Latest / Becker’s Healthcare Podcast / AI, Leadership and the Future of Healthcare Delivery

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AI, Leadership and the Future of Healthcare Delivery · Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

0:02
- There's a small circle of people who truly
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- understand what it takes to lead a health
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- system right now. The decisions are enormous.
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- The variables are constantly shifting, and the stakes
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- of getting a call wrong don't stay contained.
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- That's not a complaint. It's a structural reality.
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- And it's why the most effective c suite
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- leaders are deliberate about where they go to
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- pressure test their thinking.
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- Becker's fourteenth annual CEO and CFO roundtable
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- brings together more than 1,500
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- executive level attendees
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- and nearly 400 speakers for four days built
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- around growth, financial sustainability,
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- workforce strategy, and the leadership questions that don't
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- have easy answers.
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- Join us November second through the fifth in
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- Chicago.
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- For the agenda and event details,
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- visit beckershospitalreview.com
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- and click on the events tab in the
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- upper right.
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- This is Laura Dierdo with the Becker's Healthcare
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- podcast.
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- I'm thrilled today to be joined by Kelly
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- Haney, chief executive officer at Ochsner Medical Center
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- Westbank campus. Kelly, it's a pleasure to have
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- you on the podcast today.
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- It is an honor to be here.
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- Absolutely. Now I'm excited for our conversation. I
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- know we're gonna talk a little bit about
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- some of the cool things you're doing at
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- Ochsner Medical Center as well as
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- how you're thinking about the future and what
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- it takes to be a leader today. But
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- before we dive in, can you tell us
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- just a little bit more about yourself and
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- your background?
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- Yeah. Ab absolutely.
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- My name is Kelly Haney. I am originally
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- from,
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- Washington DC,
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- and I grew up in the suburbs in
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- in Maryland.
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- My path into health care actually started. I
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- was a medic,
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- in the army.
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- And
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- over time, that journey took me through hospital
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- operations,
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- and ultimately
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- led me to my current role as CEO
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- of Ochsner Medical Center Westbank.
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- I'm also an associate professor at Georgetown University.
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- I teach in,
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- the executive master's program. It's a master's in
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- clinical quality, safety,
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- and leadership, and I actually have the privilege
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- of teaching. There's a change leadership course, which
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- is one of the the last
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- courses that the students take.
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- And teaching is is really important to me
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- because it keeps me connected,
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- to the next generation of health care leaders,
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- and it constantly challenges
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- me to examine,
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- how I lead. And I think at at
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- my core, I'm passionate about developing people,
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- improving how care is delivered, and helping organizations
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- navigate change in a way
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- that's both disciplined
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- and and deeply human.
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- Absolutely. No. I I think that sounds outstanding.
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- It it definitely makes,
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- a ton of sense why you're in health
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- care, obviously, a space that's such a human
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- industry and and built on connections and the
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- ability to provide compassionate
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- care. So
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- it's really cool you have the opportunity not
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- only to lead your current, but also stay
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- connected to the next generation of leaders and
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- understand how they're gonna be able to influence,
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- the shape of health care tomorrow. So that
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- that's really fantastic.
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- Yeah. It it is a a really rewarding
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- position to be in.
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- Absolutely. Now could you give us a quick
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- state of the union for Ochsner Medical Center?
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- What has gone well this year, and what
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- are you focused on for the rest of
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- 2026?
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- Yeah. I I think this year has been
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- a a really important period of growth,
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- for me personally as a leader.
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- Stepping into my first CEO
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- required me to broaden my perspective,
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- from leading operations,
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- to now
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- being in a position where I'm
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- accountable for the entire organization.
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- And and that includes,
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- culture. It it includes clinical performance,
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- financial health,
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- community relationships,
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- and
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- long term direction.
4:01
- We were just reflecting
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- on our performance last week. I had the
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- opportunity to take our entire,
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- leadership team off-site.
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- We did kind of a midyear check-in to
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- see,
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- you know, what we were doing well, where
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- our opportunities were for the the first half
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- of the year, and and how we need
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- to pivot and and respond for,
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- the the remainder of the year.
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- And, you know, we closed the day with,
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- an exercise,
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- and it was titled what I bring and
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- and what I need. And this was,
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- a reflective exercise
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- to to, one, learn a little bit more
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- about each other, but also to improve,
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- the the psychological safety within the group.
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- And that exercise
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- required every leader to draft a statement
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- on, you know, what they contribute,
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- what they need from the team, and and
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- where they need more courage. And so
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- my response to the team was that I
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- I bring clarity,
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- urgency,
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- and a willingness to make difficult decisions.
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- What I need from the people around me
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- is candor early enough that we can shape
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- better decisions together.
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- And where I wanna be more courageous
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- and continue to stretch myself
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- is in creating space for others to to
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- influence the answer
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- even when the pressure to move quickly makes
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- it tempting to decide alone.
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- And so when I when I think of
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- what I bring to the team, I I
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- mentioned clarity.
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- What's gone well is is that one of
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- the things that we've been able to do
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- is to create greater clarity around our priorities
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- and establish a more disciplined operating rhythm.
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- We've centered our work around
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- three things. It's around access.
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- It's around
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- experience,
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- and it's around quality and safety because those
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- are the three areas,
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- that capture what our patients and our communities
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- need the most from from us.
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- I've also spent
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- a significant amount of time listening. I've I've
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- met with team members, physicians, community leaders,
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- patients,
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- and other stakeholders
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- to understand both the strengths of the organization
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- and the barriers that are holding us back.
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- And
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- that listening is is really helping us translate
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- a broader vision
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- into more focused action. And so
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- at Ochsner Westbank, we're we're seeing that work
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- produce
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- tangible results. We've strengthened
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- our procedural
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- growth. We've
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- expanded expanded advanced capabilities.
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- We've improved operating performance,
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- and we've continued to receive external recognition for
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- that work.
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- Earlier this year,
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- we were awarded a letter grade a from
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- LeapFrog.
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- And, actually,
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- just today,
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- we announced that US News and World Report
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- has named our hospital,
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- number one
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- hospital in Louisiana,
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- and that's Ochsner Medical Center Westbank
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- campus,
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- that also shares that
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- recognition with our sister hospitals, Ochsner Medical Center
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- New Orleans,
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- Ochsner Baptist,
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- and Ochsner Hospital for Orthopedics and Sports Medicine.
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- Our obstetrics
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- and and gynecology
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- program here at the Westbank and at Baptist
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- is actually ranked the number 32 in the
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- nation.
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- And that is powered by our amazing teams
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- that are on the front lines that are
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- delivering that care every single day.
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- And when I think of those, you know,
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- recognition,
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- it's definitely,
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- something that we have to stop and and
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- celebrate.
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- But I'm equally focused
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- on whether we are building the culture and
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- the systems to sustain that performance long term.
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- And so when I think of the the
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- rest of 2026,
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- my focus is
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- really on,
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- consistency.
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- I want our priorities to be visible, not
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- only,
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- in our executive conversations,
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- but in how our leaders round,
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- how our teams escalate concerns,
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- and how our patients move through the organization,
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- and, ultimately, I I think how decisions are
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- made every day. One of my biggest lessons
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- that that I've learned,
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- this year is that strategy is is only
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- valuable when people can see themselves in it.
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- And that's the work that that we've done
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- this year, and that's the work that we
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- continue to do,
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- in the remaining months of of 2026.
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- That's amazing to hear. You know, really impressive
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- to understand what the team's been able to
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- accomplish, especially with The US News and World
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- Report rankings. I know,
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- that is not an easy task. And so,
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- being recognized at such a high level is
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- fantastic, not only reflection of what the team
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- is able to do, but the care that
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- they're providing and how you're serving the community.
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- And I love your points in terms of
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- becoming a new leader and what you're doing,
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- in order to ensure that focus
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- is clear in in with your teams and
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- everyone is rowing in the same direction as
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- well as connected in with you,
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- as a CEO.
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- I'm curious, you know, what are some of
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- the big headwinds that you're keeping your eye
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- on and preparing for in the next year?
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- Obviously, a lot of things going well and
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- in growth potential, but what are the areas
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- that, you're keeping your eye on as you're
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- getting into the next twelve months or so?
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- Yeah. I I actually love this question. And
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- I I think, you know, if you ask
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- any health care executive,
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- you know, there are obvious headwinds facing health
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- care.
10:00
- We continue to navigate workforce challenges.
10:04
- We have shifting reimbursement models,
10:07
- and and, ultimately,
10:09
- the the rising cost of delivering health care.
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- We're also headed into a midterm election cycle.
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- And regardless
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- of where someone sits politically,
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- we we all know that changes in policy
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- coverage
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- and reimbursement
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- can have a meaningful impact on health care
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- organizations,
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- and and ultimately
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- on the communities that we serve.
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- But but the headwind that I spend the
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- most time thinking about is
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- whether traditional health care,
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- can move quickly enough to truly harness the
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- power of artificial intelligence.
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- And and when I think about it, I
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- I think you know, I look at over
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- the past decade, we've seen nontraditional
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- players enter health care and quickly learn
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- how to deliver care in ways that are
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- more convenient, more digital,
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- and easier for consumers to navigate. And many
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- of those organizations
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- are also earlier
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- adopters,
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- early adopters of of AI.
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- And I think that creates a a real
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- risk,
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- that their ability to innovate could outpace
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- the growth and transformation
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- of traditional health care systems.
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- And so, you know, for established health care
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- organizations,
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- the challenge is not just simply adopting AI.
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- It
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- is determining where AI can meaningfully
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- improve access,
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- enhance the patient and team member experience,
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- and and also strengthen quality
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- and safety and
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- really reduce the administrative burden that pulls clinicians
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- away from the patients.
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- We also have to approach it responsibly. And
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- health care can't sacrifice trust. We can't sacrifice
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- clinical judgment, privacy,
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- or or equity in the name of speed.
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- But, also,
12:12
- at the same time, being overly cautious carries
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- its own risk.
12:17
- If we move too slowly, I think we
12:20
- may allow others to define the future of
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- health care around us.
12:25
- And I think in in that, when I
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- think of the the headwinds, the leadership challenge
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- is really finding the right balance. I think
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- we have to create the governance and the
12:35
- safeguards necessary
12:37
- to use AI responsibly, also at the same
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- time while building a culture that is willing
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- to test,
12:44
- learn, and move greater urgency. I know
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- a lot of folks are,
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- still really
12:53
- trying to figure out where AI is is
12:55
- gonna take us in
12:57
- in the future. And I I think the
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- question,
13:01
- that that we need to answer is, you
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- know, is
13:04
- it's no longer is whether AI will transform
13:08
- health care. I think the real question
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- is whether traditional health care organizations
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- will lead that transformation,
13:15
- or
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- will they be forced to respond to it?
13:18
- And and I think that that is the
13:20
- biggest headwind that's that's ahead of us.
13:23
- That's fascinating to hear. You know? And I
13:25
- I love your thoughts around AI and thinking
13:28
- about
13:28
- what technology can do in the right hands
13:31
- in order to superpower and supercharge the clinical
13:34
- and administrative team
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- as they're working towards really transforming what health
13:40
- care looks like and and what it can
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- do.
13:42
- I I really
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- love your points as well around the willingness
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- to learn and have doing it with great
13:48
- urgency,
13:49
- because the change is happening. And so being
13:51
- able to lead that and and being smart
13:54
- about it seems like it's critical when you're
13:56
- looking at, how to grow and develop in
13:58
- the next couple of years.
14:00
- Yeah. Absolutely. I I think it's really important.
14:03
- You know, I when we when we look
14:05
- at AI, you know, we have machine learning
14:08
- and predictive analytics that have been around for
14:11
- years and and really have informed some of
14:14
- the practices that we've implemented,
14:17
- in in health care. And then we have,
14:20
- you know, generative AI that that allows us
14:22
- to to really synthesize
14:25
- and and analyze,
14:27
- data a a lot quicker.
14:30
- And then, you know, the the surgeons of
14:32
- agentic AI, I think, is really what's gonna
14:35
- be transformative
14:37
- for us and really just understanding that power
14:40
- and figuring out how to harness it. And
14:42
- it's it's not to to do what we're
14:45
- currently doing faster. It's it's it's actually to
14:48
- figure out how can we transform
14:51
- what we're doing now to to meet the
14:53
- needs of the community because the the the
14:55
- needs are are changing. We can no longer
14:57
- build models where
14:59
- we expect our patients to come to us.
15:01
- You know? People want health care in their
15:04
- community. They want it close to home. There's
15:06
- a sense of urgency. They they want it
15:08
- now. And so we have to figure out
15:10
- how to really harness the power of that
15:12
- technology
15:13
- to to transform how we deliver health care.
15:17
- That makes a ton of sense, you know,
15:19
- and and really, really, truly
15:21
- love the way that you put it together.
15:23
- I wanted to ask you as well. When
15:25
- you're looking ahead, what are some of the
15:26
- best opportunities for growth in the next two
15:28
- to three years or so?
15:30
- I I think when I think of this
15:33
- question, I I think of of growth in
15:36
- in two ways.
15:38
- And and
15:39
- I I think, you know, I think of
15:41
- it through my personal growth as a leader
15:43
- and
15:45
- growth
15:45
- opportunities
15:47
- for for health care.
15:49
- And so, personally, I think my greatest opportunity
15:53
- is continuing to evolve from
15:56
- a strong operator into a more complete enterprise
16:00
- leader.
16:01
- A major part of that growth,
16:04
- you know, I I'd I'd wanna take it
16:06
- back to artificial intelligence.
16:09
- You know, a major part of that growth
16:11
- will be developing a deeper understanding
16:14
- of artificial intelligence and digital transformation,
16:18
- and
16:19
- not from
16:20
- perspective of becoming,
16:23
- a a technologist,
16:24
- but
16:25
- as a chief executive officer who understands
16:29
- how to translate emerging capabilities
16:32
- into strategy,
16:34
- into operating models, and and, ultimately,
16:38
- into better outcomes.
16:40
- You know, leaders, they we don't need to
16:43
- understand how to build every technology,
16:46
- but we do need
16:48
- to be able to ask the right questions.
16:51
- And some of the questions that I think
16:53
- through on a regular basis are, you know,
16:55
- where can AI create meaningful value?
16:59
- What problems
17:00
- are we actually trying to solve?
17:03
- How do we establish the appropriate governance,
17:06
- and how do we prepare the workforce?
17:10
- And and I think, most importantly, how do
17:12
- we move with enough urgency without compromising
17:15
- trust, privacy, equity,
17:17
- or or clinical judgment.
17:20
- And so when I when I shift to
17:22
- to the growth in the next two to
17:24
- three years for health care, I believe AI
17:27
- represents one of the greatest opportunities of the
17:30
- next several years.
17:32
- But but only, as I mentioned before, if
17:34
- we use it to redesign care rather than
17:37
- to simply automate the work that we're currently
17:39
- doing today. I think AI can help us
17:43
- improve access
17:44
- by definitely
17:45
- making
17:46
- scheduling, navigation,
17:49
- and capacity management more responsive.
17:52
- It can improve
17:53
- the experience by reducing administrative burden, personalizing communication,
18:00
- and allowing clinicians to spend more time with
18:03
- patients.
18:04
- It can strengthen quality
18:06
- and safety through earlier identification of risk,
18:10
- improve decision support, and greater
18:13
- consistency in how information is used.
18:17
- Traditional health care organizations
18:19
- already have several important assets. And so earlier
18:23
- when I talked about,
18:25
- you know, the nontraditional,
18:27
- players merging into health care. When I think
18:30
- of the advantages that that traditional health care
18:33
- organizations have, like like Ochsner, we we already
18:36
- have
18:37
- trusted clinical relationships.
18:39
- We we have large
18:41
- and diverse workforce.
18:44
- We we have extensive data. We have deep
18:47
- connections to the community
18:49
- that we serve.
18:51
- And the opportunity
18:53
- is to combine those assets with the speed,
18:58
- convenience, and technological
19:00
- capabilities
19:01
- that consumers
19:02
- increasingly expect. And so for me,
19:05
- the next two to three years are about
19:07
- becoming the kind of leader who can help
19:09
- bridge those two worlds,
19:12
- protecting what is essential about health care while
19:15
- also challenging
19:18
- the entire industry to work differently. I think
19:21
- the opportunity,
19:23
- is is
19:24
- not to use AI to make the current
19:26
- health care system slightly faster. It is to
19:29
- use AI to help build
19:32
- a health care system that's more accessible,
19:35
- more reliable,
19:38
- and more human. And and I know when
19:40
- when we talk about, you know,
19:43
- integrating more technology, you you
19:46
- automatically think that things are less human. But
19:49
- I think this is truly an opportunity
19:52
- for us to humanize the care that we
19:54
- are delivering by harnessing the power of technology,
19:58
- by allowing reducing the administrative burden
20:01
- and allowing our clinicians,
20:03
- our support staff to spend
20:05
- more time with our patients, allowing our leaders
20:07
- to spend more time with their with with
20:10
- their their teams.
20:11
- And I think that is truly
20:13
- what's gonna transform health care in the next
20:15
- two to three years.
20:18
- I love that. It it it sounds so
20:19
- inspiring to hear you talk about what's possible
20:22
- once you have everything that you need in
20:24
- place, looking at
20:26
- where, you know, the different technology
20:28
- can
20:30
- augment the teams that you're working with, making
20:32
- sure you're still dealing with trust, consistency,
20:35
- thinking about equity, and and continuing to build
20:37
- out,
20:39
- all the different capabilities and avenues for people
20:42
- to reach the health care system in bridging
20:44
- some of those accessibility
20:46
- gaps that have been plaguing,
20:48
- communities for years. And so I I really
20:50
- appreciate that, and it seems like,
20:53
- a lot of potential. So exciting to look
20:55
- at the future. And, you know, before we
20:57
- wrap up, I wanted to just dig a
20:59
- little bit deeper into leadership as well.
21:01
- Who do you admire as a leader, really,
21:03
- from any industry and why?
21:06
- Yeah. I'm I'm gonna actually have to take
21:08
- a leader from, the health care industry
21:11
- and
21:12
- someone
21:13
- that,
21:14
- I think is is
21:16
- helped me grow,
21:18
- along the way. And so,
21:20
- a leader that I deeply admire is,
21:23
- Bill Sheehan.
21:25
- He is the chief innovation
21:27
- officer,
21:28
- at MedStar Health. I know he has been
21:30
- featured,
21:32
- in several recognitions by Beckers, and I think
21:35
- you guys have also had him,
21:37
- on your podcast as well. But
21:39
- Bill and I began working together. I think
21:42
- it was around
21:44
- 2013.
21:46
- I was managing,
21:48
- one of our Baltimore Experiential Learning Centers,
21:51
- and he had just recently joined the organization.
21:54
- And I still remember,
21:57
- one of our first meetings. And in that
21:59
- meeting, he asked where I wanted to be
22:02
- in the future.
22:04
- And I remember thinking
22:06
- that this was the first time that a
22:08
- senior leader had ever asked me that question
22:10
- so directly.
22:12
- And I I don't even remember my response
22:15
- to him, what I what I said to
22:16
- him, but,
22:18
- what he said in his response is something
22:22
- that has resonated
22:23
- and and really stayed with me for my
22:26
- entire career.
22:28
- And he told me he said, my goal
22:30
- is to make sure that you get there.
22:33
- Hopefully, we can retain you within the system.
22:36
- But regardless,
22:37
- my responsibility
22:39
- is to invest in your growth and to
22:41
- make sure you're ready.
22:44
- And, ultimately, you know, MedStar did retain me
22:46
- for the next eleven years, but what mattered
22:49
- most was that Bill's investment in me was
22:52
- not conditional
22:54
- on what the organization might receive in return.
22:57
- He saw developing people as part of his
23:00
- responsibility as a leader.
23:03
- And that philosophy has really shaped how I
23:06
- lead today.
23:07
- I I believe, I strongly believe that leaders
23:11
- should understand
23:12
- the aspirations
23:13
- of of every person on their team. They
23:16
- should create
23:17
- opportunities that stretch them. They should
23:20
- advocate
23:21
- for their development,
23:24
- and they should prepare them for roles that
23:26
- may extend beyond
23:28
- the leader that they are today or or
23:30
- even
23:31
- beyond
23:33
- the organization.
23:35
- Not everyone that we develop will stay forever.
23:39
- But if we help someone become more capable,
23:42
- more confident,
23:44
- and more prepared to lead,
23:47
- then I think we fulfilled
23:50
- an important
23:51
- part of our responsibility
23:53
- as a leader.
23:55
- And Bill
23:56
- taught me that leadership is not only about
23:59
- what you accomplish through people. It's also about
24:03
- what you help people become.
24:05
- And I I think that that's the true
24:08
- measure
24:09
- of leadership. It's not simply
24:12
- the results
24:13
- you deliver. It's it's the leaders that that
24:16
- you leave behind. And so,
24:19
- I I I really you know, I thank
24:21
- Bill for his unconditional,
24:24
- growth, or commitment to to my growth and
24:28
- and development, and I I think it's part
24:30
- of the reason why,
24:33
- I have had a successful career and and
24:36
- what led me to being the chief executive
24:39
- officer of Ochsner Medical Center Westbank campus.
24:44
- That that's amazing to hear. And, you know,
24:46
- I I just really appreciate you talking through
24:49
- what it means to be a leader to
24:51
- grow leaders and really look at the big
24:53
- picture and and be forward thinking with it.
24:55
- I can imagine as you have many others
24:58
- have benefited from Bill's leadership and investment, and
25:01
- then it's exciting to see you do the
25:03
- same with, the the team you're working with
25:05
- now as well. So, Kelly, this has been
25:07
- an amazing conversation.
25:09
- I really appreciate your time after your energy,
25:11
- and I'll be excited to see you as
25:13
- well in person at our CEO CFO roundtable.
25:16
- I I know you'll be speaking on a
25:17
- panel there, and,
25:19
- it'll be great to continue this conversation and
25:21
- dig a bit deeper.
25:23
- Yes. I am I'm really excited. So I'm
25:25
- speaking on a panel. It's the,
25:28
- next gen CEOs composing the future of health
25:31
- care.
25:32
- Really excited to join you all at the
25:35
- fourteenth annual CEO and CFO roundtable.