Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Stefanie Simmons, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes' Foundation. They discuss Stefanie’s background, the impact of mental health stigma involving healthcare professionals, and the WELL-OPS approach which provides strategy for improving healthcare worker’s well-being. They also talk about the foundation’s work to reduce burnout and foster collaboration among healthcare organizations to improve workforce wellness. To learn more about the foundation and become more involved, visit the website at drlornabreen.org

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:01] Stefanie’s background

[04:56] Dr. Lorna Breen’s story

[07:58] The impact of mental health stigma

[10:50] Improving transparency and communication with mental health-related questions

[15:26] Burnout vs. mental health

[21:56] The importance of including the frontline healthcare workforce

[23:07] The WELL-OPS process and resources for healthcare leaders

[33:31] Stefanie’s favorite designed thing

[34:15] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Doug Turner, vice president of enterprise applications at UCI Health. They discussed Doug’s career path, managing growth and system standardization, and utilizing basic system design to improve efficiency and future developments. They also talk about the importance of adaptability in healthcare IT, while balancing the demands of technology and operations.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[00:07] Doug’s background and career journey

[07:10] UC Irvine's expansion

[09:00] Challenges with Epic implementation

[16:30] Cultural differences and expectation management

[20:47] New leadership roles and organizational growth

[22:02] Service-oriented IT approach

[26:14] Future of IT services

[37:21] Balancing family, IT, and humor

[49:12] Doug’s favorite well-designed product

[56:18] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Brendan Keeler, Interoperability and Data Liquidity Practice Lead at HTD Health. They discuss Brendan’s family background in medicine, and how he wound up choosing the path that he did, the current state of interoperability, and litigation around data disputes. They also talk about the impact those disputes are likely to have on patients, the role of the US government in healthcare standards and that compares with other countries around the world.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:51] Brendan’s background

[05:55] The challenges of interoperability

[09:48] E-prescribing vs prior authorization

[13:31] The government’s role in developing healthcare standards

[20:44] The current state of EHR vendor disputes

[32:13] How artificial intelligence can enhance data mapping and exchange

[39:00] The next thing that healthcare executives should be on the lookout for

[40:53] The future of prior authorization and interoperability.

[43:00] Brendan’s favorite well-designed things

[45:53] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Brian Urban, head of population health at Best Buy Health. They discuss Brian’s background in public health, how he became interested in the intersection of health and technology, and what goes on inside a clinical command center. They also talk about technological tools from outside of healthcare that can help diagnose or alert clinicians from afar, the importance of digital literacy in rural environments, and the lessons that a consumer electronics retailer can teach a health system.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:43] Brian’s background

[07:20] The mission of Best Buy Health

[12:38] The difference between providing care and enabling care

[14:47] Hospital at home

[22:05] Best Buy Health’s place in the healthcare ecosystem

[25:02} What’s new in remote patient monitoring

[30:28] Incorporating design into clinical workflows

[33:14] Design that brings Brian joy

[36:15] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Scott MacDonald, MD, Chief Medical Information Officer at the University of California Davis Health. They discuss his background and how he became a CMIO, how he’s changing professional development for physicians, and the integration of large language models into workflows. They also talk about how to leverage AI’s ambient listening capabilities, reducing note bloat, and why tech adoption can sometimes be uneven across medical specialties.

Show Notes

[00:00] Intros

[01:29] Dr. MacDonald’s background

[03:57] The PEP squad

[12:42] The results of the PEP squad

[16:51] The AIScribe

[27:24] Leveraging AI to improve doctor’s notes

[34:14] Epic’s new message prompt tool

[39:13] Dr. MacDonald’s favorite well-designed thing

[42:45] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Graham Walker, MD, physician and co-founder of MDCalc. They discuss his background in the emergency room, how he came to co-create a clinical support decision tool, and what’s next for him in the entrepreneurial realm. They also talk about small inefficiencies that lead to wider problems, the threat of an IT ticket blackhole, and the new trend of rounding for clinician well-being.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:06] Dr. Walker’s background

[07:29] The beginnings of MDCalc

[14:13] Dr. Walker’s next company

[22:00] EHR steering committee and other tech responsibilities

[25:03] In-person rounding for clinician well-being

[31:20] Inefficiencies within the health system

[38:34] Overcommunicating with physicians

[45:19] Dr. Walker’s favorite well-designed things

[48:44] Outros

For a full transcript, click here

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Bryan Vartabedian, MD, chief medical officer at Texas Children’s Hospital. They discuss his beginnings in pediatrics, the current state of physician burnout, and why the rise of technology and algorithmic care has created a disconnect between doctors and patients. They also talk about the future of telehealth, what key performance metrics don’t capture, and the power of suboptimization in healthcare.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:30] Dr. Vartabedian’s background

[06:20] Evolving medicine towards empathy

[10:04] Addressing physician burnout

[14:59] The power of suboptimzation

[20:56] The people margin

[24:10] What key metrics don’t show

[28:38] Combatting pajama time for physicians

[32:35] The future of telehealth appointments

[35:07] Well-designed things that bring Dr. Vartabedian joy

[37:04] Outros

For full transcript and shownotes, click here

Hosts Chad Garrett, Katy Ptaszynski, and Justin Burnett are joined by Nordic Senior Consultant Kevin Flannagin. Their discussion centers on the challenges of adapting to changing requirements, scope creep, and the strategies they use to address these issues effectively. By incorporating agile methodologies, Kevin illustrates how iterative testing and user feedback can lead to better project outcomes and reduce the risk of rework. His experiences, such as transitioning a reporting system to Microsoft Power BI for an antimicrobial stewardship program, demonstrate how innovative solutions can streamline processes and enhance service delivery.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:21] Kevin’s background

[03:47] Service delivery strategies

[11:20] Common challenges around service delivery

[15:25] Implementing net new technologies like Microsoft Power BI

[22:10] Building and maintain trust with clients

[24:20] Implementing the antimicrobial stewardship project

[26:43] Remaining agile while building trust with clients

[28:35] Preparing for artificial intelligence incorporation into workflows

[30:14] Outros

For more information, including a full transcript, click here.

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Zeev Neuwirth, MD, author of “Beyond the Walls” and “Reframing Healthcare: A roadmap for creating disruptive change.” He’s also the founder of the #HRL community and hosts the popular podcast series “Creating a new healthcare.” They discuss using AI and other technologies to humanize healthcare and the ongoing platform war. Dr. Neuwirth also offers his thoughts on the future of hospital at home.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:41] Dr. Neuwirth’s background

[09:50] How AI and digital health can humanize healthcare

[21:48] The ongoing platform war within healthcare

[25:08] ChenMed and how its clinician brainwashing is humanizing healthcare

[33:49] Hospital at home and its future

[36:49] The #HRL (humanistic rebel leader) community and its purpose

[42:26] Things that are so well designed, they bring Dr. Neuwirth joy

For more information, including a full transcript, click here.

Nordic Chief Medical Officer Craig Joseph, MD, talks with Joel Klein, MD, senior vice president and chief information officer at the University of Maryland Medical Center. They talk about his unconventional path from being an emergency room physician to running the IT department, redesigning the EHR to maximize clinician satisfaction, and low-tech solutions to optimize hospital efficiency. They also talk about how his health system was impacted by the recent CrowdStrike outage, the value of doing rounds en masse, and what an experience gradient is and how it’s used in healthcare.

Show Notes:

[00:00] Intros

[01:08] Dr. Klein’s background

[06:25] Making clinical support tools fun

[13:18] Customizing your workspace within Epic

[15:27] Rounds en masse

[21:44] The two-bin inventory management system

[27:34] Experience gradients and what healthcare can learn from aviation

[35:36] Dr. Klein’s experience with the CrowdStrike outage

[41:10] Dr. Klein’s favorite well-designed things

[45:00] Outros

For more information, including a full transcript, click here.