Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT / Sandra Powell-Elliott, MBA, Vice President and Chief Innovation and Commercialization Officer at Hackensack Meridian Health

Transcript

Sandra Powell-Elliott, MBA, Vice President and Chief Innovation and Commercialization Officer at Hackensack Meridian Health · Becker’s Healthcare Digital Health + Health IT

• 0:00
  This is Laura Dierda with the Becker's Healthcare
• 0:02
  podcast. I'm thrilled today to be joined by
• 0:04
  Sandra Powell Elliott, vice president and chief innovation
• 0:07
  and commercialization officer at Hackensack Meridian Health. Sandra,
• 0:10
  it's a pleasure to have you on the
• 0:11
  podcast today. Oh, it's a pleasure to be
• 0:13
  here, Laura.
• 0:14
  Now I'm looking forward to our conversation because
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  I know you're doing some really innovative things
• 0:18
  at Hackensack Meridian and certainly have, an eye
• 0:22
  towards innovation for the future. But before we
• 0:24
  dive in, I'm wondering, can you tell us
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  a little bit more about the health system
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  and what makes it unique?
• 0:29
  Sure. So the health system is an 18
• 0:32
  hospital network that's based in New Jersey.
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  We cover about half of the state.
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  We not only have 18 hospitals, but we
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  have a medical school. We have a center
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  for translational research. We have
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  virtually every element of the continuum you can
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  imagine from home care and hospice to DME
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  to physician practices,
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  surgery centers, etcetera. So I think one of
• 0:56
  the things that does make I I'm gonna
• 0:58
  highlight two things, I think, that make us
• 1:00
  extremely unique is, first and foremost, that continuum
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  because we can really understand
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  the connection points,
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  in a care continuum and how we as
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  an organization can
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  really strive to,
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  make changes at every element
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  to really facilitate a transformation of care and
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  services for the future for our patients. So
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  I think that's one of the things that's
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  extremely unique about us.
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  The second thing is I think that,
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  our Center for Discovery and Innovation, which is
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  our translational,
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  research,
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  arm,
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  is very unique because it allows us to
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  really connect our
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  basic scientists with our clinicians to really drive
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  from discovery
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  to the clinic much faster,
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  for new innovative technologies, whether it be diagnostics,
• 1:50
  therapeutics,
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  even some medical devices in in certain situations.
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  But I think having researchers and clinicians work
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  together to solve clinical problems
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  has been
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  both exciting and,
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  really
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  helping us understand how we can better position
• 2:09
  ourselves for the future of health care and
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  and services are gonna change and also understand
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  operationally
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  how new therapies and new diagnostics
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  may change how we have to operate as
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  a network.
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  That's amazing to hear. You know? And certainly,
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  just very cool that you've got the ability,
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  the Center for Discovery and Innovation set up,
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  so you can have that kind of discovery,
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  in the kind of innovation
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  alongside health care providers understanding exactly what,
• 2:36
  the clinicians need in order to be successful.
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  I'm curious. Zooming just into this last year
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  or so, what accomplishment are you most proud
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  of?
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  You know, it's it's hard to say, but
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  I think one of the first things that
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  immediately comes to mind is,
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  we have spun out a new company that's
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  a early stage diagnostic that will use XLBreath
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  to diagnose,
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  cancer, lung cancer in particular,
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  not through,
• 3:04
  gases, but literally being able to
• 3:10
  slept off in the lung, if you will.
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  So we're super excited about that because it
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  really is kinda setting the foundation for where
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  early diagnostics
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  can go,
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  and really make a difference in certain kinds
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  of, cancer diagnosis.
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  Yeah. That's great to hear. You know, I'm
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  curious,
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  in looking at being able to,
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  have that kind of project,
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  going on at at the Center for Discovery
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  and Innovation. You know, what does it take
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  to,
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  really tackle some of these big issues in
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  health care? And how are I guess, what
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  is the potential outcome as you continue on
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  with your work there?
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  I think the the critical
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  component is really,
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  kind
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  of, esoteric for some people, but it truly
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  is the the connection and that intellectual curiosity
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  on both the clinician side
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  as well as the scientist side. So,
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  so for example,
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  we've got we've got, two areas or three
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  areas in particular at the Center for Discovery
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  and Innovation that we focus in on,
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  oncology,
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  obviously. A lot of opportunity there as well
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  as infectious disease and,
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  applied immunology. And I think infectious disease is
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  an interesting one because,
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  as you as we're all experiencing, there are
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  a lot of new viruses that we need
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  to be prepped for. But I think one
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  of the things that's,
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  super unique is is when you have,
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  those those clinical
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  translational
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  sciences who are truly trying to drive and
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  understand
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  those areas of opportunity, and I'll use immunology
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  as an example,
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  the the it crosses over into a lot
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  of different therapies. So when you have physicians
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  who are trying to identify patients who
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  need,
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  a better management
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  of a,
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  immunotherapy
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  for oncology,
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  but they need the ability to manage,
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  the side effects and the toxicity of those
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  new cell therapies, for example. Our immunologists
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  and clinicians
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  both are trying to solve that problem,
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  and trying to understand how to make that
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  connection.
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  But it you you have to have that
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  level of intellectual curiosity on both sides. And
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  I think, you know, interestingly enough, you know,
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  I know a lot of folks think that
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  physicians are not necessarily
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  always interested in in going to that next
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  level, but they're they're scientists at heart. Right?
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  So it's about finding the ones that,
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  you have a really good connection with or
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  can have a good connection who are also
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  you know, I hate hate to say it
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  this way, but kinda hitting their head up
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  against the wall to try and treat some
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  of these patients that may be very difficult
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  to treat. And our scientists love those kind
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  of challenges. So it's about the connections.
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  That makes a lot of sense and, you
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  know, really, really helpful to understand a little
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  bit deeper into all of the things that
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  you're doing and and how you're bridging those
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  two worlds together in a meaningful way. Now
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  looking ahead, where do you see some of
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  the big growth opportunities for your team in
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  the next twelve months or so?
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  I think, you know, it's interesting because I
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  think with a lot of uncertainty in the
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  marketplace as it relates to developing new technologies,
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  particularly, you know, when we're seeing a lot
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  of things with the new administration, there's a
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  lot of question as to where some of
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  these discoveries are gonna be funded from. It
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  creates unique unique opportunities for us to connect
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  with some of these, both the medical device
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  companies,
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  pharmaceutical companies who have relied on a lot
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  of funding,
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  being put into the discovery
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  of new innovative solutions. And so for us,
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  I think while it is is,
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  unsettling in some respects because we're not exactly
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  sure, you know, how to fund some of
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  the development that needs to occur in some
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  of these areas,
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  It also creates an opportunity for us to
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  rethink how we look at discovering new,
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  innovative technologies
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  and translating them into,
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  potential solutions for our patient population. So I
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  think it's it it actually will create unique
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  opportunities to have different kinds of discussions with
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  pharma, medtech, etcetera. So I think that's kind
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  of a,
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  a kind of an opportunity,
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  for us in a in a growth space
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  that we haven't really,
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  dived into as much as we could. I
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  think the other areas,
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  obviously, is is artificial intelligence,
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  but I think that that, the growth in
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  that space is gonna need to be,
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  modulated in some respects. I think for us,
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  we're we've been doing a lot of work
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  in creating the governance,
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  for artificial intelligence, which companies we wanna work
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  with, what what's gonna be important to us.
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  But I think,
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  there are two aspects
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  to artificial intelligence that some of the, innovation
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  and and opportunity comes from. One is, I'll
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  call it in the operational efficiency arena. How
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  do we leverage artificial intelligence and machine learning
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  to really drive more efficient operations,
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  from automatic coding to, you know,
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  really,
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  automating some of the processes that are done
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  manually today.
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  So that's a a great growth area. And
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  I think for us, the other area of
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  opportunity,
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  is really leveraging AI
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  to in the clinical space. How can we
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  leverage
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  the the the that huge computing component,
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  to really better understand
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  our patients,
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  not only in in groups
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  and diagnoses, but even at an individual level?
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  So I think, for us, that's gonna be
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  a huge growth opportunity, particularly in the clinical
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  space.
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  I love that. That's, really great to hear.
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  And, especially, I like your ruminations on some
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  of the AI and automation opportunities because I
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  know, you know, there there's a a very,
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  great time and place for it, but at
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  the same time, you have to be thoughtful
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  about implementing it and understanding exactly what's happening
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  and and have the right expertise around it.
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  So, I think your approach, it sounds like
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  it's very,
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  targeted. It it makes a lot of sense
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  in where things are at today and how
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  they could potentially be beneficial,
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  in in moving forward.
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  I think one of the and I'll I'll
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  make one more additional comment in that space
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  that I think we've done a good job.
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  And, actually, I think it's one of the
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  areas that that really gets over
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  overlooked to some degree. But
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  we we bring our bioethicist
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  in in the process for clinical,
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  AI solution development
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  or even evaluation because,
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  you know, artificial intelligence creates very unique,
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  opportunities for us to do
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  better things and bigger things, but it also
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  raises a lot of questions.
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  And even for our own clinicians, trying to
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  kinda walk through what change that means in
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  how they diagnose, how they treat, how they
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  oversee,
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  the care, and service delivery and what how
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  it changes, how they make decisions
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  also have ethical implications.
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  And so getting through that process at the
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  same time and really raising good questions and
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  answer making sure we know the answer to
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  them before we start implementing solutions that we're
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  not sure you know, that raise questions or
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  raise challenges that we didn't anticipate.
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  So I think it's, it's something that
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  I would highly recommend,
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  people
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  engage, their, ethics team in that process as
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  well.
• 10:26
  That's such a good point. Thank you for
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  for raising that and certainly keeping that ethical
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  context and and mindset,
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  front and center is so important.
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  Now we've talked a lot about some big
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  opportunities for growth and development, but I know
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  there are challenges out there as well. What
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  are some of the roadblocks or potential headwinds
• 10:44
  that you have your eye on today?
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  You know, I mentioned the, current administration earlier.
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  I would say that that is truly one
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  of the,
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  areas that that is a potential challenge for
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  us, and it's a big challenge because particularly
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  because some of our scientists are also,
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  relying on some of the funding that that
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  comes from the NIH and NSF.
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  So that's a big challenge because if you
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  wanna really say you're a research organization and
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  you wanna translate,
• 11:11
  science into care,
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  you've gotta be able to fund that development.
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  You've gotta be able to fund that transition.
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  And so,
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  we as an organization,
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  will have to make some critical decisions,
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  if the funding, sources change. So for us,
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  it's about, you know, how do we continue
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  to,
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  find the resources
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  to to
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  put our money where our mouth is from
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  an innovation perspective. And so we will be
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  driving to,
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  identify,
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  and really start to implement different types of
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  services and opportunities that really will create a
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  much more diversified,
• 11:50
  revenue stream that will enable us to to
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  continue to to meet that mission on the
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  research and innovation side of things.
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  That that's fascinating to hear. And, you know,
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  I know,
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  the situation is changing daily, but especially given
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  the uncertainty and then, as you mentioned, reliance
• 12:07
  on funding from NIH and and other grant
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  sources.
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  What do you do,
• 12:14
  is kind of in in the planning stages
• 12:15
  now to be ready for the eventuality of
• 12:18
  less funding or, you know, trying to figure
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  out how to navigate,
• 12:23
  you know, the the potential future while also
• 12:26
  keeping your eye on what you can do
• 12:28
  today, to maximize the resources that you do
• 12:30
  have?
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  I think there's obviously, there's a a role
• 12:35
  for philanthropy, and we have to kinda change
• 12:37
  how we've
• 12:39
  what we've raised funds for in the past
• 12:42
  versus what we may wanna need what we
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  may need to raise funds for in the
• 12:45
  future. So that's definitely,
• 12:48
  an area. I think for us is really
• 12:51
  understanding the assets that we have at our
• 12:52
  hands and the value
• 12:53
  opportunities that we have,
• 12:56
  or the opportunities that we have to create
• 12:57
  more value,
• 12:59
  and and how to create business structures or
• 13:02
  revenue streams around what we have already that
• 13:05
  we haven't really maximized. And I'll use an
• 13:08
  example. You know, and data is a great
• 13:09
  example. Right? How do we how do we
• 13:11
  leverage all the information that we have? How
• 13:13
  do we leverage all of the, clinical expertise
• 13:16
  that we have differently to create new
• 13:21
  funding,
• 13:22
  strategies. So we do,
• 13:24
  we do some accelerator programs now. We do,
• 13:28
  for our early stage companies.
• 13:30
  I I would say that we're gonna see
• 13:32
  a lot more of that that creates opportunities
• 13:35
  for us to create a a new IP
• 13:37
  that we can license and or potentially have
• 13:40
  equity in other companies
• 13:42
  that, we jointly develop solutions around. So I
• 13:45
  think there are a lot of different ways
• 13:47
  for us to do that, but I think
• 13:48
  we wouldn't
• 13:50
  how do I phrase it? I think we
• 13:52
  we are gonna do those things now more
• 13:55
  and focus our efforts on doing those and
• 13:57
  hope that the funding doesn't change,
• 14:00
  but go ahead and start to work on
• 14:02
  diversifying that revenue stream.
• 14:05
  Got it. I I think that's a really
• 14:06
  solid, and smart way to look at the
• 14:08
  present as well as planning for the future.
• 14:10
  I I appreciate the extra additional,
• 14:13
  outlining
• 14:14
  strategy there. It's it's extremely beneficial.
• 14:17
  Now before we wrap up here, I'm wondering,
• 14:19
  what is the number one thing that you're
• 14:20
  doing right now to set, Hackensack Meridian up
• 14:23
  for long term success?
• 14:25
  The number one thing we're doing right now
• 14:27
  is really focusing on
• 14:29
  developing that innovative culture and entrepreneurial culture within
• 14:33
  the organization. So we have 37,000
• 14:35
  team members, another eight to 9,000
• 14:39
  physicians.
• 14:41
  I think that, you know, really trying to
• 14:44
  drive,
• 14:46
  the the culture to understand,
• 14:49
  and also embrace
• 14:52
  that we need new solutions. We want ideas.
• 14:55
  We want people to innovate.
• 14:57
  We want them to try new things,
• 14:59
  and how we can support them. And I
• 15:01
  think developing that support structure to keep maintaining
• 15:05
  that that drive and that energy to do
• 15:07
  things differently,
• 15:09
  I think is is really it's a big
• 15:11
  challenge, but I do think that
• 15:14
  it's going to set the organization up, for
• 15:17
  the long term in a in a much
• 15:18
  better,
• 15:19
  way.
• 15:21
  We are innovation
• 15:23
  is really all about problem solving. Right? So
• 15:26
  in our our clinicians and our our team
• 15:28
  members are at the front line. They know
• 15:30
  the problems. They know they probably have solutions
• 15:33
  to the to the challenges,
• 15:35
  today. We wanna be able to make sure
• 15:37
  that they understand that that is something we
• 15:39
  wanna hear. We wanna help support because
• 15:42
  we are going to need a workforce that
• 15:44
  can problem solve on the fly in a
• 15:46
  very different way for the future. So building
• 15:48
  that level of culture and that understanding, and
• 15:50
  I'll call it a fearlessness, though it's it's
• 15:52
  probably too much of an aggressive word, but
• 15:55
  a fearlessness to try new things,
• 15:57
  because that's really where we're gonna need to
• 15:59
  have most of our,
• 16:01
  staff
• 16:02
  really feel comfortable,
• 16:03
  in the in the near term.
• 16:06
  Absolutely. I I think that is amazing insight
• 16:08
  and foresight. Sandra, thank you so much for
• 16:10
  joining us on the podcast today. This has
• 16:12
  been an amazing discussion, and I look forward
• 16:13
  to connecting with you again soon. Thanks for
• 16:16
  having me. Absolutely. And then we're also looking
• 16:18
  forward to seeing you at the health IT
• 16:20
  digital health and revenue cycle event, this fall.
• 16:23
  I know you're speaking, on one of our
• 16:25
  panels, which will be fantastic, and we're just
• 16:27
  looking forward to having you there as well.
• 16:29
  I'm gonna be happy to be there.