Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Podcast / Advancing Connected Care Through AI, Data Integration and Clinical Communication with Dr. Stephen Williams

Transcript

Advancing Connected Care Through AI, Data Integration and Clinical Communication with Dr. Stephen Williams · Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

• 0:00
  - What we wanna do with AI is help
• 0:01
  - clinicians go from being reactive
• 0:04
  - to proactive.
• 0:05
  - At Philips, we can recognize patterns in monitoring
• 0:08
  - data across populations
• 0:10
  - and apply those insights to specific patients.
• 0:14
  - Safe and responsible AI can support sharper insights,
• 0:18
  - pave the way for faster diagnosis,
• 0:21
  - and help streamline care.
• 0:23
  - That can benefit clinicians,
• 0:25
  - it can benefit health systems. And most importantly,
• 0:28
  - it can benefit patients and their families.
• 0:33
  - Phillips.
• 0:34
  - This is Gracelyn Keller with the Becker's Healthcare
• 0:36
  - Podcast, and thank you so much for tuning
• 0:39
  - in to the podcast series. We're recording live
• 0:41
  - currently
• 0:42
  - at the digital health
• 0:44
  - conference, and I'm joined currently by doctor Steven
• 0:48
  - Williams who is the associate CMO
• 0:50
  - at UTMB Clear Lake.
• 0:52
  - So, doctor Williams, thanks so much for being
• 0:54
  - here. And I'll have you start off by
• 0:57
  - just introducing yourself quickly before we get into
• 0:59
  - our conversation.
• 1:00
  - Sure. So, first off, thank you very much
• 1:03
  - for inviting me here today. I'm a, practicing
• 1:06
  - neurologic oncologist,
• 1:08
  - actively seeing and operating on patients, but then
• 1:10
  - I spend the other half of my time,
• 1:13
  - administratively.
• 1:14
  - So I'm a chief medical officer
• 1:16
  - at our UTMB,
• 1:17
  - University of Texas Medical branch.
• 1:19
  - They're like campus medical director, high value care,
• 1:23
  - but then also to, chief of urology in
• 1:25
  - our health system. So I spend half of
• 1:27
  - my week seeing patients, half of the time,
• 1:29
  - administratively in rooms.
• 1:32
  - Wonderful.
• 1:32
  - And health systems are receiving a growing stream
• 1:35
  - of patient data from bedside monitoring, ambulatory devices,
• 1:38
  - and care delivered at home.
• 1:40
  - So where is that data creating actionable insights
• 1:42
  - for clinicians, and where does it still create
• 1:44
  - more work than insight?
• 1:46
  - Sure. Well, I think one of the key
• 1:47
  - things, you have to go to the frontline
• 1:49
  - and the people to understand what problems
• 1:51
  - or opportunities that we need to do to
• 1:53
  - solve. One of the most intriguing are, you
• 1:55
  - know, for those patient digital devices, patient at
• 1:58
  - home,
• 1:59
  - where we can actively monitor, say, a complex
• 2:02
  - heart failure or postoperative
• 2:04
  - patient where we can actively monitor and perhaps
• 2:07
  - even reduce readmissions. I think that's truly an
• 2:10
  - exciting time,
• 2:12
  - and in addition,
• 2:13
  - from our ambulatory
• 2:14
  - as well as,
• 2:16
  - for our inpatient, creating one care continuum
• 2:19
  - and one team to where we could actually
• 2:21
  - care for our patients across,
• 2:23
  - you know, their entire journey.
• 2:25
  - And when clinicians are trying to reach a
• 2:27
  - diagnosis, they often must piece together information from
• 2:30
  - radiology, cardiology, pathology, urology, and other systems.
• 2:34
  - And where does that fragmentation create the most
• 2:37
  - friction in your organization? How do you bring
• 2:39
  - together data sources and address this fragmentation or
• 2:42
  - close the gaps?
• 2:43
  - Sure. So I think, you know, one of
• 2:44
  - the things that we have to do as
• 2:47
  - we're moving towards integration and integrated models
• 2:50
  - is really breaking down silos.
• 2:53
  - And I think where the tremendous opportunity resides,
• 2:56
  - particularly in these variety of disciplines,
• 2:59
  - is really bringing together,
• 3:01
  - you know, one system. We use one EHR
• 3:04
  - platform, for instance, but then also to really
• 3:07
  - creating
• 3:08
  - a,
• 3:09
  - continuous
• 3:11
  - dialogue. I found interestingly enough as we're talking
• 3:14
  - a lot about AI technology,
• 3:16
  - we also have to be mindful of, the...
• 3:18
  - Just the good old fashioned communication,
• 3:20
  - getting on the
• 3:21
  - phone, talking to one another.
• 3:23
  - And, it's interesting. I see
• 3:26
  - potential opportunities there more so now than ever
• 3:29
  - where we have to actually bridge that human
• 3:31
  - AI interface
• 3:32
  - and have those active dialogue and conversation.
• 3:35
  - So, that's...
• 3:37
  - I mean, to me, is probably one of
• 3:38
  - the most exciting,
• 3:40
  - things that we could do as leaders
• 3:42
  - is really also to listen to our teams,
• 3:44
  - but then really encourage,
• 3:46
  - everyone to be partners and understand not just
• 3:49
  - the technology piece, but really the leadership opportunity
• 3:52
  - in us as leaders is to also bring
• 3:54
  - that human AI,
• 3:56
  - interface,
• 3:57
  - live and never lose sight of the fact
• 3:59
  - that we are humans,
• 4:01
  - and communication,
• 4:03
  - whether it be verbal
• 4:05
  - or even using technology pieces. And it depends
• 4:08
  - which EHR platform, but,
• 4:10
  - really creating that active communication and dialogue is
• 4:12
  - so critical.
• 4:14
  - And patients increasingly move among the hospital outpatient
• 4:17
  - settings and home.
• 4:19
  - Where does the clinical context most often get
• 4:21
  - lost during these transitions, and what would it
• 4:23
  - take to give care teams a more continuous
• 4:25
  - view of the patient?
• 4:27
  - Yeah. It's funny you mentioned that because, I'm
• 4:29
  - a chief medical officer at one of our
• 4:31
  - campuses.
• 4:32
  - You know, a large part of that role
• 4:34
  - was inpatient. But for me, it's the continuum.
• 4:37
  - It's outpatient, inpatient emergency department,
• 4:40
  - and really, creating an opportunity where we can
• 4:43
  - actually create seamless processes,
• 4:45
  - with our EHR platform as well as being
• 4:48
  - one opportunity. But now we're also incorporating artificial
• 4:51
  - intelligence,
• 4:52
  - one of which is actually the discharge summary.
• 4:54
  - Sometimes of which, you know, is not as
• 4:57
  - quite as detailed enough, particularly for those that
• 4:58
  - are
• 5:02
  - patient could be in the hospital for three
• 5:03
  - weeks, complicated heart failure patient, for instance. Right.
• 5:07
  - And a one sentence summary doesn't cut it.
• 5:09
  - This is where Ambient Technology
• 5:11
  - provide that really care continuum,
• 5:14
  - and great summary
• 5:16
  - perhaps to where the clinicians, at least, that
• 5:18
  - we found are able to actually understand that
• 5:21
  - care and hopefully create more of that active
• 5:24
  - dialogue. But once again, I think it's the
• 5:26
  - communication piece,
• 5:28
  - and being a part of a, integrated health
• 5:30
  - care system,
• 5:31
  - and encompassing the technology, but then, obviously, the
• 5:34
  - human,
• 5:35
  - interactions are are very... Are critical.
• 5:38
  - Wonderful. Well, doctor Williams, thanks so much for
• 5:41
  - joining me today on the Becker's Healthcare Podcast,
• 5:43
  - and we want... Also want to thank our
• 5:45
  - podcast sponsor, Philips. You can tune in to
• 5:47
  - more podcasts from Becker's Healthcare by visiting our
• 5:49
  - podcast page at beccarshospitalreview.com.
• 5:52
  - Thank you.