The Innovation Accelerator Podcast is an ad-free service. These shows are produced to help payers, providers, life science companies, and digital health innovators accelerate healthcare's transformation by sharing expert voices, views, and advice on the important technology, care, reimbursement, and regulatory issues of the day. The Innovation Accelerator Podcast is brought to you by Innovaccer, the Health Cloud company. We’re on a mission to connect and curate the world’s healthcare information to make it accessible and useful. Thank you for listening! If you have a suggestion for a show topic or quest, please contact us using the Contact form link on the show's home page or visit us at https://innovaccer.com.
Continuing our Reinventing the CMO podcast series, we bring to you the latest edition featuring Don Stanziano, SVP, chief marketing and communications officer, and digital engagement leader at Geisinger. He is responsible for marketing, communications, digital engagement vision, and strategy.
He is a transformative industry leader who has built strong teams that have had a positive impact on healthcare and marketing. He is a firm believer in putting the customer first in marketing and authenticity in communications striving to innovate while getting the basics right by delivering the right message to the right customer at the right time.
On today’s edition the moderator is Gary Druckenmiller Jr., general manager, experience, at Innovaccer. Don shares insight on his journey exploring healthcare and marketing and reimagining marketing initiatives at Geisinger. He discusses the ever-evolving role of a CMO through financial management, growth marketing, health equity, value-based care, and data management. Some of the topics Don and Gary drill into include:
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Today we're continuing our series on “Reinventing the Chief Marketing Officer,” with our very special guest, Timothy Brown, chief communications and marketing officer for Stony Brook Medicine in Stony Brook, New York. Stony Brook Medicine consists of four hospitals and an ambulatory network of 216 facilities, including the university's six health science colleges and programs in the New York region.
Timothy directs the marketing and communication programs that create a fusion of brand, image, clinical, and research accomplishments. He oversees media relations programs and internal communications for over 14,000 employees.
On today’s show, Timothy shares his ideas for advancing healthcare marketing through content, convenience, community outreach, and more. He discusses how healthcare marketing can evolve by using data to shape consumer journeys, how to keep pace with changing consumer expectations, competing with well-heeled competitors, and other lessons learned from his leadership roles at major academic medical centers.
Moderating today's show is Gary Druckenmiller Jr., general manager of CRM at Innovaccer. Some of the specific topics Gary and Timothy drill into are:
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What does it look like when value-based care theories, policies, practices, and innovative technologies are put into practice? What happens when we move beyond talking the talk to walking the walk of population health management at scale?
To explore those questions and more, we invited Dr. Drew Albano, the Chief Medical Officer for Population Health Management at Prisma Health, to join our panel. Prisma Health is a clinically integrated network with over 5,000 providers focused on improving health outcomes, access, and health equity across South Carolina. Prisma Health works with health insurers, partners, and vendors to align stakeholders’ efforts to deliver value-based care to nearly 1.5 million patients across 21 counties, covering nearly 50% of the state.
Joining Dr. Albano are regular podcast panelists Ann Greiner, president and CEO of the Primary Care Collaborative, a not-for-profit organization working to advance an effective and efficient health system built on a strong foundation of primary care; Forbes columnist Seth Joseph, managing director at Summit Health Advisors, a leading healthcare consultancy working primarily with digital health startups and investors; and your host, Innovaccer’s Sean Hogan.
Dr. Albano is a vocal advocate and hands-on leader in population health management, influencing and accelerating the future of healthcare not just in South Carolina but as a national voice. He’s bullish on how innovative healthcare technology and collaboration together can play a pivotal and positive role to help healthcare professionals improve patient outcomes; enhance engagement; and efficiently address issues such as health equity, workforce burnout, labor shortages, and more.
In a wide ranging discussion, the panel explores a variety of salient topics, including but not limited to:
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Primary care is meant to be the foundation of our healthcare system, yet it receives only 4-6% of total US healthcare spending. That under-investment is one reason—if not “the” reason—why the US spends more on healthcare but has the worst outcomes among high-income countries, according to a Commonwealth Fund report.
Our current fee-for-service system incentivizes volume over value. Despite industry rhetoric about the importance of primary care, it remains poorly resourced and ill-equipped to deliver the comprehensive, continuous care patients need. Meanwhile, clinicians’ frustration with low payment, administrivia, and fragmented technology saps the joy of delivering care from their lives, fueling record-setting levels of burnout and a worsening shortage of primary care physicians.
On today’s show, the IA panel explores how we can, and why we must, focus on and transform primary care through innovations in payment models; innovations in healthcare IT; and innovations in the marketplace by primary care startups (those funded by private investors, private equity, venture capitalists) and established corporations, such as retailers, pharmacy chains, insurers, and healthcare leaders.
Joining Innovaccer’s Seth Hogan on the panel is Ann Greiner, the president and CEO of the Primary Care Collaborative, a not-for-profit association working to advance an effective and efficient health system built on a strong foundation of primary care and the patient-centered medical home.
Also taking a seat on the panel is Forbes columnist Seth Joseph, the managing director at Summit Health Advisors, an advisory and consultancy focused exclusively in healthcare, and primarily working with digital health startups and investors.
Here’s what the panel debated:
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It’s no secret that the transition from fee-for-service to value-based care is accelerating in healthcare. While primary care has led the way so far, new models—and new investors—are emerging to position speciality care providers as the leaders of this transformation.
On this episode of the Innovation Accelerator podcast, host Steve Ambrose discusses the opportunities and challenges of VBC for specialty providers with Dr. Sanjay Seth, VP of customer success and value engineering at Innovaccer. Dr. Seth is an expert in value-based care and population health, having spearheaded ACO management and enablement in physician- and hospital-led ACOs for nearly a decade.
Steve and Dr. Seth investigate why specialists have been slower to adopt value-based models, including issues around financial incentives; design flaws in programs; challenges with data interoperability, transparency, and analytics; difficulties measuring performance, and more.
Despite these obstacles, Dr. Seth is bullish on specialty care to the extent that he sees specialists—such as cardiologists and nephrologists—as leading the next wave of VBC adoption and innovation going forward. He believes specialists are at an inflection point in the move to value, with the convergence of data-driven technologies and evolving payment models creating opportunities for better care and business growth.
Market trends support his view. Specialty practice transactions reached $22 billion in 2022, with venture capital and private equity firms accounting for 70%, according to the American Journal of Managed Care. And specialists are accelerating adoption of value-based care models as part of increasingly effective and scalable value-based care platforms, according to McKinsey.
Tune in now for a deep dive with Steve and Dr. Seth into:
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In healthcare, the acronym “CMO” most often refers to a Chief Medical Officer, and rightly so. But another variety of CMO, the Chief Marketing Officer, is found in just about every industry––including healthcare. And today, the role of the healthcare CMO is evolving quickly.
In post-pandemic America, marketing and branding have taken on new meaning as hospitals, health systems, MCOs, ACOs, and insurers all seek to engage the consumer. For provider organizations, it’s not simply a matter of maintaining reputation and driving traffic through the door. Value-based care and the increasing focus on population health are influencing the messages that marketers must deliver.
When most folks think about marketing, advertising and public relations are typically the disciplines that first come to mind. While these remain core elements of any marketing program, they are just a few of the tools in the modern healthcare CMO’s arsenal, which is increasingly omni-channel, data-driven, and needs to be hyper-personalized.
Today's episode focuses on the reinvention of the healthcare chief marketing officer. Host Gary Druckenmiller, Jr., Innovaccer’s general manager of CRM, speaks with special guest Dorie Klissas, chief marketing and communications officer at Hackensack Meridian Health.
An Emmy Award-winning producer for Today on NBC and former Chief Medical Producer for the CBS Evening News, Dorie oversees all marketing, communications, media relations, crisis management, brand, creative, digital, social media, and video and podcast production for the 17-hospital system spanning New Jersey’s Bergen and Ocean Counties.
Together, Gary and Dorie delve into the dynamic and changing role of the healthcare CMO. Here’s what they discussed:
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It's best to let some things marinate. And so it is with HIMSS, the year's largest healthcare IT trade show. Many folks are quick to draw conclusions about what they heard and learned, but given the size and scope of the annual exhibition—35,000 attendees this year (close to 2019's 40,000 record) and nearly 1,600 sessions and exhibits—maybe it's wise to wait a little while and let that information sink in, and give our minds some time to process it before drawing conclusions or taking actions.
It's in that spirit that we bring you several members of our CMO (Chief Medical Officer) team, including our CMO himself, Dr. David Nace, in a lively roundtable discussion that takes a look back at HIMSS23, digests the team's key take-aways, shares some trend spotting and action items, and then looks ahead to where healthcare might (or can!) be by the time we all meet again at HIMSS24.
There's even one moment of stunned silence in response to a provocative observation shared by one of the panelists. What's your opinion? Share it on our LinkedIn page.
Joining Dr. Nace for this latest CMOcast are Dr. Anil Jain, Innovaccer's chief innovation officer; Mike Sutten, Innovaccer's chief technology officer; and Rich Levin, our host for today's show.
Here are some highlights of what they discussed, but there's lots more ground covered, so be sure to tune in!
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Today's show brings together Lisa Williams, Senior Director of Growth and Loyalty at Peace Health, and Gary Druckenmiller, General Manager of Consumer and CRM at Innovations, to discuss the topic of "growth versus loyalty" in healthcare. They delve into the impact of healthcare consumerism on people and communities, and share a framework for a full end-to-end journey in healthcare. They also touch upon classic marketing aspects often ignored or misunderstood in healthcare, such as the importance of similar clinic and storefront names, the need for different departments to work closely together on the patient experience, and prioritizing patient experience goals across departments. Today's show is packed with great take-aways on the world of healthcare consumerism and engagement; the importance of balancing growth and loyalty when providing effective care, and the role of digital tools, patient engagement, and community involvement in improving healthcare outcomes. Here are some of the many points Gary and Lisa discuss:
• Setting the stage on "growth versus loyalty" • Healthcare consumerism and its changing impact on people and communities • Establishing a framework for a full end-to-end journey in healthcare • Pain and suffering in healthcare scheduling • The importance of similar names and storefronts and clinics • Garbage in, garbage out sentiment in the work of health systems • Consumer acquisition and its impact on health systems • Methods to alleviate workforce shortages and staff displacement • Prioritizing goals and aligning priorities across departments • The challenge of achieving a commonality of goals • How different departments can work more closely together • Patient experience's influence on retention • Feedback and improving patient experience • Strategic business development goals and profitability in healthcare • Understanding diverse perspectives on telehealth and online scheduling • Metrics for success in healthcare • Providing a cohesive and intuitive patient journey • Digital front doors: where they work, where they fail • Social media and privatized healthcare media • Health equity's connection to patient engagement • Younger doctors as advocates for digital tools • Building patient trust in providers and programs • Technology and data failures in healthcare • Creating effective content and data for patients • Measuring success and failures, and what metrics matter • How to test marketing systems in healthcare • The idea of secret patients in healthcare
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Starting with a CMS demonstration project of only ten providers in 2005, today’s value-based care (VBC)一when including MIPS and MACRA一now carries close to 100% primary care provider participation. And nearly 60% of all healthcare payments have some relation to quality and value—with rising levels of reimbursement related to risk and population.
However, why have some of the promises around cost savings and outcomes not lived up to expectations? Will specialists, as well as secondary and tertiary care adopt VBC? What role does data readiness play in VBC success, and what can we expect over the next five years and beyond?
Recent research from Morning Consult, commissioned by Innovaccer, looks at these questions and more. To discuss the research and more, we assembled a roundtable discussion with a panel of VBC experts. Host and Innovaccer Chief Medical Officer, Dr. David Nace takes the audience on a guided journey through the past, present, and future of VBC with our guests, including:
Amy Stevens, General Manager of Provider Performance and Value Innovation at Innovaccer; Eric Weaver, Executive Director at the Institute for Advancing Health Value; and Dr. Brian Silverstein, Chief Population Health Officer at Innovaccer.
Here’s what the panel discussed:
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When you think of “informatics,” what do you see? Data centers, high speed connections, data and analytics platforms, AI, ML, and NLP?
If so, here’s a surprise: the roots of nursing informatics go back to the 1850’s, where Florence Nightingale captured and used data in efforts to improve sanitation that impacted medical protocols in military hospitals.
Today, nursing informatics is among the mission critical roles in healthcare. Its leaders are accountable for many challenges and needs including clinical team workflow, staffing and retention, supply chain, informatics solution development and implementation (now with IT, of course), digital transformation and analytics. And increasingly, they have a leadership seat at the executive table.
In fact, given where healthcare is at today, nursing informatics leaders are among those at the epicenter of healthcare’s greatest challenges. How are they handling nursing shortages? What data and digital transformation investments are they focused on? How are informatics impacting health equity and patient experience? Which metrics have become most important to meet?
To answer those questions and more, we’re privileged to enjoy a candid conversation with Brian Norris, Vice President and CNIO at Indiana University Health, and a top, well-cited nursing informatics leader. Podcast host Steve Ambrose covered these topics and more with Brian:
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In any industry, it’s rare to find a C-suite leader who talks “inside baseball on the outside, sharing views with candor that’s normally reserved for the boardroom. But that’s not Jeb Dunkelberger, CEO of Promise Health Plan. Jeb isn’t afraid to go after healthcare’s sacrosanct topics, speaking truth to power in an effort to spark an open dialog, however heated or defensive, to effect change.
Jeb is the author of over one hundred articles about improving the healthcare industry, and has held executive roles for Fortune 5 companies, and part of some of Silicon Valley’s most disruptive health startups. His education includes healthcare-related degrees from Virginia Tech, London School of Economics, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Cornell, and the University of Pennsylvania.
Jeb joins us on today’s show to discuss his popular book, Rich & Dying. The book is a manifesto on American healthcare that reflects Jeb’s experience, passion, and humor to serve to untangle the complexity of misaligned incentives, structural problems in our system, and pitfalls of reform attempts. The book also provides Jeb’s nine core elements to drive innovative initiatives and foundational changes needed to transform the current health system.
Our discussion touches on:
Why our healthcare system is actually not broken—but works great! (I see you scratching your head…) Four free-market principles missing from healthcare The emerging new actors in creating value How to drive greater value-based reimbursement adoption with specialists Medicaid’s misaligned mix: when federal funding meets state implementation Jeb’s top concern on the current value-based reimbursement model Obvious and much-needed changes in grading and paying doctors Key factors of attribution and measurement that are holding back VBC growth Why organizations say they want to “fix healthcare”—and then don’t Why many of today’s healthcare CEOs have become NFL running backs The one escape valve hospitals are looking for in today’s economic climate Two inescapable realities for achieving meaningful system change Five challenges that have kept many retailers in healthcare from generating ROI
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When seeing our provider, how often have we felt like number 32 at the deli counter?
Customer relationship management (CRM) is used throughout healthcare, but the solutions are often limited by merchant-centric design, add-on solutions from EHRs lacking a 360-degree view of the patient, and a lack of data readiness to provide insights that inform better decisions and actions.
How does going beyond traditional CRM solutions to truly know patients as people, and respecting and responding to their role as consumers, influence the clinical, operational, and financial segments of a provider organization? And how will multiple sources of patient data be unlocked, integrated, and optimized to deliver a powerful and personalized health 1:1 journey?
Today’s show convenes an expert provider panel to answer those questions and more. With us is Alexa Warner, System Director of Consumer Marketing at Bon Secours Mercy Health; Ryan Nagdeman, Associate Vice President of Marketing for Rush University System for Health; and host Gary Druckenmiller, General Manager of Customer Relationships Management at Innovaccer.
And when you’re done listening to the show, take the CRM maturity assessment to see where your health organization stands.
Here’s what they discussed:
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Prescriptions are involved in nearly 70% of every clinical encounter in the U.S. each year, with more than 4.5 billion prescriptions filled and dispensed for nearly two-thirds of all US adults. Yet for all the lives saved and care outcomes improved, medication management has a dark side.
Each year, suboptimal medication use—through inaccurate prescribing, medication errors, and medication non-adherence results in $528.4 billion wasted annually. The CDC notes that adverse drug events or ADEs in the US are responsible for 1.3 million emergency department visits every year.
These are just a few of the many challenges inherent in the mismanagement of medications, needing to be rectified through a proven process known as comprehensive medication management (CMM). In short, CMM is underutilized—and because it’s not widely understood, organizations and healthcare stakeholders are limited in their ability to lower costs, restore health in individuals and communities, and save more lives.
On today's show, we've assembled an expert panel to weigh in on the state of affairs in CMM: Katie Capps, co-founder, and executive director of Get the Medications Right Institute; Robert Fortini, vice president of Care Coordination at Catholic Health Services of Long Island Physician Partners; Corrine Leong Lee, director of Pharmacy Services at Catholic Health Services of Long Island ACO Partners; and Dr. Paul Grundy, chief transformation officer at Innovaccer and president of Get the Medication Right Institute.
Here’s what they discussed:
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Today’s medical care often misses the life story of a patient and its link to behaviors and context that can negatively affect health outcomes.
The context of one’s life—personal, family, community, environmental, financial, psychosocial—is an integral part of the individuals' healthcare experience. These contextual challenges are not the same as social determinants of health, though they are connected to and compounded by SDoHs, such as economic inequality, poor housing, access to care, and more.
Despite more than a decade of positive research featured in respected medical publications and journals, contextualization has remained off the radar of many healthcare organizations. But now that value, health equity, and SDoH have become paramount for providers, contextualization is finally emerging as a key need for driving better outcomes.
Today’s guest, Dr. Zeev Neuwirth, explains the value of contextualizing care, and how organizations can integrate it into today’s care. Dr. Neuwirth is Atrium Health’s Clinical Chief of Care Transformation and Strategic Services, and hosts one of the top healthcare podcasts, Creating a New Healthcare. A nationally recognized thought leader, he is also the author of Reframing Healthcare - a roadmap for creating disruptive change, which has earned a 4.7/5 rating on Amazon, and continues to be read and used by healthcare leaders and organizations across the country.
Joining Dr. Neuwirth on the show is Innovaccer’s Chief Population Health Officer, Dr. Brian Silverstein. Here’s what they discussed:
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Today’s medical care often misses the life story of a patient and its link to behaviors and context that can negatively affect health outcomes.
The context of one’s life—personal, family, community, environmental, financial, psychosocial—is an integral part of the individuals' healthcare experience. These contextual challenges are not the same as social determinants of health, though they are connected to and compounded by SDoHs, such as economic inequality, poor housing, access to care, and more.
Despite more than a decade of positive research featured in respected medical publications and journals, contextualization has remained off the radar of many healthcare organizations. But now that value, health equity, and SDoH have become paramount for providers, contextualization is finally emerging as a key need for driving better outcomes.
Today’s guest, Dr. Zeev Neuwirth, explains the value of contextualizing care, and how organizations can integrate it into today’s care. Dr. Neuwirth is Atrium Health’s Clinical Chief of Care Transformation and Strategic Services, and hosts one of the top healthcare podcasts, Creating a New Healthcare. A nationally recognized thought leader, he is also the author of Reframing Healthcare - a roadmap for creating disruptive change, which has earned a 4.7/5 rating on Amazon, and continues to be read and used by healthcare leaders and organizations across the country.
Joining Dr. Neuwirth on the show is Innovaccer’s Chief Population Health Officer, Dr. Brian Silverstein. Here’s what they discussed:
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“During COVID, I couldn’t make a contribution at the bedside. But I could make a lasting contribution, through my most powerful weapon—the written word.” - Dr. David Nash
Renowned care quality and healthcare reform expert Dr. David Nash committed to the power of the pen to shine a light on why the U.S. lost more patients to COVID-19 than any other nation, and why the American health system tragically collapsed during the first wave of the pandemic.
In his highly acclaimed new book, How Covid Crashed the System: A Guide to Fixing American Health Care, Dr. Nash digs deep and uncovers root causes that unraveled the world's most advanced and expensive health system. He and co-author Charles Wohlforth then share their analysis, lessons that must be learned, and report-driven recommendations for transforming America’s sick healthcare system to ensure such a national disaster doesn’t happen again.
On today’s show, we’re honored to have Dr. Nash, Founding Dean Emeritus of the Jefferson College of Population Health, join us for a wide-ranging discussion with Innovaccer’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Nace, Chief Population Health Officer Dr. Brian Silverstein, and show host Steve Ambrose.
Here’s what the Innovaccer Book Club panel discussed:
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“During COVID, I couldn’t make a contribution at the bedside. But I could make a lasting contribution, through my most powerful weapon—the written word.” - Dr. David Nash
Renowned care quality and healthcare reform expert Dr. David Nash committed to the power of the pen to shine a light on why the U.S. lost more patients to COVID-19 than any other nation, and why the American health system tragically collapsed during the first wave of the pandemic.
In his highly acclaimed new book, How Covid Crashed the System: A Guide to Fixing American Health Care, Dr. Nash digs deep and uncovers root causes that unraveled the world's most advanced and expensive health system. He and co-author Charles Wohlforth then share their analysis, lessons that must be learned, and report-driven recommendations for transforming America’s sick healthcare system to ensure such a national disaster doesn’t happen again.
On today’s show, we’re honored to have Dr. Nash, Founding Dean Emeritus of the Jefferson College of Population Health, join us for a wide-ranging discussion with Innovaccer’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. David Nace, Chief Population Health Officer Dr. Brian Silverstein, and show host Steve Ambrose.
Here’s what the Innovaccer Book Club panel discussed:
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A recent Morning Consult report revealed 95% of healthcare IT leaders are focused on digital transformation as a top priority. Only a year or two ago, EHRs were at the forefront of provider efforts to hit the triple aim–and today, nearly 6 in 10 see their EHR as a limitation holding back their enterprise data strategy.
For all their good, EHRs have been plagued by inconsistent data entry, insufficient workflow support, cognitive overload for users, rising levels of user burnout, as well as lack of complete data integration for effective and safe care management.
With healthcare costs, patient outcomes, and reduced operating margins on the rise, how can providers improve the limitations in their EHRs? Where should they be investing and most focused on, to best execute on transformation? How will company-based interoperability and unified patient records play a key role?
Our guest is here to answer those questions, and many others. Dr. Alan Weiss, CMIO at BayCare Health System is an industry leader, who holds responsibilities over all their clinical systems, associated governance, as well as over providing executive leadership of data and analytics. He recently won the Changemaker in Health Award from HIMSS, for his work in helping to refine EHRs, use the data within it to help improve quality, address operational concerns, and improve efficiencies.
Joining Dr. Weiss on today’s show is Dr. Anil Jain, chief innovation officer at Innovaccer. Here’s what they discussed:
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A recent Morning Consult report revealed 95% of healthcare IT leaders are focused on digital transformation as a top priority. Only a year or two ago, EHRs were at the forefront of provider efforts to hit the triple aim–and today, nearly 6 in 10 see their EHR as a limitation holding back their enterprise data strategy.
For all their good, EHRs have been plagued by inconsistent data entry, insufficient workflow support, cognitive overload for users, rising levels of user burnout, as well as lack of complete data integration for effective and safe care management.
With healthcare costs, patient outcomes, and reduced operating margins on the rise, how can providers improve the limitations in their EHRs? Where should they be investing and most focused on, to best execute on transformation? How will company-based interoperability and unified patient records play a key role?
Our guest is here to answer those questions, and many others. Dr. Alan Weiss, CMIO at BayCare Health System is an industry leader, who holds responsibilities over all their clinical systems, associated governance, as well as over providing executive leadership of data and analytics. He recently won the Changemaker in Health Award from HIMSS, for his work in helping to refine EHRs, use the data within it to help improve quality, address operational concerns, and improve efficiencies.
Joining Dr. Weiss on today’s show is Dr. Anil Jain, chief innovation officer at Innovaccer. Here’s what they discussed:
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Dr. David Rhew is the Global Chief Medical Officer and VP of Healthcare at Microsoft. Recognized as one of Modern Healthcare’s top 50 most-influential persons in healthcare, he is a sought-after speaker who holds numerous patents in electronic health records and clinical decision support technology.
In his more than 25 years as an infectious disease doctor, researcher, and successful healthcare IT executive, Dr. Rhew has a track record of uniquely connecting technology to medicine. It’s proven valuable for his part in evaluating and developing technologies that have improved outcomes in care quality, access, safety—as well as accelerating innovation around bettering patient and provider experience.
Joining Dr. Rhew on today’s show is Dr. David Nace, Chief Medical Officer at Innovaccer. They cast a wide net as they grapple with today’s biggest industry challenges, and look at technology’s role in transforming healthcare through innovation. Here’s some of what they discussed in this expansive conversation:
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Data interoperability: will it ever become a reality in our healthcare system?
The answer could be an emphatic “yes.” That’s because on January 18, 2022, the National Coordinator for Health IT (ONC) and its Recognized Coordinating Entity (RCE), The Sequoia Project, released the publication of the Trusted Exchange Framework and the Common Agreement, or TEFCA.
A requirement of the 21st Century Cures Act, TEFCA is the single biggest step to make access to and sharing of electronic health information a reality between America’s health information networks, providers, payers, and patients.
How will it work? When will it start? What stakeholders will be involved? Who will enforce it? How will it impact many of today’s healthcare challenges?
Here to answer those questions and more is one of most recognized champions for healthcare data interoperability, Mariann Yeager. Mariann is the CEO of The Sequoia Project, an independent trusted advocate responsible for the development and implementation of TEFCA’s Common Agreement; as well as the designation and monitoring of its Qualified Health Information Networks, or QHINs.
Joining Mariann on today’s show is Dr. Anil Jain, chief innovation officer at Innovaccer. Here’s what they connected on:
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Data has become the chief catalyst, and common thread, for the future transformation of our healthcare system. Through its application of computer and information science, health informatics is a major driver for meaningful change through improvements in clinical care, public health, life sciences research, and interoperability.
What are the trends in today’s health informatics? And how will this discipline help deliver our sick-care based system into a foundation of true whole-person health?
Today’s show helps answer those questions and more with one of the most well-known and respected leaders in medical informatics, Dr. Marion Ball, the executive director at MICHI, or the Multi-Interprofessional Center of Health Informatics at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Selected as one of the 50 most influential IT professionals over the last 50 years by HIMSS, Dr. Ball is an author/editor of over 25 books and over 230 articles in the field of health informatics. She has also been recognized as one of the most powerful women in healthcare IT by Health Data Management.
Leading the conversation with Dr. Ball on today’s show is Dr. Paul Grundy, Chief Transformation Officer at Innovaccer. Here's what they discussed:
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Earlier this month, Innovaccer’s Xccelerate conference brought together new thinking, valuable insights, critical conversations, and a shared vision on how patient data—unified and universally shared across consumer, care, and business settings—will be the biggest driver for accelerating the innovation and digital transformation that fundamentally improves healthcare.
Dr. Jack Cochran was one of two visionary keynote speakers to kick off the conference and take the stage at Xccelerate 2022. The author of the acclaimed book Healer, Leader, Partner*, Dr. Cochran is renowned for his efforts to help physicians become effective leaders for transforming healthcare so it can consistently deliver what patients want, need, and deserve.
While serving as CEO for the Permanente Federation, he led clinical quality and engagement, and oversaw more than 20,000 physicians caring for over 10 million patients. Under his leadership, Kaiser Permanente completed the largest civilian deployment of a clinical information system to date, and was recognized as a national leader in clinical quality by Medicare’s Star program, the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), and other organizations.
One of Modern Healthcare’s “50 Most Influential Physician Executives and Leaders,” Dr. Cochran connected with us during Xccelerate 2022 to talk about what he sees as today’s top challenges in healthcare, and the role of physicians in driving industry-wide transformation—including why doctors must develop the leadership and partnering skills essential to driving transformation, in addition to their traditional roles as healers, confidants, and caregivers.
We know you’re wondering who the other keynote speaker was. It was Billy Beane, executive VP of the Oakland A’s, and subject of the book Moneyball.
A journey from physician to physician-leader
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Consumerism in healthcare has made “webside manner” as important as bedside manner. It’s no secret that lessons learned from the pandemic have motivated providers and payers to rethink strategies around patient access and experience, retail care competition, partnerships, and care delivery and payment models, and more.
But rethinking isn’t action. What do healthcare stakeholders need to do to adapt to market forces that are radically reshaping the industry? Today's show attempts to answer that question and more, with a roundtable discussion that offers a wealth of fresh thinking around healthcare consumerism: where it's been, where it's at, and most importantly, where it's headed and how to thrive in an industry that’s changing faster than ever.
Our panel includes Beth Bierbower, host of the B-Time podcast, and a healthcare leader with over 30 years of experience on the payer side, including President of Humana’s employer group segment. Joining Beth is Jared Johnson, host of the Healthcare Rap podcast; and Gary Druckenmiller, managing director of PRM (Patient Relationship Management) at Innovaccer.
Here’s what the panel discussed:
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How can providers improve their ability to meet the business and clinical performance targets in their contracts? With tighter operating margins and rising costs, it's a critical concern shared by provider organizations in both the fee-for-service and value-based worlds.
Here to help us answer that question and more is Amy Stevens, a nationally known healthcare leader who recently joined Innovaccer as General Manager of Provider Performance and Value Innovation. Amy has over 20 years of leadership experience inside health systems, ranging from large for-profits, such as HCA, to smaller regional not-for-profits. She’s been a chief strategy officer and a chief operating officer, and led one of the industry’s first clinical integration networks.
More recently Amy has been helping health systems, children's hospitals, and payers transform their digital journey. At Innovaccer, she’s focused on helping providers unlock the power of data to improve their ability to achieve the business and clinical performance targets in their contracts.
On today’s show, we speak with Amy about her views on how to improve healthcare business performance, using data to drive predictability in revenue, the vast and untapped power of SDoH, tools providers can use to achieve higher levels of value-based care delivery, building future-proofed healthcare systems, and more.
Here’s what we discussed:
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The CMS's Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) recently announced the strategic redesign of their current Global and Professional Direct Contracting (GPDC) model.
Beginning in January 2023, the redesigned program, known as ACO REACH, seeks to drive greater provider participation and improved quality of care, with a strong focus on improving health equity and closing the gaps for millions of vulnerable beneficiaries.
For today's show, we've assembled an expert panel to weigh in on the new ACO REACH model, including its framework, benefits, and opportunities.
On the panel: Melanie Matthews, CEO of PSW and Northwest Momentum Health Partners ACO, and President of MultiCare Connected Care. She has more than 20 years in cost-of-care management, CMMI value-based care models, and is a leading voice of physician health policies.
Joining Melanie on the panel are Brian Silverstein, MD, chief population health officer at Innovaccer; and Dan Roberts, national director for value engineering at Innovaccer.
Here’s what they discussed:
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Dr. Nicole Fetter is a partner in the health segment of Guidehouse, recognized as the third largest healthcare management consulting firm by Modern Healthcare in 2021.
On today's show, Dr. Fetter joins Charu Madan, Innovaccer's VP of partnerships, and show host Steve Ambrose, to discuss the elements of a sound strategy to accelerate providers' transition to value. They also identify common pitfalls often encountered on the road to transformation, and share proven approaches for overcoming them.
Here's what they covered:
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Today’s special guest, Dr. Subir Roy, Takeda’s Associate Director of Global Medical Affairs, has been at the intersection of pharma, commercial strategy, data, and technology helping drive greater results in drug development, commercialization, and patient outcomes.
He believes that unifying siloed data from patients, providers, and other healthcare stakeholders will be like striking the mother lode for life sciences companies. Eureka effects are waiting to be unleashed by the insights now hidden by fragmented patient data.
Joining Dr. Roy on today’s show is Dr. Anupam Kulkarni, Associate Director, Life Sciences, at Innovaccer. Before joining Innovaccer,, Dr. Kulkarni was at Roche and played an integral role in one of the fastest drug-to-market releases in India.
Here's what they discussed.
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Burnout. It’s a national epidemic that’s wearing down physicians and nurses, fueling the staffing crisis, and by extension, reducing care quality and degrading the patient experience. The pandemic isn’t the only factor. Clinicians across the country cite EHR documentation and other administrative work as a major burnout driver.
The need to lighten the load and bring back the joy of practice is the mantra for Jallel Harrati, SVP of sales and marketing at Suki. Their transformational solutions use the power of voice and the latest AI technologies to increase patient facetime, reduce burnout, and rejuvenate the joy of practice for physicians.
On today’s show, Jallel and host Charu Madan, Innovaccer’s VP of partnerships and alliances, unpack the burnout crisis and discuss:
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Health systems and hospitals are losing revenue and patients in an escalating competition for care services. Challengers—including major retail, pharmacy, telemedicine, and virtual health brands—are thriving, in part by strategically reframing patients as consumers.
That's not news. But there's another reframing they're doing as part of this, which today's guest calls "hard vs. soft healthcare." Understanding and acting on this concept is crucial for traditional provider organizations, who face a must-win moment across the primary, ambulatory, and home-based care segments.
How providers choose to frame patient engagement beyond the established "patient as consumer" theme will dictate how they can compete and thrive over the next decade and beyond.
Gary Druckenmiller, Patient Relationship Management leader at Innovaccer, dives into and explains this new framing on today's show, and explains how hospitals and health systems can make the most of this differentiating shift.
Here’s what we discussed:
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Sriram (Sri) Bharadwaj has an unconventional view about digital transformation. It’s more about the transformation and less about the digital.
As VP of digital innovation at Franciscan Alliance, Bharadwaj notes that healthcare IT largely equates "digital" with the EHR. He says health systems must understand that transformation goes beyond the technology: it's about transforming the workflows, and transforming access to information and experiences for patients, providers, and all care stakeholders.
It's about the people.
On today’s show, Dr. Anil Jain speaks with Sri Bharadwaj to find out how his health system is moving beyond the EHR to drive transformation that fundamentally changes how care teams collaborate, how patients engage with the health system, and how quality care is delivered and measured.
They discuss:
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Perspective. Today it matters more than ever, in this critical time for provider organizations. And few people have a greater perspective than Dr. Glenn Steele, former President and CEO of Geisinger Health System.
Dr. Steele's leadership was instrumental in establishing Geisinger as a "regional clinical powerhouse with over $3.4 billion in reserves and a national reputation for care system innovation," according to Health Affairs.
Among his many innovations, Dr. Steele ushered in more innovative uses of the EHR and healthcare IT; and implemented an award-winning care model that blends clinical transformation, growth strategy, and the industry's first clinical services warranty program.
Today he serves as Chairman at GSteele Health Solutions and City of Hope. We invited Dr. Steele to share his perspective on some of the top issues facing healthcare leaders today, including:
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Today we're speaking with one of the pioneers of digital transformation: Phil Fasano, now CEO of Bay Advisors, formerly executive vice president and CIO Kaiser Permanente, one of the country’s largest nonprofit healthcare organizations.
Phil ushered in the first EHRs and innovative mobile experiences to improve patient care, create great consumer experiences, and boost staff productivity—all efforts that were years (even decades) ahead of their time.
These days Phil is supporting innovative companies, private equity, and VC firms through his consultancy, Bay Advisors.
Joining Phil on today's show are Sean Hogan, general manager at Innovaccer; and Gary Druckenmiller, category leader for Patient Relationship Management at Innovaccer.
Here's what they discussed.
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A “fireside chat” with Innovaccer CEO Abhinav Shashank and Mubadala Capital’s Alaa Halawa
In December, we announced a $150 million Series E round at a $3.2 billion valuation, led by Mubadala Capital. Existing investors include B Capital Group, Microsoft’s M12 fund, OMERS Growth Equity, Steadview Capital, Tiger Global Management; and new investors Whalerock Capital, Avidity Partners, and Schonfeld Strategic Advisors.
What is it about Innovaccer, our Health Cloud and data platform, that’s generating immense interest among the investment community, not to mention providers, payers, and life sciences companies in the healthcare marketplace? Just ask Alaa Halawa, Partner and Head of the US Ventures business at Mubadala Capital, who led this Series E round.
He sat down with Innovaccer’s CEO Abhinav Shashank to talk about the company, Abhinav’s personal journey and background, and the transformative potential of the Innovaccer Health Cloud for accelerating healthcare innovation.
Alaa first met Abhinav in 2019 and was inspired by his vision to build a company that seamlessly integrates all the data silos in a healthcare ecosystem and unlocks data’s potential for building innovative applications—all with an eye to make the healthcare system more efficient and effective at improving patient lives.
Here’s what they cover in this video one-on-one:
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Few things have impacted healthcare over the past decade as much as the CMS Innovation Center's strategy. The past ten years of industry participation in Innovation Center testing and learning laid the groundwork for CMS's effort to drive broad and equitable
health system transformation.
Get ready for the next decade. This month CMS released its "Innovation Center Strategy Refresh," its bold roadmap for driving innovation in healthcare for its second decade of operation.
On today's show, David Nace, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Innovaccer, leads a vibrant roundtable discussion with all of the members of Innovaccer's Office of the Chief Medical Officer. The team discusses and debates their views, reactions, analysis, and counsel on all five of the CMS Innovation Centers objectives for the next decade.
The roundtable also covers a variety of other healthcare industry topics that have been making headlines, as well as what they've been hearing from and discussing with healthcare leaders across the industry.
Today's expert panel (all are members of Innovaccer's Office of the Chief Medical Officer):
You can also watch today's show on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/Mpz7X0t89Zs
Here's everything the team covered. Warning: they cover a LOT of ground!
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Seth Joseph's two-part article, "The EHR Is Dead, Long Live The EHR Platform," caused a stir when it was published by Forbes. Seth makes the case that the nation’s embrace of EHRs has failed to meet expectations, including improving care coordination, reducing overutilization and waste, enhancing patient safety, and more. On today's show, Sean Hogan interviews Seth to discuss the current and future state of the EHR; the need for information liquidity to enable holistic clinical insights and care delivery; and the role of innovation, platforms, and "network effects" to help providers transform and drive better clinical, financial, and operational outcomes.
Seth Joseph is managing director of Summit Health, a strategy consultancy focused on digital health. Seth's articles have appeared in Health Affairs, JAMIA, AJMC, and other publications. Sean Hogan is general manager at Innovaccer.
They cover:
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Gregg Loughman, CEO of Perception Health, has a problem with one of healthcare's most used phrases: actionable insights. "If insights were easily actionable, then as a country we would not rank where we do in terms of mortality, morbidity, and healthcare outcomes for different disease states. The data is there," Loughman says. "The insights are there. The question is, what is the willingness to change?"
On today's show, Innovaccer's Charu Madan and Rich Levin interview Loughman to find out how Perception Health is helping providers go beyond actionable insights, and into the realm of "decision intelligence"—a truly unique approach to healthcare analytics that, Loughman says, can have a profound impact on population health and the cost of care.
Our panel: Gregg Loughman, CEO, Perception Health; Charu Madan, vice president of partnerships and digital health, Innovaccer; and Rich Levin, vice president of content at Innovaccer.
They discuss:
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Kevin Brennan is a healthcare change agent. He was instrumental in driving innovation at Geisinger during his 23 year role as CFO, where he helped the organization embrace healthcare IT to capture, collect, and use data in novel and impactful ways. Those innovations helped evolve the organization into a high-performance national leader in value-based care delivery, providing high-quality care and superior patient experiences for millions of people at costs well below the national average.
On today's show, Dr. David Nace and Kevin Brennan discuss the innovation lessons Mr. Brennen learned over his 35 year career in healthcare finance; unpack his advice for how payers and providers can accelerate innovation to support value-based care; explore the role of IT innovation in a health system; and explain how finance officers can be a catalyst for change that puts the patient back at the center of healthcare.
Today's panel features David Nace, MD, chief medical officer at Innovaccer; and Kevin Brennan, CPA, FHFMA, a principal at SunStone Consulting. Previously, Mr. Brennan was the CFO of Geisinger Health System for 23 years, where he managed annual net revenues of nearly $7 billion; and is a former national chair of the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA). Mr. Brennan is also a member of Innovaccer's strategic advisory board.
They dig into:
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Dr. Eric Weaver saw what he calls "the dark underbelly of fee-for-service medicine" and how it doesn't always work in the best interest of patient care. He left the FFS world, started an ACO, and never looked back. Now, as executive director of the Accountable Care Learning Collaborative (ACLC), he joins other national leaders driving the movement towards value-based care, and the digital transformation that enables it.
On today's show, Dr. Nace and Dr. Weaver discuss why the healthcare industry has been slow to embrace value and move to risk. They also discuss what the ACLC is doing to help organizations make the leap from "what to do" to "how to do it," and the care-delivery competencies that can help assure success in risk-bearing payment models.
Today's panelists are David Nace, MD, chief medical officer at Innovaccer; and Eric Weaver, DHA, MHA, executive director of the Accountable Care Learning Collaborative.
They discuss:
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Surgeons who use data and predictive modeling can help improve care quality and outcomes, and lower healthcare system costs, for one reason: they have a better understanding of what patients need, including social factors, and can marshal the appropriate resources to help them at the right time, in the right way.
Listen in as Dr. David Nace and Dr. Douglas Slakey discuss the outsized role of social determinants of health (SDoH) in influencing patient behavior, care, outcomes, and costs in healthcare. They also discuss why health systems need to share data across disciplines and care settings; and how providers can use analytics to go beyond standards—not giving up on them, but enhancing them with a broader approach—to understand and act on patient needs and resources to optimize outcomes.
Today's panel: David Nace, MD, chief medical officer at Innovaccer; and Douglas Slakey, MD, Professor and Chief Surgical Services at CMC, Program Director General Surgery Residency, Advocate Aurora Health.
They discuss:
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