1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:02,240 This is Laura Dierda with the Becker's Healthcare 2 00:00:02,240 --> 00:00:04,319 podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by 3 00:00:04,319 --> 00:00:07,440 Chris Carmody, chief technology officer at UPMC. Chris, 4 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:08,559 it's a pleasure to have you on the 5 00:00:08,559 --> 00:00:10,880 podcast today. Thanks for having me, Laura. It's 6 00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:12,224 great to talk with you again. 7 00:00:12,785 --> 00:00:14,865 Now I'm looking forward to our broader discussion. 8 00:00:14,865 --> 00:00:16,304 I know every time we have you on, 9 00:00:16,304 --> 00:00:18,785 I learned so much. And, really, our listeners 10 00:00:18,785 --> 00:00:20,304 take away a lot of the nuggets and 11 00:00:20,304 --> 00:00:21,984 tidbits that you've learned along the way for 12 00:00:21,984 --> 00:00:23,585 any of the processes and, 13 00:00:24,065 --> 00:00:26,304 changes that you're making. But before we dive 14 00:00:26,304 --> 00:00:27,984 in, can you tell us a little bit 15 00:00:27,984 --> 00:00:30,140 more about UPMC and what makes it unique? 16 00:00:31,079 --> 00:00:31,579 Sure. 17 00:00:32,280 --> 00:00:32,780 UPMC 18 00:00:33,479 --> 00:00:35,719 is the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, just 19 00:00:35,719 --> 00:00:37,500 to spell out that acronym. 20 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:40,700 But we are a a very large 21 00:00:41,320 --> 00:00:43,420 academic medical center with 22 00:00:44,155 --> 00:00:45,615 a few add ons, 23 00:00:46,075 --> 00:00:48,174 in terms of our core mission, which includes 24 00:00:48,234 --> 00:00:51,755 being an insurer in the different communities and 25 00:00:51,755 --> 00:00:53,774 and areas that we serve, 26 00:00:54,475 --> 00:00:56,495 provide and provide patient care. 27 00:00:57,149 --> 00:00:59,949 We also have a an arm of our 28 00:00:59,949 --> 00:01:01,809 institution which focuses on 29 00:01:02,189 --> 00:01:05,890 commercialization and emerging technologies called UPMC Enterprises, 30 00:01:06,829 --> 00:01:09,170 which, again, works very closely with 31 00:01:09,534 --> 00:01:12,174 the core technology groups and teams and operations 32 00:01:12,174 --> 00:01:15,155 and helps identify and or create new solutions 33 00:01:15,215 --> 00:01:17,314 and looks to commercialize them. 34 00:01:17,694 --> 00:01:20,015 And then lastly, we have an international arm 35 00:01:20,015 --> 00:01:20,754 at UPMC, 36 00:01:21,055 --> 00:01:23,709 which we have a number of hospitals located 37 00:01:23,709 --> 00:01:25,650 over in Ireland and Italy and, 38 00:01:26,269 --> 00:01:28,989 are are building, some sites in Croatia right 39 00:01:28,989 --> 00:01:32,209 now that export our clinical expertise 40 00:01:32,590 --> 00:01:33,569 in those different, 41 00:01:34,269 --> 00:01:35,890 countries and and helps, 42 00:01:36,734 --> 00:01:38,034 share some of the great, 43 00:01:38,494 --> 00:01:41,134 knowledge and, again, medical care that we provide 44 00:01:41,134 --> 00:01:41,715 at UPMC. 45 00:01:42,015 --> 00:01:42,515 So 46 00:01:42,894 --> 00:01:45,454 all those different aspects really make us who 47 00:01:45,454 --> 00:01:46,435 we are at UPMC. 48 00:01:47,134 --> 00:01:49,694 We are primarily in Pennsylvania. We're the largest 49 00:01:49,694 --> 00:01:50,194 nongovernmental 50 00:01:50,609 --> 00:01:53,829 employer in Pennsylvania, around a hundred thousand employees. 51 00:01:54,689 --> 00:01:55,909 So we are large, 52 00:01:56,609 --> 00:01:59,750 but we are very much all focused on 53 00:01:59,890 --> 00:02:01,969 providing the best patient care that we can 54 00:02:01,969 --> 00:02:03,409 to all the patients that we see and 55 00:02:03,409 --> 00:02:04,950 all the communities that we serve. 56 00:02:06,405 --> 00:02:08,564 That's amazing to hear. I know UPMC, as 57 00:02:08,564 --> 00:02:10,504 you mentioned, has grown over the years into 58 00:02:10,645 --> 00:02:13,705 really a strong enterprise and having different 59 00:02:14,004 --> 00:02:16,004 global reaches and those kinds of things. And 60 00:02:16,004 --> 00:02:16,504 so, 61 00:02:16,965 --> 00:02:19,444 I I think that's really amazing to kinda 62 00:02:19,444 --> 00:02:21,139 see some of this progress and then, you 63 00:02:21,139 --> 00:02:22,020 know, look ahead. 64 00:02:22,420 --> 00:02:24,280 But I'm curious, first and foremost, 65 00:02:24,659 --> 00:02:25,939 could you tell us a little bit about 66 00:02:25,939 --> 00:02:27,939 an accomplishment that you're most proud of from 67 00:02:27,939 --> 00:02:29,080 the last year or so? 68 00:02:30,500 --> 00:02:34,200 Yes. And it's not quite finished yet, but 69 00:02:34,905 --> 00:02:35,405 just, 70 00:02:35,784 --> 00:02:38,044 about a year and a half ago, UPMC 71 00:02:38,344 --> 00:02:41,865 embarked on the largest transformation project that we've 72 00:02:41,865 --> 00:02:44,665 ever taken, at least in my twenty six 73 00:02:44,665 --> 00:02:45,885 plus years at UPMC. 74 00:02:46,905 --> 00:02:47,885 And that is 75 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:52,539 to help transform how we deliver care across 76 00:02:52,599 --> 00:02:53,099 UPMC. 77 00:02:53,960 --> 00:02:56,680 And, really, the the basis for that is 78 00:02:56,680 --> 00:02:59,099 implementing a single electronic health record, 79 00:02:59,960 --> 00:03:00,699 at UPMC. 80 00:03:01,594 --> 00:03:03,614 So today, as we sit here 81 00:03:03,914 --> 00:03:07,055 at the February, 82 00:03:07,674 --> 00:03:11,275 we currently operate 10 different electronic health records 83 00:03:11,275 --> 00:03:11,935 at UPMC 84 00:03:13,034 --> 00:03:15,854 based upon a a best of breed approach, 85 00:03:16,009 --> 00:03:18,269 which we instituted years and years ago, 86 00:03:19,049 --> 00:03:21,689 as well as through some acquisitions more recently 87 00:03:21,689 --> 00:03:23,949 with different hospitals and physician practices. 88 00:03:24,489 --> 00:03:26,650 And, of course, with every EHR that you 89 00:03:26,650 --> 00:03:29,389 have, there's numerous ancillary systems that 90 00:03:29,754 --> 00:03:33,055 are attached or interface with that core EHR. 91 00:03:33,115 --> 00:03:34,094 So we have 92 00:03:34,555 --> 00:03:35,775 well over a thousand 93 00:03:36,314 --> 00:03:37,294 ancillary systems, 94 00:03:38,155 --> 00:03:39,294 touching those 95 00:03:39,754 --> 00:03:40,254 10 96 00:03:40,634 --> 00:03:41,134 EHRs. 97 00:03:42,155 --> 00:03:45,134 And quite honestly, it was during COVID 98 00:03:45,730 --> 00:03:47,990 when we were trying to be nimble and 99 00:03:48,050 --> 00:03:50,210 and change direction and meet all the different 100 00:03:50,210 --> 00:03:53,110 requirements that were constantly evolving and changing, 101 00:03:53,810 --> 00:03:54,310 where 102 00:03:54,770 --> 00:03:57,569 we were encountering the difficulty of making a 103 00:03:57,569 --> 00:04:00,050 change and having to replicate it in different 104 00:04:00,050 --> 00:04:01,110 systems was 105 00:04:01,425 --> 00:04:02,164 quite challenging. 106 00:04:02,864 --> 00:04:03,364 And 107 00:04:04,224 --> 00:04:04,724 just 108 00:04:05,185 --> 00:04:07,504 to provide what appears to be a seamless 109 00:04:07,504 --> 00:04:10,645 experience to our clinical users and our patients 110 00:04:10,705 --> 00:04:12,004 utilizing our technologies, 111 00:04:13,185 --> 00:04:14,324 our IT teams 112 00:04:14,730 --> 00:04:17,310 have done monumental work 113 00:04:17,770 --> 00:04:20,910 just to give that appearance and and build 114 00:04:20,970 --> 00:04:21,470 interfaces 115 00:04:21,850 --> 00:04:23,709 and and move data around 116 00:04:24,330 --> 00:04:24,830 to 117 00:04:25,209 --> 00:04:26,970 do the best we can with the technology 118 00:04:26,970 --> 00:04:28,705 that we have. And and like I said, 119 00:04:28,705 --> 00:04:31,105 we've done an amazing job over these years 120 00:04:31,105 --> 00:04:32,884 to provide that experience, but, 121 00:04:33,264 --> 00:04:35,504 you know, we feel most of the time 122 00:04:35,504 --> 00:04:37,045 like we're sprinting a marathon. 123 00:04:37,824 --> 00:04:39,764 And our talented, 124 00:04:40,225 --> 00:04:40,725 knowledgeable 125 00:04:41,345 --> 00:04:44,529 experts in IT, we can be using utilizing 126 00:04:44,589 --> 00:04:45,649 their skill sets 127 00:04:46,110 --> 00:04:48,750 to work on more advancements quite honestly in 128 00:04:48,750 --> 00:04:50,129 different technology. So 129 00:04:50,990 --> 00:04:53,709 all these different reasons led us to moving 130 00:04:53,709 --> 00:04:56,850 forward with this single project, which we are 131 00:04:57,435 --> 00:04:59,694 now in a very critical our first 132 00:05:00,154 --> 00:05:02,074 wave go live is later this year in 133 00:05:02,074 --> 00:05:03,854 September that we're preparing for. 134 00:05:04,235 --> 00:05:06,394 And so, really, that accomplishment, getting back to 135 00:05:06,394 --> 00:05:07,134 your question, 136 00:05:07,675 --> 00:05:09,834 is all the prep work that we've done, 137 00:05:09,834 --> 00:05:10,974 forming the team, 138 00:05:11,509 --> 00:05:14,310 building the relationships, and and defining how we're 139 00:05:14,310 --> 00:05:17,670 gonna deliver care consistently and standardized across all 140 00:05:17,670 --> 00:05:19,850 VPMC leveraging this one EHR. 141 00:05:21,350 --> 00:05:23,110 That's amazing to hear, you know, and a 142 00:05:23,110 --> 00:05:25,964 huge undertaking. Impressive to see that you've been 143 00:05:25,964 --> 00:05:28,044 able to develop over the last few years 144 00:05:28,044 --> 00:05:29,964 the plan and start implementing it. And then 145 00:05:29,964 --> 00:05:31,485 I know the go live is, 146 00:05:32,125 --> 00:05:33,724 coming up here in just a couple of 147 00:05:33,724 --> 00:05:36,365 months. From this whole process, do you have 148 00:05:36,365 --> 00:05:38,800 any advice for other health systems that are 149 00:05:38,800 --> 00:05:40,579 going through a similar thing? I know, 150 00:05:40,959 --> 00:05:42,879 you know, you taking this on after the 151 00:05:42,879 --> 00:05:44,879 pandemic and realizing the value of it is 152 00:05:44,879 --> 00:05:47,360 huge, but others are are seeing a similar, 153 00:05:48,079 --> 00:05:50,399 similar trajectory in terms of how they're thinking 154 00:05:50,399 --> 00:05:53,600 about their technology in EHRs as they grow 155 00:05:53,600 --> 00:05:56,495 bigger. So what advice would you have for, 156 00:05:56,875 --> 00:05:59,115 IT leaders as they're embarking on this process 157 00:05:59,115 --> 00:06:00,415 or, you know, really, 158 00:06:00,875 --> 00:06:02,975 aiming to refine what they've already done? 159 00:06:03,435 --> 00:06:05,435 Yeah. I think it it starts with the 160 00:06:05,435 --> 00:06:06,415 planning process. 161 00:06:07,149 --> 00:06:09,470 The the the more you plan, the more 162 00:06:09,470 --> 00:06:12,430 open discussions, transparent discussions you have with all 163 00:06:12,430 --> 00:06:13,410 the key stakeholders, 164 00:06:14,189 --> 00:06:16,269 the better position an organization will be in. 165 00:06:16,269 --> 00:06:17,490 And I think that's what's 166 00:06:17,790 --> 00:06:20,990 helped facilitate our success so far in this 167 00:06:20,990 --> 00:06:24,045 project is the relationships and and the leadership 168 00:06:24,045 --> 00:06:25,504 that we partner with 169 00:06:25,884 --> 00:06:29,425 both from a clinical perspective and operational perspective, 170 00:06:29,485 --> 00:06:30,545 revenue cycle, 171 00:06:31,245 --> 00:06:33,725 patient access, all the different areas across your 172 00:06:33,725 --> 00:06:34,225 institution 173 00:06:34,839 --> 00:06:37,319 need to be engaged and involved in in 174 00:06:37,319 --> 00:06:38,459 the decision process 175 00:06:39,160 --> 00:06:40,539 and helping define 176 00:06:40,919 --> 00:06:43,959 collectively how the organization moves forward. This is 177 00:06:43,959 --> 00:06:47,175 not an IT project by any means. It's 178 00:06:47,175 --> 00:06:49,415 enabled by IT, but this truly is an 179 00:06:49,415 --> 00:06:50,714 organization transformation 180 00:06:51,735 --> 00:06:54,055 that we're embarking upon. And and a lot 181 00:06:54,055 --> 00:06:54,875 of the other 182 00:06:55,335 --> 00:06:57,574 big health care systems that are in the 183 00:06:57,574 --> 00:07:00,229 same boat that are that are moving to 184 00:07:00,229 --> 00:07:02,410 one EHR or doing this transformation. 185 00:07:03,910 --> 00:07:05,829 As we talk and discuss and and we 186 00:07:05,829 --> 00:07:06,649 have that opportunity, 187 00:07:07,269 --> 00:07:09,509 at different events and just reaching out based 188 00:07:09,509 --> 00:07:12,490 upon our professional relationships, talking to one another, 189 00:07:12,925 --> 00:07:14,205 You know, we're able to share some of 190 00:07:14,205 --> 00:07:16,365 those insights and information, what works well, what 191 00:07:16,365 --> 00:07:17,425 doesn't work well. 192 00:07:18,045 --> 00:07:20,045 But the more information, the more planning can 193 00:07:20,045 --> 00:07:22,145 do is the the the 194 00:07:22,605 --> 00:07:25,019 positions your organization to help 195 00:07:25,500 --> 00:07:27,819 minimize the risks and minimize the issues as 196 00:07:27,819 --> 00:07:29,579 you move forward. There's gonna be things that 197 00:07:29,579 --> 00:07:30,319 come up, 198 00:07:30,939 --> 00:07:33,899 and you you're best prepared by planning for 199 00:07:33,899 --> 00:07:34,399 them, 200 00:07:34,939 --> 00:07:37,500 because the project is never gonna go exactly 201 00:07:37,500 --> 00:07:39,180 as planned. It doesn't work that way. Not 202 00:07:39,259 --> 00:07:40,639 no project ever has, 203 00:07:41,235 --> 00:07:43,175 especially one of this size and scale. 204 00:07:44,194 --> 00:07:46,115 That's helpful to know. Thank you so much, 205 00:07:46,115 --> 00:07:48,435 Chris, and glad that you're able to find 206 00:07:48,435 --> 00:07:50,915 colleagues to support throughout this journey, because I 207 00:07:50,915 --> 00:07:52,535 can imagine it it takes, 208 00:07:52,915 --> 00:07:54,915 as much, as you said, information and support 209 00:07:54,915 --> 00:07:55,290 as 210 00:07:55,770 --> 00:07:58,170 possible. Now looking ahead for the next twelve 211 00:07:58,170 --> 00:07:59,770 months or so, what are the big growth 212 00:07:59,770 --> 00:08:01,310 opportunities you're looking for, 213 00:08:01,689 --> 00:08:03,370 for your team as well as the health 214 00:08:03,370 --> 00:08:04,270 system altogether? 215 00:08:05,050 --> 00:08:06,810 Yeah. I mean, it it again, it starts 216 00:08:06,810 --> 00:08:07,310 with 217 00:08:07,814 --> 00:08:10,454 that that the core transformation. Our our wave 218 00:08:10,454 --> 00:08:11,675 one, we're gonna, 219 00:08:12,294 --> 00:08:15,254 deploy across about a little over 40% of 220 00:08:15,254 --> 00:08:15,914 the organization, 221 00:08:16,854 --> 00:08:18,235 you know, and go through that 222 00:08:18,535 --> 00:08:19,035 post, 223 00:08:19,789 --> 00:08:21,870 post go live world where we're supporting and 224 00:08:21,870 --> 00:08:23,310 fixing any issues or, 225 00:08:23,949 --> 00:08:26,430 you know, questions that users may have. And 226 00:08:26,430 --> 00:08:28,669 then we're gonna move right into our wave 227 00:08:28,669 --> 00:08:31,149 two, which will happen in the probably closer 228 00:08:31,149 --> 00:08:32,990 towards the end of the second quarter of 229 00:08:32,990 --> 00:08:34,209 twenty twenty six, 230 00:08:34,934 --> 00:08:36,615 where the rest of our organization will go 231 00:08:36,615 --> 00:08:37,115 live. 232 00:08:37,495 --> 00:08:40,695 So that's really our our main focus right 233 00:08:40,695 --> 00:08:43,095 now is preparing and ramping up for both 234 00:08:43,095 --> 00:08:45,035 waves as we refer to them. 235 00:08:45,654 --> 00:08:47,975 But we don't lose sight that we're still 236 00:08:47,975 --> 00:08:48,955 delivering care 237 00:08:49,429 --> 00:08:52,089 24 by seven in our institution. So 238 00:08:52,789 --> 00:08:53,909 we continue to, 239 00:08:54,789 --> 00:08:57,610 you know, focus on what are the operational 240 00:08:57,750 --> 00:08:58,570 needs today. 241 00:08:59,350 --> 00:09:01,350 How do we prioritize that work and make 242 00:09:01,350 --> 00:09:03,129 sure that from a timing perspective, 243 00:09:03,785 --> 00:09:05,245 you know, when does it make sense 244 00:09:05,625 --> 00:09:07,565 to connect to the existing environment, 245 00:09:08,264 --> 00:09:10,045 maybe a new technology, or 246 00:09:10,825 --> 00:09:13,545 wait and and position a new technology to 247 00:09:13,545 --> 00:09:16,845 be tied into the new single EHR platform? 248 00:09:17,929 --> 00:09:18,910 So that's where 249 00:09:19,370 --> 00:09:21,210 a lot of our focus and effort's gonna 250 00:09:21,210 --> 00:09:21,710 be. 251 00:09:22,250 --> 00:09:24,090 And, again, on the IT side of the 252 00:09:24,090 --> 00:09:26,490 program is making sure that we're testing and 253 00:09:26,490 --> 00:09:28,669 validating everything along this journey 254 00:09:29,049 --> 00:09:30,350 and partnering with 255 00:09:30,695 --> 00:09:32,774 our clinical and operational leaders to make sure 256 00:09:32,774 --> 00:09:33,274 that 257 00:09:33,654 --> 00:09:36,934 the their our end users are ultimately ready 258 00:09:36,934 --> 00:09:38,855 and prepared for when we flip that switch 259 00:09:38,855 --> 00:09:40,774 and move them over to the new system 260 00:09:40,774 --> 00:09:41,434 and environment. 261 00:09:42,054 --> 00:09:44,054 So a a lot of communications, a lot 262 00:09:44,054 --> 00:09:45,835 of planning, a lot of meetings, discussions. 263 00:09:46,649 --> 00:09:47,149 But, 264 00:09:47,450 --> 00:09:49,549 for us at UPMC, I feel very, 265 00:09:50,730 --> 00:09:53,049 confident that we're gonna be successful because of 266 00:09:53,049 --> 00:09:55,850 those partnerships, because it's not an IT project, 267 00:09:55,850 --> 00:09:56,990 as I mentioned before, 268 00:09:57,690 --> 00:09:58,190 that, 269 00:09:58,730 --> 00:10:01,245 everyone has skin in the game. Everyone is 270 00:10:02,205 --> 00:10:04,684 laser focused on what the outcome of this 271 00:10:04,684 --> 00:10:06,144 is gonna be, which is 272 00:10:07,004 --> 00:10:09,804 a much better opportunity, much better tools and 273 00:10:09,804 --> 00:10:12,365 technology for all of our clinical users to 274 00:10:12,365 --> 00:10:15,164 use to deliver patient care more effectively, more 275 00:10:15,164 --> 00:10:17,940 efficiently, and ultimately impact the quality of care 276 00:10:17,940 --> 00:10:18,840 that we're delivering. 277 00:10:20,100 --> 00:10:21,620 That's great to hear. And, you know, an 278 00:10:21,620 --> 00:10:23,540 amazing picture that you're painting of what things 279 00:10:23,540 --> 00:10:25,460 will look like once this is all rolled 280 00:10:25,460 --> 00:10:27,139 out, once you have that single instance of 281 00:10:27,139 --> 00:10:29,779 the EHR or being better able to serve 282 00:10:29,779 --> 00:10:32,394 patients as well as, a better experience for 283 00:10:32,394 --> 00:10:33,535 clinicians too. 284 00:10:33,995 --> 00:10:36,495 But I'm curious. There has to be challenges 285 00:10:36,555 --> 00:10:37,295 that you're, 286 00:10:38,235 --> 00:10:40,955 anticipating or or things that you're troubleshooting right 287 00:10:40,955 --> 00:10:41,434 now. 288 00:10:41,995 --> 00:10:43,320 Could you tell us a little bit about 289 00:10:43,320 --> 00:10:45,419 some of those challenges that you found or, 290 00:10:46,039 --> 00:10:47,879 headwinds that you really see coming up in 291 00:10:47,879 --> 00:10:48,460 the future? 292 00:10:49,399 --> 00:10:51,480 Yeah. I mean, right now, from, the the 293 00:10:51,480 --> 00:10:53,480 project itself, a a lot of it is 294 00:10:53,480 --> 00:10:56,204 just working through you know, we we went 295 00:10:56,204 --> 00:10:58,044 through the planning process, the planning phase. We 296 00:10:58,044 --> 00:11:00,284 went through a significant build phase for many 297 00:11:00,284 --> 00:11:03,745 different organizational decisions were made, and that constitutes 298 00:11:03,964 --> 00:11:04,464 change 299 00:11:04,845 --> 00:11:05,813 for our end users. So, what we're what 300 00:11:05,813 --> 00:11:06,634 we're working through in a very 301 00:11:09,240 --> 00:11:11,279 detailed level is identifying what are those what 302 00:11:11,279 --> 00:11:12,919 are those changes and how how does that 303 00:11:12,919 --> 00:11:13,899 influence or, 304 00:11:15,079 --> 00:11:18,699 customize our training materials. So when we're out, 305 00:11:19,159 --> 00:11:21,000 close to go live and we're training everyone, 306 00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:22,605 they know what you know, this is what 307 00:11:22,605 --> 00:11:23,725 you this is how you did in the 308 00:11:23,725 --> 00:11:24,924 past, and this is how you're gonna do 309 00:11:24,924 --> 00:11:27,245 it in the new system. So making sure 310 00:11:27,245 --> 00:11:28,544 we close those gaps 311 00:11:29,085 --> 00:11:32,225 and and properly train and and prepare everyone 312 00:11:32,285 --> 00:11:33,024 is probably, 313 00:11:33,404 --> 00:11:36,205 you know, front of mind right now. On 314 00:11:36,205 --> 00:11:37,559 the IT side, it's, 315 00:11:38,279 --> 00:11:41,000 working through some of the challenges with, you 316 00:11:41,000 --> 00:11:44,519 know, dealing with existing data and ingesting that 317 00:11:44,519 --> 00:11:46,779 data into the new environment or 318 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:49,159 archiving and moving that data out and making 319 00:11:49,159 --> 00:11:49,899 it available 320 00:11:50,274 --> 00:11:52,514 to make sure that from an analytics and 321 00:11:52,514 --> 00:11:55,975 reporting perspective, we have that full longitudinal record 322 00:11:56,274 --> 00:11:57,495 on all of our patients, 323 00:11:58,514 --> 00:12:01,154 where where we need it. So we're working 324 00:12:01,154 --> 00:12:02,934 through a a lot of those details. 325 00:12:03,554 --> 00:12:04,294 We're we're 326 00:12:04,730 --> 00:12:06,750 ingrained in all that work right now. 327 00:12:07,370 --> 00:12:09,449 So those and and, again, it's just the 328 00:12:09,449 --> 00:12:11,370 the volume, as I mentioned before, is probably 329 00:12:11,370 --> 00:12:13,789 what creates the the challenges and the complexity 330 00:12:13,850 --> 00:12:14,750 of our environment 331 00:12:15,289 --> 00:12:16,589 that that is creating, 332 00:12:16,944 --> 00:12:19,584 you know, the the awareness that we we 333 00:12:19,584 --> 00:12:20,084 gotta 334 00:12:20,464 --> 00:12:22,164 double and triple check our work 335 00:12:22,544 --> 00:12:24,065 as we move forward to make sure that 336 00:12:24,065 --> 00:12:25,764 we don't miss anything or, 337 00:12:26,464 --> 00:12:28,384 you know, as issues arise that we we 338 00:12:28,384 --> 00:12:29,745 fix them. And that's the whole purpose of 339 00:12:29,745 --> 00:12:31,904 going through this process. That's why you, you 340 00:12:31,904 --> 00:12:32,485 know, work 341 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:35,960 collectively together to plan and and build and 342 00:12:35,960 --> 00:12:38,519 define the environment and then testing it, which 343 00:12:38,519 --> 00:12:40,759 is where we're at to to validate that 344 00:12:40,759 --> 00:12:43,000 things are working or you know, again, you 345 00:12:43,000 --> 00:12:45,639 don't wanna test your your environment and be 346 00:12:45,639 --> 00:12:47,480 a % correct out of the gate. You 347 00:12:47,480 --> 00:12:50,445 wanna find those those issues or or, 348 00:12:51,165 --> 00:12:53,565 you know, defects before you go live. And, 349 00:12:53,565 --> 00:12:55,245 you know, that's that's where we're at right 350 00:12:55,245 --> 00:12:57,745 now, and that's a normal natural process, 351 00:12:58,125 --> 00:13:00,365 that we're going through. The other thing too 352 00:13:00,365 --> 00:13:02,730 is the continual care and feeding of our 353 00:13:02,730 --> 00:13:05,289 teams. Everyone's, you know, heads down working very 354 00:13:05,289 --> 00:13:07,690 hard. We don't want folks getting burned out. 355 00:13:07,690 --> 00:13:10,009 So we really spend a lot of time 356 00:13:10,009 --> 00:13:12,509 communicating and reaching out and making sure that 357 00:13:12,649 --> 00:13:14,409 they feel they have the support of the 358 00:13:14,409 --> 00:13:17,085 leadership team. If they have questions, concerns 359 00:13:17,625 --> 00:13:19,945 that, you know, they they feel comfortable raising 360 00:13:19,945 --> 00:13:21,785 their their their hand and, you know, asking 361 00:13:21,785 --> 00:13:23,465 for that help or asking for us as 362 00:13:23,465 --> 00:13:23,965 leaders 363 00:13:24,345 --> 00:13:26,665 to remove any barriers or issues that might 364 00:13:26,665 --> 00:13:29,220 be in their way. So that's that's, I 365 00:13:29,220 --> 00:13:30,740 I I think, a very key part of 366 00:13:30,740 --> 00:13:31,879 advice I'd give 367 00:13:32,340 --> 00:13:34,500 to those going through this this journey that, 368 00:13:34,500 --> 00:13:36,200 you know, from a leadership perspective, 369 00:13:36,740 --> 00:13:38,180 you you have to be front and center 370 00:13:38,180 --> 00:13:40,980 and present and and, you know, remove those 371 00:13:40,980 --> 00:13:42,980 barriers and obstacles for your teams to be 372 00:13:42,980 --> 00:13:43,480 successful. 373 00:13:44,835 --> 00:13:46,754 And that is great advice. And a really 374 00:13:46,754 --> 00:13:49,554 strong point, you know, looking at just the 375 00:13:49,554 --> 00:13:52,035 amount and gravity of this transition, this change, 376 00:13:52,035 --> 00:13:52,695 and then, 377 00:13:53,075 --> 00:13:54,674 having to do, I can imagine, the big 378 00:13:54,674 --> 00:13:56,835 picture strategic work as well as the detail 379 00:13:56,835 --> 00:13:57,335 oriented, 380 00:13:57,980 --> 00:13:59,340 aspects of it, making sure you have the 381 00:13:59,340 --> 00:14:01,660 right people on your teams to execute on 382 00:14:01,660 --> 00:14:02,160 that, 383 00:14:02,860 --> 00:14:04,160 in a meaningful way. 384 00:14:04,779 --> 00:14:06,720 You know, I can imagine now 385 00:14:07,259 --> 00:14:09,279 it looks different potentially than it will, 386 00:14:09,740 --> 00:14:12,139 once the rollout is complete and you've got 387 00:14:12,139 --> 00:14:13,875 that single instance and and can focus 388 00:14:14,914 --> 00:14:16,274 on other things. But, right now, it seems 389 00:14:16,274 --> 00:14:18,274 like, as you mentioned, having that detail orientation 390 00:14:18,274 --> 00:14:19,875 and just being able to support the team 391 00:14:19,875 --> 00:14:22,274 in whatever way you can, is really, really 392 00:14:22,274 --> 00:14:22,774 important. 393 00:14:24,034 --> 00:14:24,534 Absolutely. 394 00:14:26,115 --> 00:14:28,019 Before we wrap up here, I'm wondering, 395 00:14:28,340 --> 00:14:30,259 could you talk a little bit about just 396 00:14:30,259 --> 00:14:31,940 the number one thing that you're doing right 397 00:14:31,940 --> 00:14:33,860 now to set your organization up for long 398 00:14:33,860 --> 00:14:34,600 term success? 399 00:14:35,539 --> 00:14:36,840 Yeah. I mean, obviously, 400 00:14:37,940 --> 00:14:40,980 remove the EPIC or the EHR specific project. 401 00:14:40,980 --> 00:14:42,245 We are moving EPIC, by the way, if 402 00:14:42,245 --> 00:14:43,585 I didn't mention that, but, 403 00:14:43,964 --> 00:14:46,784 it's it's pretty well documented. But I think 404 00:14:46,924 --> 00:14:49,004 the the one thing, the one piece that 405 00:14:49,004 --> 00:14:50,865 we're focusing on is our people. 406 00:14:51,964 --> 00:14:53,725 And it gets back to my last statement 407 00:14:53,725 --> 00:14:55,725 of making sure that we have that that 408 00:14:55,884 --> 00:14:56,945 the proper engagement, 409 00:14:57,500 --> 00:15:00,159 that we're providing the different opportunities and training 410 00:15:00,539 --> 00:15:03,100 and and really career paths for them. The 411 00:15:03,100 --> 00:15:04,779 the toughest thing in our business of health 412 00:15:04,779 --> 00:15:07,899 care IT is, you know, developing and and 413 00:15:07,899 --> 00:15:08,399 retaining 414 00:15:08,860 --> 00:15:11,019 great staff and and great leaders in our 415 00:15:11,019 --> 00:15:13,964 organization. So we spend a considerable amount of 416 00:15:13,964 --> 00:15:15,504 time outside of that project 417 00:15:16,125 --> 00:15:17,264 talking through and planning, 418 00:15:18,044 --> 00:15:20,524 from a people and organizational perspective on what 419 00:15:20,524 --> 00:15:22,284 we can do, what we can do better, 420 00:15:22,284 --> 00:15:24,284 how we we can better support them, how 421 00:15:24,284 --> 00:15:25,504 we can create new opportunities, 422 00:15:25,804 --> 00:15:27,345 how we can better align 423 00:15:27,720 --> 00:15:29,639 our teams to be most successful with the 424 00:15:29,639 --> 00:15:30,139 business. 425 00:15:30,440 --> 00:15:32,679 And when you have new emerging technologies like 426 00:15:32,679 --> 00:15:36,120 artificial intelligence coming, that that's a great area 427 00:15:36,120 --> 00:15:38,299 where the market's kinda driving, 428 00:15:38,679 --> 00:15:41,495 obviously, a lot of clinical and operational users 429 00:15:41,495 --> 00:15:42,875 to wanna adopt AI. 430 00:15:43,334 --> 00:15:45,414 And we as IT teams and leadership have 431 00:15:45,414 --> 00:15:48,214 to be ready and prepared to align, our 432 00:15:48,214 --> 00:15:50,294 teams and give them the right training and 433 00:15:50,294 --> 00:15:52,375 position them to be successful and help support 434 00:15:52,375 --> 00:15:55,039 in the organization moving forward. So, you know, 435 00:15:55,039 --> 00:15:57,199 we we we spend a considerable amount of 436 00:15:57,199 --> 00:16:00,000 time focused on in doing those activities. You 437 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:01,360 know, it's not just the, hey, once a 438 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:04,320 year performance evaluation kind of stuff. It's having 439 00:16:04,320 --> 00:16:07,714 conversations. It's being accessible and and having conversations 440 00:16:07,774 --> 00:16:08,995 with teams, with individuals 441 00:16:09,695 --> 00:16:12,014 to make sure that, you know, we're listening 442 00:16:12,014 --> 00:16:14,434 to them and their needs and their concerns, 443 00:16:15,214 --> 00:16:17,214 or or their suggestions on how we can 444 00:16:17,214 --> 00:16:19,774 do things better and then applying that. So 445 00:16:19,774 --> 00:16:22,580 we we take that very seriously. And, again, 446 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:25,379 I think our our people are the number 447 00:16:25,440 --> 00:16:27,840 one area that we focus in on and 448 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:30,660 will continue to focus in on moving forward. 449 00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:33,519 Technology, as we all know, is comes and 450 00:16:33,519 --> 00:16:36,085 goes, and there's gonna be new trends and, 451 00:16:37,424 --> 00:16:40,065 new emerging technologies that are can continue to 452 00:16:40,065 --> 00:16:42,225 be thrown at us. If you don't have 453 00:16:42,225 --> 00:16:45,345 good people, strong people that can problem solve, 454 00:16:45,345 --> 00:16:47,284 that can work together, that can communicate, 455 00:16:47,720 --> 00:16:50,139 that feel the support of their leadership team, 456 00:16:50,279 --> 00:16:53,160 you're not gonna be successful. So that's that's 457 00:16:53,160 --> 00:16:55,100 where it starts and ends from my perspective. 458 00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:58,440 That's amazing to hear. And, you know, really, 459 00:16:58,440 --> 00:17:01,000 really a strong message in terms of supporting 460 00:17:01,000 --> 00:17:02,600 your team, making sure you have what you 461 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:03,254 need, and then, 462 00:17:04,454 --> 00:17:06,535 have letting them, you know, do the best 463 00:17:06,535 --> 00:17:08,694 work they possibly can. Chris, thank you so 464 00:17:08,694 --> 00:17:10,214 much for joining us on the podcast today. 465 00:17:10,214 --> 00:17:11,894 This has been a great conversation, and I 466 00:17:11,894 --> 00:17:13,835 look forward to connecting with you again soon. 467 00:17:14,055 --> 00:17:15,674 Sounds great, Laura. Thank you.