We discuss this week on “Straight Outta Health IT” the challenges and opportunities impacting the delivery of health in rural communities.

Our guest this week is an expert on how technology is transforming rural healthcare.  He’s a true innovator and thought leader and has lead his organization in the highest adoption of technology that supports healthcare delivery process.  We’re excited to welcome Michael Archuleta to our show! Michael shares his life journey coming from a difficult upbring in the inner city to the sacrifices made by his mother to migrate his family to rural Colorado.   This transition to rural Colorado is where he found his passion for learning and technology.   We further explore Michael’s perspective and insights on rural health including technology adoption and digital transformation taking place at his healthcare organization.   As a product of a rural Georgia our host Christopher, finds similarities in how healthcare was delivered pre-EHR in the roots of his own hometown.   Michael also points out in this episode that Health IT is a journey, not a destination and the adoption new tools can be a challenge for many healthcare providers. Especially those in rural settings.

Finally, Michael offers practical strategies for transforming your IT department from a cost center to a revenue generating part of the business.

Tune in and enjoy a great conversation with one of our industry’s most prominent innovation leaders!

How do we get more people of color to be healthcare leaders and providers?

In this episode of Straight Outta Health IT, we have the honor to share our time with Dr. Angelita Howard, the Assistant Dean for Online Education and Expanded Programs and Assistant Professor at Morehouse School of Medicine. Angelita reflects on the importance of early exposure to role models and education different than what kids are getting right now. Also, health informatics plays a vital part in the level of care, and how we can increase student participation of all races and backgrounds.

Angelita cannot stress enough the cruciality of increasing diversity from the educational settings to the highest roles in the healthcare industry.

It’s time to talk about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, specifically in healthcare.

Today’s episode features an incredible man who has worked in this field for quite some time, Geoffrey Roche! He reckons that when new solutions in healthcare are built, it always goes back to how it meets the needs of a diverse community in the United States and globally. Since the pandemic started and with the rise of social movements, a large population has woken up around DEI topics, not only in healthcare. Diversity, equity, and inclusion discussions are having a cultural transformation within healthcare, and there is no doubt about that. This conversation is difficult in any setting, but having them is a step forward.

Geoffrey is proud to have used his white privilege to get into good trouble, so tune in to listen to what he’s done in DEI.

Welcome to the first episode of Straight Outta Health IT, in which we feature a great friend of ours, Ed Marx!

As we start our discussion with the evolving role of the CIO in healthcare, Ed shares how he got into healthcare and recalls his second daughter’s birth. Ed’s experience in the industry is parallel to every other CIO’s journey. The times and the technologies have surely changed from one year to another, challenging clinicians to endorse them quicker. This has also happened to the role where the news Chief Digital Officer has taken ground and shifted the perspective inside companies. Christopher and Ed close this episode by talking about diversity, equity, and inclusion in the industry, the power other people can bring to a team, and patient advocacy.

Technology and diversity had to earn their way into healthcare, and what a great way to understand that than by listening to this episode!

We are incredibly happy to announce that Straight Outta Health IT is coming sooner than you think!