- AI is transforming healthcare by predicting patient needs, improving clinician efficiency, and enhancing care.
- New AI tools aim to reduce clinician burnout by automating tasks like documentation.
- A focus on the “human experience” blends technology with better care for patients and staff.
In the rolling hills of southern Ohio, Adena Health System is quietly undertaking a transformation that could reshape how health systems across the country think about Generative AI. Rather than treating AI as a buzzword or bolting it onto existing operations, Adenaโs leadership is strategically designing a digital workforceโone that enhances care, improves clinician well-being, and reimagines how patients engage with healthcare.ย
At the center of this change are Jamie Smith, Chief Information Officer, and Heather Sprague, Chief Human Resources Officer: I interviewed them about how they are steering AI implementation with clarity, purpose, and a deep respect for the human side of health.ย
A Strategic Start With Tangible Goalsย
Adena is no stranger to technological progress. As Smith described it, the system prides itself on being “cutting edge, but not bleeding edge”โeager adopters, but grounded in strategy. Their current push into AI reflects this ethos.ย
Recognizing the uncontrolled proliferation of tools labeled โAIโ across the industry, Smith and Sprague are pursuing targeted investments with well-defined objectives. Rather than simply reacting to vendor hype, theyโve set three core use cases for AI over the next 12 to 18 months: predictive analytics, clinician efficiency, and consumer-grade patient interactions.ย
The predictive analytics effort aims to move beyond retrospective data analysis. โWe want to stop reacting to things weeks after they happen,โ Smith emphasized. By training models on three years of historical patient data combined with current socioeconomic trends, Adena plans to forecast patient volumes, staffing needs, and financial projections with greater precision.ย
This marks a fundamental shift from hindsight-driven planning to proactive, evidence-based decision-making.ย
Building Tools That Work for Cliniciansย
But itโs not just the back office where AI is being deployed. Adenaโs most immediate AI pilot focuses on easing clinician burdenโa leading contributor to burnout across the healthcare sector. Partnering with Microsoftโs DAX Copilot and Epic Systems, Adena is testing a language learning model that enables ambient listening and auto-documentation. Physicians speak naturally during patient visits while the AI captures and structures the conversation into medical notes, which the clinician then reviews for accuracy.ย
This seemingly simple change could have an outsized impact.ย
โThe first thing I want is to get the clinician away from the keyboard,โ said Smith. โLetโs bring back face-to-face care.โ By reducing documentation time, physicians could gain back nearly an hour each day โ hours they can reinvest in patient care or personal time. Adena is tracking clicks, time in the record, and chart closure rates with Epicโs Signal analytics to ensure the pilot delivers measurable gains.ย
To prepare the ground, Smithโs team conducted a cross-functional needs assessment and benchmarked best practices from partners like the Ohio State University and national vendors. Physicians were involved from the outset. โTheir feedback drove this entire initiative,โ he noted. Weekly user groups and monthly committees surfaced key pain points and ultimately guided the selection of AI tools.ย
This user-led approach is essential for buy-in, especially in regions like Appalachia, where thereโs still cultural resistance to new technologies.ย
Navigating Resistance and Generational Gapsย
Resistance is not just anticipatedโitโs already showing up. While newer physicians fresh out of residency are often eager for innovation, some seasoned clinicians remain skeptical, preferring legacy tools or even dictation phones.ย
As Sprague pointed out, โWeโre trying to create solutions that work for all generations in our workforce.โ Itโs a delicate balance, and the challenge is not just technical, but deeply human.ย
Smith acknowledged the broader implications with refreshing candor. โIf we do this right, we should be able to designate fewer people to manual functions and allow them to focus on a better overall patient care experience,โ he said. โThatโs a tough message because there is so much uncertainty in this healthcare arena.โย
While thereโs no intent to cut jobs, the shift toward automation inevitably reshapes roles. Sprague emphasized retraining and reskilling as key strategies. โItโs about working at the top of your licenseโshifting responsibilities to the most appropriate role,โ she said.ย
This could mean moving certain tasks from physicians to nurses, or from nurses to medical assistants, while simultaneously expanding roles in IT and data governance.ย
From Patient Experience to Human Experienceย
One of the more striking shifts in Adenaโs language is the move from โpatient experienceโ to โhuman experience.โ Sprague notes this change is intentional, blending the perspectives of patients, employees, and physicians into a unified focus on people, technology and processes.ย
The human experience should have a direct impact on our employeeโs well-being. This reframing goes beyond bedside manner or online portals โ itโs about designing a healthcare environment that respects the time, intelligence, and needs of everyone involved.ย
Smith envisions a near future in which AI serves not as a replacement, but as an augmentation of care. He speaks of a โNirvanaโ state: doctors finishing work on time and reclaiming their evenings, patients getting faster service and deeper insights into their health, and AI tools serving as reliable, invisible teammates.ย
That vision includes wearables and connected health devices generating real-time analytics, accessible through user-friendly AI interfaces. The goal isnโt shiny tech for its own sake, but โa digital workforce that enhances the caregiver team,โ Smith said.ย
