Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT / Advancing Care Through Connection and Digital Innovation with Matthew Harinstein, MD, MBA

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Advancing Care Through Connection and Digital Innovation with Matthew Harinstein, MD, MBA · Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT

• 0:02
  At athenahealth,
• 0:03
  we know your ambulatory practice wants healthier, a
• 0:06
  healthier business, healthier care teams, and healthier patients.
• 0:10
  But the complexities of modern health care tech
• 0:12
  make it hard for you and your care
• 0:14
  teams to focus on what matters
• 0:16
  most? That's where athenahealth can help. Our AI
• 0:19
  native all in one solutions reduce administrative burdens,
• 0:22
  streamline billing and payments, and deliver critical insights
• 0:25
  when clinicians need it most. That means fewer
• 0:28
  clicks, more time for patients, and stronger bottom
• 0:31
  lines.
• 0:32
  Practicing medicine is complex, but running a practice
• 0:35
  can be that much simpler with athenahealth.
• 0:38
  See how simpler is healthier@athenahealth.com.
• 0:43
  Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Becker's Health Health
• 0:45
  Care podcast. I'm Scott King. Thrilled today to
• 0:48
  be joined by Matthew Harenstein, vice president and
• 0:51
  associate chief medical officer over at Northwell. Matthew,
• 0:54
  thanks so much for joining us today. How
• 0:56
  are you doing?
• 0:57
  I'm great. Thanks so much for having me,
• 0:59
  Scott. It's a it's a great honor to
• 1:00
  be here and a a pleasure to share
• 1:02
  a little bit about what we've been doing.
• 1:04
  Of course. And we really appreciate your time,
• 1:06
  and and we're gonna appreciate your expertise diving
• 1:07
  into some kind of big topics and trends
• 1:10
  going on in health care right now. But
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  before we jump to the questions, just wondering
• 1:13
  if you could please introduce yourself and just
• 1:15
  tell us a little bit about your background.
• 1:18
  Yes. Absolutely. So I'm doctor Matthew Harenstein.
• 1:21
  I am, vice president and an associate chief
• 1:23
  medical officer at Northwell Health. I'm also a
• 1:26
  practicing cardiologist
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  and have spent, much of my career focused
• 1:30
  on, cardiovascular imaging, specifically nuclear cardiology
• 1:33
  and echocardiography,
• 1:35
  as well as assessment of, perioperative patients and,
• 1:39
  in cardio oncology.
• 1:41
  Before joining Northwell, I spent about fifteen years
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  at UPMC in Pittsburgh.
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  I held roles, that bridge clinical medicine, physician
• 1:48
  leadership, and administration,
• 1:50
  both domestically and internationally.
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  What really drew drew me to
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  Northwell was its phenomenal and unique culture.
• 1:58
  I think one that balances clinical excellence,
• 2:01
  optimal care of the patients, innovation,
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  and really focuses on, the workforce.
• 2:06
  In my current role, I work, with our
• 2:09
  chief medical officer in the CMO office,
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  as well as hospital leaders to help advance
• 2:14
  system integration, efforts to strengthen our culture,
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  support our providers,
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  and enhance engagement across our system.
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  Thanks so much for sharing that background information.
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  And to get to the the trends in
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  health care I I had mentioned,
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  what opportunities and headwinds do you have your
• 2:30
  eye on right now in health care?
• 2:34
  Great question. There there's a number of opportunities,
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  really across the continuum, but, you know, the
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  the couple that I'm focused on specifically are,
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  really around using data and digital tools to
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  advance our care and to allow providers, to
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  spend more time with the patients and also
• 2:49
  helping to identify patients who may benefit,
• 2:52
  from specific types of care. So a lot
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  of opportunity to use AI and, you know,
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  look at patients who might qualify for particular
• 2:59
  treatments or procedures
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  and help them to to receive the right
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  care that they need and also to really
• 3:05
  help with, our providers and promote,
• 3:08
  you know, a culture that allows them to
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  be as satisfied as possible.
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  I think if we can use some of
• 3:14
  these tools to identify patients who'd benefit from
• 3:17
  procedures such as diabetes or cardiovascular care or
• 3:21
  things like structural heart procedures,
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  we can help to really optimize our clinical
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  pathways and workflows.
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  Think another,
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  opportunity
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  is really for us around the integration between
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  Northwell and Nuvance Health, which started, this year.
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  It's it's not really just about combining two
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  systems, but it's really about creating,
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  a system that's even stronger. It's now,
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  allowing us to unify, you know, best practices
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  from both Northwell and Nuvance,
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  elevate,
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  quality across, the regions,
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  and really leverage all of the resources and
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  clinical expertise that now,
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  sit anywhere between Long Island through New York,
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  and into Connecticut,
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  and to really make those available to to
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  all of our patients.
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  I think at the same time, regarding the
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  headwinds that we're that we're seeing, I think
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  a lot of these are ones that many
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  health systems are facing right now in terms
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  of workforce challenges,
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  financial constraints, and the pace of change.
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  The key is, I think, maintaining a culture
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  where people feel valued and supported, and their
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  well-being is promoted.
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  From my perspective, I think when employees
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  feel satisfied in their roles, when they feel
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  seen or heard or connected to their purpose,
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  I think everyone is more efficient, productive, and
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  ultimately happier. So if we can make sure
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  that every one of our staff members from
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  administration
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  to ancillary services to the provider level is
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  satisfied in what they're doing. I think everybody,
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  works better. And, really, who benefits the most
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  is, our patients who receive the best care,
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  and have the best experience.
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  And, doctor Herndon, I just wanna follow-up on
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  on something you said. You you said you're
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  using
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  your system's implementing AI to free up time
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  with patients, and that that way you have
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  more time to patients and and can really
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  listen to them. How has that kinda early
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  implementation worked? Are you already seeing a lot
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  more time with patients,
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  at your system versus having to do, you
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  know, all all the kind of administrative stuff?
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  Yeah. So from that perspective, I think a
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  lot of, systems are moving more towards the,
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  Ambient
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  AI in terms of, how to,
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  better be able to produce clinical notes and
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  focus, you know, less on the documentation
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  and more on time spent with patient care.
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  And so this is, certainly something that is,
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  going to be, rolled out at Northwell
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  and, you know, creates an opportunity for, you
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  know, more focus on the patient and and
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  hopefully more satisfaction for the providers.
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  Absolutely. And I also want to ask you,
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  how are you thinking about
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  growth and adding value to your organization?
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  So I think from a, you know, Northwell
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  perspective,
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  growth really isn't just
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  measured by geography or or clinical volume, but
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  it's also about, you know, value and and
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  impact.
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  So we're focused on growing intelligently,
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  really strengthening our clinical programs around transplantation,
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  surgical areas, including cardiac, neurosurgery,
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  abdominal,
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  and others, and then leveraging digital tools to
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  expand access and, building integrated teams that, you
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  know, can help deliver care seamlessly across the
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  health system.
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  I think focusing on our network and focusing
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  on strengthening our hospital medical staffs is really
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  critically important.
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  The more that we can connect to the
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  ambulatory to the hospital and make sure that
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  people feel,
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  a part of the community and know how
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  to get their patients to move throughout the
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  system,
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  is really critically important. That's how patients are
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  gonna be able to receive the care that
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  they need, hopefully, as close to home as
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  possible.
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  And the more we function as a network,
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  the more providers are gonna know how and
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  who to get in touch with and the
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  more that ultimately the patients will be able
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  to receive the best care.
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  I also think, you know, as far as
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  as growth, we're really deeply committed to cultivating,
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  you know, a culture
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  that is really more of a strategic asset.
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  And what I mean by that is,
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  you know, programs,
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  you know, in our perioperative areas where we're
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  reinforcing what it means to lead with purpose
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  and empathy in some of our hospitals,
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  We really are emphasizing the best culture possible.
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  And when you have a a really great
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  culture where people feel respected, part of the
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  team, it creates really the safest and highest
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  quality care for the patients. And so really
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  focusing on, you know, culture as a growth
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  asset,
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  is important,
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  as well. And, and, ultimately, when pay when
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  people feel empowered and respected, they're gonna contribute
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  ideas, solve problems, drive improvement, and that's only
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  gonna lead to, to more growth opportunities.
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  You mentioned digital tools. Obviously, we're we're seeing
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  and and hearing about a lot of systems
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  investing in more and more of them. What's
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  one risk or investment worth making this year,
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  you think? And would it be a a
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  digital tool or something else?
• 7:52
  Yeah. So,
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  so great question and and one that definitely
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  applies in our case. And, you know, I
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  think one of the, you know, the the
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  way I would phrase it is one of
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  the most meaningful investments that we can make
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  is is in our people and particularly,
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  you know, leadership development,
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  engagement,
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  and and well-being.
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  And
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  one of the things that we have just
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  implemented at Northwell is, the first wave of
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  of EPIC. And so, EPIC is going to
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  be the new electronic health record, at Northwell,
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  and it's going to be, implemented across a
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  a couple of different waves. And we just
• 8:27
  had our first wave in several of our
• 8:29
  hospitals and ambulatory sites, and it's really,
• 8:32
  really occurred with great success.
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  You saw,
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  physicians, nurses,
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  you know, frontline leaders who are all,
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  working, you know, around the clock and really
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  in concert with one another to make sure
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  that this,
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  you know, moves forward seamlessly.
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  And I was just so impressed with how
• 8:49
  well everything,
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  worked out. And I had the opportunity,
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  over the last week or so to visit
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  many of our sites
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  and talk with,
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  people at all levels of the organization.
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  And, really, we heard,
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  myself and and one of my colleagues who,
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  visited some of these sites, nothing but enthusiasm.
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  You know, this time when you're moving from
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  one EHR to another,
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  particularly from a,
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  you know, a different company,
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  can be daunting for providers. It's a new
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  system. It's something that they're not familiar with.
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  You know, even with all the training that
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  you go through, once it's it's finally time
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  for prime time, you know, it can be
• 9:25
  challenging.
• 9:26
  But we heard nothing but, excitement, and people
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  were just talking about,
• 9:31
  already how much they're seeing improvement in some
• 9:33
  of their workflows
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  and, that this is only gonna be more
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  positive for their daily lives and for for
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  the patient care. So really just, you know,
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  extremely,
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  excited.
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  And I think another investment, you know, when
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  we think about it is is really moving
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  forward with, you know, this this idea of
• 9:48
  this new EHR and what Epic can do
• 9:50
  for us is some of the the digital
• 9:52
  analytic capabilities. You know, again, how can we
• 9:55
  utilize AI to,
• 9:57
  help us with,
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  you know, creating notes, with creating discharge summaries.
• 10:01
  We talked about that, previously.
• 10:04
  How can we, you know, better monitor patients?
• 10:06
  And so all of these things that we
• 10:08
  can now do will will only enhance our
• 10:11
  communication amongst ourselves with the with the patients
• 10:14
  and hopefully,
• 10:16
  improve the well-being of, of our staff.
• 10:19
  It's great to hear the epic rollout is
• 10:21
  going very well, over at Northwell. That's wonderful
• 10:23
  news. And
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  the last thing I wanted to ask you,
• 10:25
  doctor Harenstein,
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  where do you see the best opportunities for
• 10:29
  growth in the future?
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  So from my perspective, I think the growth,
• 10:33
  really lies in connection.
• 10:35
  Connecting,
• 10:37
  our health systems between,
• 10:39
  Northwell Nuvance,
• 10:40
  connecting data, and, you know, really, connecting our
• 10:43
  people. And, you know, the the integration with
• 10:46
  Nuvance is a great example of that. We're
• 10:47
  bringing together,
• 10:49
  many talented teams,
• 10:50
  complementary
• 10:51
  resources,
• 10:52
  and, shared values, to deliver exceptional care in
• 10:55
  the communities.
• 10:56
  But, also, it's important to think about strengthening
• 10:59
  our network to make sure that everyone has
• 11:00
  access to every resource in the health system
• 11:03
  that allows us to identify patients and, you
• 11:06
  know, to make sure that they're placed in
• 11:07
  in the right place for care. And so
• 11:10
  the more that we can
• 11:11
  connect our medical staffs, connect the community physicians,
• 11:16
  across all of our different areas, the more
• 11:18
  successful we'll be. If you,
• 11:20
  enter care through, a primary care physician, which
• 11:23
  is a wonderful opportunity for us to think
• 11:26
  about growth in the future,
• 11:29
  if they know who to go directly to
• 11:31
  to receive care,
• 11:32
  that will just occur seamlessly. And now all
• 11:34
  of a sudden, that patient who may struggle
• 11:36
  to figure out, you know, where do I
• 11:37
  go next? Who do I go to for
• 11:38
  my referral?
• 11:40
  Now is going to be able to get
• 11:41
  that appointment,
• 11:42
  get into the system, and then, again, get
• 11:44
  the treatment they need. That might be making
• 11:46
  sure that they're monitored for prevention purposes. It
• 11:49
  might be being,
• 11:51
  told that there's an opportunity for them to
• 11:53
  get a procedure that's going to help them
• 11:54
  that they now qualify for to to help
• 11:56
  them live longer or live a more, you
• 11:59
  know, healthy life. So
• 12:01
  these are, I I think, you know, just
• 12:03
  critical,
• 12:04
  opportunities for growth is is really to make
• 12:06
  those connections and to, you know, make sure
• 12:09
  that people know how to get through the
• 12:10
  system. And for the procedures that might not
• 12:13
  be closest to home, now patients really throughout
• 12:16
  our health system can have access to those
• 12:18
  high acuity,
• 12:19
  procedures
• 12:20
  like transplantation
• 12:22
  and others. So I think that's really where
• 12:24
  I see,
• 12:25
  the most growth. And, you know, overall, I
• 12:27
  think health care is about, you know, people.
• 12:30
  It's the people we care for,
• 12:31
  the people that deliver the care.
• 12:33
  I think when we have this this environment
• 12:35
  of connection,
• 12:37
  and, you know, promotion of well-being,
• 12:39
  Everyone has the opportunity to flourish, and, you
• 12:41
  know, hopefully, we can deliver the the best
• 12:43
  care,
• 12:44
  with the highest quality and and hopefully with
• 12:46
  a high level of innovation overall.
• 12:48
  Absolutely. And and certainly some great strategies and
• 12:51
  and
• 12:52
  insight on on growth there. And, doctor Henstein,
• 12:54
  thanks so much for joining us on the
• 12:55
  podcast. It was a great conversation. I look
• 12:57
  forward to working with you again soon. Thanks
• 12:59
  so much. I appreciate the opportunity to join
• 13:00
  you and look forward to speaking again.
• 13:05
  At athenahealth, we know your ambulatory practice wants
• 13:08
  healthier,
• 13:09
  a healthier business, healthier care teams, and healthier
• 13:12
  patients.
• 13:12
  But the complexities of modern health care tech
• 13:15
  make it hard for you and your care
• 13:17
  teams to focus on what matters most.
• 13:19
  That's where athenahealth can help. Our AI native
• 13:22
  all in one solutions reduce administrative burdens,
• 13:25
  streamline billing and payments, and deliver critical insights
• 13:28
  when clinicians need it most. That means fewer
• 13:31
  clicks, more time for patients, and stronger bottom
• 13:34
  lines.
• 13:35
  Practicing medicine is complex, but running a practice
• 13:38
  can be that much simpler with athenahealth.
• 13:41
  See how simpler is healthier at athenahealth.com.