In a healthcare world that demands increased efficiency in the face of reduced manpower and resources, the pressure to innovate is a constant for stakeholders throughout the organization. Health system leaders like Debbie Cancilla, Executive VP and CIO at Temple University Health System and Joshua Glandorf, CIO at UC San Diego Health, have grounded their AI adoption strategies in practical, patient-centric goals. In a recent webinar hosted by Becker’s and led by Demetri Giannikopoulos, Chief Transformation Officer at Aidoc, these leaders unpacked their “why” for embracing AI–revealing the driving motivations behind AI in their health systems.
“The magic comes when you start to complement other technologies[…]to help with that patient experience, to help with that provider experience and to create efficiencies.” – Debbie Cancilla
For Cancilla, the “why” behind AI is clear: it’s about leveraging technology to enhance experiences and streamline complex healthcare processes. By integrating AI with technologies like PACS, EMRs and mobile platforms, Cancilla sees the opportunity to creatively improve patient and provider experiences and drive efficiencies. Health systems are under a constant strain to increase margins and streamline operations, and AI can offer a way to consolidate vast information and tackle growth-related process barriers effectively. These advancements don’t just cut costs but keep patients and staff engaged and satisfied.
“We’re trying to reduce costs, be more efficient, address clinician burnout, improve patient experience and deliver quality care[…]do more with what we’ve got.” – Joshua Glandorf
For Glandorf, AI adoption is deeply tied to organizational goals–particularly reducing operational costs and easing clinician burnout. Take ambient documentation: this AI tool, designed to reduce after-hours paperwork, directly targets physician burnout, a pervasive issue in healthcare today. AI enables health systems to achieve more with limited resources by filling gaps where human capital is strained. At UC San Diego Health, Glandorf and his team scrutinize the potential of AI solutions in line with their core pillars and explore their ability to impact the bottom line without compromising care quality.
“It’s about a bi-directional dialogue[…]we don’t want to just buy it and be left on our own.” – Joshua Glandorf
Both Cancilla and Glandorf emphasize that sustainable AI integration requires more than just transactional vendor relationships. As Glandorf explains, the goal is to foster partnerships that ensure an open dialogue and genuine collaboration. Rather than simply handing over a tool, vendors need to support continuous engagement and offer a service that goes beyond software delivery. This approach means AI solutions are implemented with understanding and tailored to each system’s unique needs, ensuring they don’t disrupt existing processes or introduce new vulnerabilities. For Cancilla, this partnership-driven approach helps integrate AI into processes where it can drive measurable improvements and support long-term growth.
For these health systems leaders, the “why” of AI is grounded in three essentials: enhancing patient and provider experience, cutting costs and reducing burnout and building strong collaborative partnerships. These motivations underline AI’s role as a strategic enabler, positioned to transform care delivery in practical, impactful ways. By focusing on these goals, health systems can adopt AI in ways that support both short-term needs and long-term sustainability.
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