At the 8th Annual Becker's Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Meeting, Aaron Patzer, co-founder and CEO at Vital Software and former founder of the US’ #1 personal finance app Mint.com, led an interactive session on how artificial intelligence can improve patient experience and drive growth for hospitals and health systems. Mr. Patzer explained the differences between AI, machine learning and generative AI, and underscored how these technologies can be used to drive financial, operational, and clinical outcomes through their unique application in patient experience.
Mr. Patzer discussed how the personalization offered by AI in patient experience – which he calls “precision engagement” – is able to convert to high adoption and propensity to encourage patient behaviors that align with health system revenue goals. He cited an example of a large health system in Phoenix that gained 2% market share within a year due to their own integration of AI into patient experience, specifically by reducing network leakage by capturing post-discharge referrals from the ED. Finally, Mr. Patzer touched on the future of AI in healthcare, including the potential for this technology to predict patients' health based on their health history.
Editor's note: Quotes have been edited for length and clarity.
Key takeaways:
- AI is not perfect, but it outperforms humans in terms of accuracy — and warrants consideration as a valuable tool compared to the current paradigm.
AP: "Humans are more likely to miss what are called incidental findings ... AI will never be one hundred percent. You'll have many doctors who say, 'well, it's not one hundred percent so we can't use it.' You need to know what types of errors it makes." - AI tools should be used as a supplement to, not a replacement for, healthcare professionals. The care team should always be consulted for accurate information.
AP: "Always talk to your care team as the ultimate source of truth." - AI can drive personalization in healthcare experiences, such as individual appointment wait times, patient education and summaries of doctor-patient conversations.
AP: "Consider the patient portal — it looks the same for everyone, whether you're in labor and delivery or having a major surgery. You want to personalize that interaction in every way possible to give patients the best outcomes and the best experience at your hospital."