of the Gartner hype cycle on AI, but 201 00:07:29,022 --> 00:07:31,397 we have to be rational and patient on 202 00:07:31,397 --> 00:07:33,771 how we deploy it and what we use 203 00:07:33,771 --> 00:07:36,044 it for. And I think at the end 204 00:07:36,044 --> 00:07:37,964 of the day, it's gonna make things better 205 00:07:37,964 --> 00:07:38,865 for our patients, 206 00:07:39,485 --> 00:07:41,245 and for society, but we have to be 207 00:07:41,245 --> 00:07:42,305 patient and rational. 208 00:07:43,644 --> 00:07:46,285 Absolutely. I can imagine sometimes easier said than 209 00:07:46,285 --> 00:07:48,384 done, but but definitely important. 210 00:07:49,220 --> 00:07:51,379 Now when you look ahead to I'm wondering 211 00:07:51,379 --> 00:07:52,660 what are some of the big challenges that 212 00:07:52,660 --> 00:07:54,519 you're anticipating and preparing for? 213 00:07:55,459 --> 00:07:57,399 So the biggest challenges right now 214 00:07:57,860 --> 00:07:59,800 are financial and regulatory, 215 00:08:01,139 --> 00:08:01,959 full stop. 216 00:08:03,345 --> 00:08:05,585 The financial pressures on health care right now, 217 00:08:06,225 --> 00:08:08,064 very fond of saying, not in a nice 218 00:08:08,064 --> 00:08:10,064 way, that it's white knuckle time in health 219 00:08:10,064 --> 00:08:10,564 care. 220 00:08:10,944 --> 00:08:12,785 We are all gonna have to make really 221 00:08:12,785 --> 00:08:13,764 difficult decisions 222 00:08:14,305 --> 00:08:16,404 and set priorities in an unapologetic 223 00:08:16,785 --> 00:08:17,279 way, 224 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:19,620 and it's all gonna be about execution. 225 00:08:20,720 --> 00:08:22,259 The three c's of 226 00:08:22,959 --> 00:08:25,060 innovation or health care is that, 227 00:08:25,759 --> 00:08:28,800 compassion without competence is crap, which means that 228 00:08:28,800 --> 00:08:31,519 we are gonna have to execute flawlessly to 229 00:08:31,519 --> 00:08:32,835 sort of stay in the game. 230 00:08:33,315 --> 00:08:35,975 The other part that's really difficult is that 231 00:08:36,915 --> 00:08:37,575 we have 232 00:08:37,955 --> 00:08:39,095 an unsustainable 233 00:08:39,554 --> 00:08:40,774 regulatory burden. 234 00:08:41,154 --> 00:08:42,695 The number of people 235 00:08:43,235 --> 00:08:45,154 and the amount of time that we've had 236 00:08:45,154 --> 00:08:46,995 to increase in the last five years to 237 00:08:46,995 --> 00:08:48,535 meet the regulatory demand 238 00:08:48,889 --> 00:08:49,549 is suffocating. 239 00:08:50,090 --> 00:08:52,590 So financial pressures, regulatory burden. 240 00:08:53,850 --> 00:08:55,690 Absolutely. I I think a lot of leaders 241 00:08:55,690 --> 00:08:58,009 across the board would certainly agree with that 242 00:08:58,009 --> 00:08:59,289 and are seeing it. You know, a lot 243 00:08:59,289 --> 00:09:01,769 of that, those same similar pressures coming through 244 00:09:01,769 --> 00:09:04,424 on the financial side needing to figure out 245 00:09:04,424 --> 00:09:06,345 how to grow, but but seeing, you know, 246 00:09:06,345 --> 00:09:08,605 just those financial pressures and and regulatory, 247 00:09:09,465 --> 00:09:11,785 policy changes as being a big challenge. I 248 00:09:11,785 --> 00:09:13,404 know from a leadership perspective, 249 00:09:13,785 --> 00:09:15,625 what do you have to do differently in 250 00:09:15,625 --> 00:09:17,625 times like these these white knuckle times in 251 00:09:17,625 --> 00:09:19,559 order to, make sure you get things done 252 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:20,519 correctly, 253 00:09:21,240 --> 00:09:23,419 as compared to other times in health care? 254 00:09:24,440 --> 00:09:24,940 Simplify. 255 00:09:26,519 --> 00:09:27,019 Simplify. 256 00:09:27,399 --> 00:09:27,899 Simplify. 257 00:09:28,519 --> 00:09:29,500 Eliminate complexity. 258 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:31,419 And that's where 259 00:09:33,035 --> 00:09:34,014 adopting technology 260 00:09:34,555 --> 00:09:35,055 can 261 00:09:35,835 --> 00:09:37,695 help you execute on that goal, 262 00:09:38,075 --> 00:09:38,575 or, 263 00:09:39,434 --> 00:09:41,215 it can go in the opposite direction. 264 00:09:41,595 --> 00:09:43,355 So what I tell everybody that I work 265 00:09:43,355 --> 00:09:45,370 with and works for me is that your 266 00:09:45,370 --> 00:09:47,850 job is to simplify and eliminate complexity. So 267 00:09:47,850 --> 00:09:49,949 if you're gonna present me with a plan 268 00:09:50,009 --> 00:09:51,929 that has 19 steps, I'm gonna ask you 269 00:09:51,929 --> 00:09:53,850 why it doesn't have three. And then we're 270 00:09:53,850 --> 00:09:55,610 gonna figure out how to make it simpler 271 00:09:55,610 --> 00:09:58,250 and more adoptable and how execution can be 272 00:09:58,250 --> 00:09:58,750 flawless. 273 00:09:59,934 --> 00:10:01,934 That's really helpful context. Thank you so much, 274 00:10:01,934 --> 00:10:03,694 doctor Zane. Before we wrap up here, I'm 275 00:10:03,694 --> 00:10:05,375 wondering, what's the number one thing that you're 276 00:10:05,375 --> 00:10:07,794 doing right now in order to set UCHealth 277 00:10:07,855 --> 00:10:09,554 up for a long term success? 278 00:10:11,054 --> 00:10:12,754 Purpling down on high reliability. 279 00:10:14,490 --> 00:10:16,430 Full stop. You know, it's a it's a 280 00:10:17,370 --> 00:10:20,009 three hour, three day conversation on what that 281 00:10:20,009 --> 00:10:20,509 means. 282 00:10:21,050 --> 00:10:22,830 But what it means is that 283 00:10:23,210 --> 00:10:25,550 whether you come to the University of Colorado 284 00:10:25,610 --> 00:10:26,110 Hospital, 285 00:10:26,490 --> 00:10:28,190 which is a quaternary care, 286 00:10:29,075 --> 00:10:31,335 large academic health system hospital, 287 00:10:31,715 --> 00:10:33,815 or you go to one of our smaller 288 00:10:34,355 --> 00:10:34,855 hospitals, 289 00:10:35,235 --> 00:10:37,634 you get the same experience and the same 290 00:10:37,634 --> 00:10:40,914 high quality care and that everyone who delivers 291 00:10:40,914 --> 00:10:41,414 care 292 00:10:41,794 --> 00:10:44,195 understands and can articulate what our mission, vision, 293 00:10:44,195 --> 00:10:45,230 and values are. 294 00:10:46,809 --> 00:10:48,809 Absolutely. Yeah. I I I think that, as 295 00:10:48,809 --> 00:10:50,269 you mentioned, just in 296 00:10:50,570 --> 00:10:52,329 these days is so important right now and 297 00:10:52,329 --> 00:10:54,730 critical and a huge conversation to be had, 298 00:10:54,730 --> 00:10:56,889 but really important. Doctor Zane, thank you so 299 00:10:56,889 --> 00:10:58,570 much for joining us on the podcast today. 300 00:10:58,570 --> 00:11:01,162 This has been a really fascinating conversation, and 301 00:11:01,162 --> 00:11:02,602 I look forward to connecting with you again 302 00:11:02,602 --> 00:11:03,102 soon. 303 00:11:03,482 --> 00:11:04,842 It was my pleasure, and thank you for 304 00:11:04,842 --> 00:11:05,582 having me.