Healthcare Rethink

In this episode of the Healthcare Rethink podcast, host Brian Urban sits down with Dr. Mitesh Rao, CEO of OMNY Health. Urban and Rao discuss:Dr. Rao’s unique journey to the CEO position at OMNY Health and his vision for the organization and healthcare at largeHow to leverage data to drive transformative change in patient careHow data enhances decision making ability and can lead to a reduction in patient outcome disparitiesDriven by frustration over limited access to clean, useful data within clinical environments, Dr. Rao saw an opportunity to bridge this gap on a larger scale. Recognizing that existing IT infrastructures were missing a crucial piece of the puzzle for enabling widespread data connectivity between providers and life science organizations, he founded OMNY Health.OMNY Health operates within the entire healthcare ecosystem to facilitate partnerships between providers and life science organizations. By connecting real-world clinical data with research opportunities in areas such as rare diseases, safety studies, social determinants of health (SDOH), health equity concerns, and more, OMNY Health aims to transform both patient care practices and the future of healthcare. Dr. Rao emphasizes that deepening patient engagement is crucial for overcoming current challenges in healthcare delivery. He highlights how unstructured data—often neglected within traditional clinical approaches—can play a pivotal role in capturing patients' experiences, hurdles, and challenges. Incorporating this rich information allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the patient journey. Clinical trial diversity has become a critical focus within the healthcare industry due to regulatory changes mandating representation across population groups. OMNY Health recognizes that democratizing access to trials is essential for equitable healthcare delivery. To address this challenge, the company prioritizes partnerships with community health systems serving underserved communities with high risks and burdens of disease. By establishing a national data layer representative of all demographics, they work towards providing equal opportunities for research participation irrespective of geographic location or socioeconomic status. Dr. Rao's vision at OMNY Health is hinged on leveraging data connectivity to drive transformative change in healthcare. By empowering providers and patients alike through comprehensive datasets that incorporate both clinical and non-clinical dimensions, OMNY Health aims to enhance decision-making processes while simultaneously addressing disparities in care delivery.

As health disparities come under the spotlight, the urgency to achieve health equity in the healthcare sector intensifies. With the industry at a crossroads, a recent study funded by the NIH highlighted the staggering economic impact of these disparities, revealing an estimated cost of $451 billion to the economy in 2018 alone. That figure could jump as high as $1 trillion annually in spending by 2040 if the problem is left unsolved. Are leading healthcare organizations stepping up to address this challenge? If so, what innovative strategies are reshaping the future to achieve health equity?On Healthcare Rethink, host Brian Urban sat down with Sameer Kokan, VP and Chief of Staff to the CEO at Point32Health. This episode explores Point32Health’s transformative approaches to health equity.Urban and Kokan’s discussion includes the following:• The significance of health equity in modern healthcare and its economic implications• The industry's response and commitment to addressing health disparities• The role of innovative strategies and public accountability in driving health equity initiativesWith a rich background spanning various facets of healthcare, Sameer Kokan offers invaluable insights. From aspiring to be a physician to pivoting towards the business side of healthcare, Kokan’s diverse experiences mark the path of his journey. At Point32Health, he champions the cause of health equity, emphasizing the need for collaborative and data-driven approaches.

As health disparities come under the spotlight, the urgency to achieve health equity in the healthcare sector intensifies. With the industry at a crossroads, a recent study funded by the NIH highlighted the staggering economic impact of these disparities, revealing an estimated cost of $451 billion to the economy in 2018 alone. That figure could jump as high as $1 trillion annually in spending by 2040 if the problem is left unsolved. Are leading healthcare organizations stepping up to address this challenge? If so, what innovative strategies are reshaping the future to achieve health equity?On Healthcare Rethink, host Brian Urban sat down with Sameer Kokan, VP and Chief of Staff to the CEO at Point32Health. This episode explores Point32Health’s transformative approaches to health equity.Urban and Kokan’s discussion includes the following:• The significance of health equity in modern healthcare and its economic implications• The industry's response and commitment to addressing health disparities• The role of innovative strategies and public accountability in driving health equity initiativesWith a rich background spanning various facets of healthcare, Sameer Kokan offers invaluable insights. From aspiring to be a physician to pivoting towards the business side of healthcare, Kokan’s diverse experiences mark the path of his journey. At Point32Health, he champions the cause of health equity, emphasizing the need for collaborative and data-driven approaches.

In this episode of Healthcare Rethink, host Brian Urban sits down with Sarah Rumfelt from Soda Health to delve into an exciting topic: addressing social determinants of health to revolutionize the healthcare landscape.Rumfelt shares how Soda Health leverages data analytics to identify health plan members at risk due to factors like food insecurity, housing instability, and transportation issues. By pinpointing these individuals, they can design targeted interventions and support programs tailored to their specific needs.Urban and Rumfelt cover:• Soda Health’s use of data analytics to identify at-risk health plan members based on social determinants of health and implements targeted interventions and support programs to meet their specific needs.• Soda Health’s partnerships with local retailers and food banks in their high-value retail network, ensuring convenient access to nutritious foods for members facing limited options.To engage and inform members, Soda Health utilizes cutting-edge technology and communication tools. Personalized messages are sent, providing valuable information about available resources, preventive care screenings, and upcoming appointments. By leveraging these innovative solutions, Soda Health not only improves overall health outcomes but also helps health plans meet HEDIS measures—a set of standardized quality performance metrics used to assess care delivery.Rumfelt also highlights how Soda Health's platform assists health plans in achieving specific goals, such as increasing childhood immunization rates. By identifying children at risk of missing vaccinations due to barriers like transportation issues, they offer transportation assistance and coordinate mobile clinics in underserved areas. Closing these gaps in HEDIS measures leads to improved care quality and the potential for higher quality bonus payments from regulatory agencies like CMS.Looking ahead, Soda Health aims to expand its high-value retail network and forge partnerships with community organizations. Through their commitment to addressing social determinants of health using data analytics and innovative interventions, they aspire to eliminate health inequities and improve access to care for vulnerable populations.

The U.S. has plenty of healthcare services for physical injuries, but when it comes to mental health there is no well coordinated care system in place. While there is no shortage of mental health services, the gap is in connecting people in need with these essential services. How can new technologies improve mental health services for everyone, as well as make the service easier to manage?On this episode of the Healthcare Rethink podcast, host Brian Urban spoke with Michiel Rauws, CEO and Founder at Cass, a leading AI mental health assistant. Rauws hails from the Netherlands, where he was able to receive mental health care for years without any challenges. The therapy encouraged him to become a peer counselor, which lead to him helping family and friends. He later realized the potential of bringing mental healthcare to everyone with new and emerging AI technologies.This episode covers:1. How Cass can help change mental health in the U.S. for the better2. The importance behind accessible mental healthcare3. How AI will affect the current healthcare ecosystem“One thing that struck me between Europe and the U.S. is availability of care, the access to care, and the cost of care,” said Rauws. “And in a small way, how I was increasing capacity by being a peer support counselor, I thought: ‘What if I could find a way to really massively add capacity, to really empower the current healthcare workers to help so many more people?’ And that’s where my thought of: ‘Well, I’ve sort of been repeating my counselor’s approach that helped me, and what if I could build this little AI assistant that could repeat the things that I say to people and then help others?’”Michiel Rauws is the CEO and Founder of Cass, having begun the company in 2015. He has a large swath of experience with different technology companies holding a number of different titles, from being a project manager at IBM to being a Co-Founder of M&V Enterprises.

Terms like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation tend to cause two reactions: trepidation or excitement. And while AI and automation have undoubtedly blended into popular culture as tenets of sci-fi and dystopian futures, AI and automation should evoke more excitement rather than fear for what they can bring to our futures, especially in healthcare. So, how is AI transforming the future of healthcare?On the latest episode of the Healthcare ReThink podcast, host Brian Urban discusses the game-changing technology being introduced to healthcare with Co-Founder and COO of CloudMedx, Sahar Arshad. The two discuss:1) How AI is unifying the healthcare system2) How CloudMedx uses AI and automation to improve operations and clinical outcomes3) How AI and automation is being adopted throughout the healthcare industry“There’s a lot of opportunity to grow in places where it can really elevate the experience for everyone—patients, providers, payers. The experience is very, very broken, right? For a patient, there’s long wait times, there’s you don’t know how much a procedure would cost, it’s just a lot of confusion, and similarly with physicians it’s the same problem, lots of documentation and administrative work…” said Arshad.Sahar Arshad is the Co-Founder and COO of CloudMedx, a healthcare data aggregation company that puts data into a single unified platform. She has over 20 years of experience in building products that bring convenience and accessibility at scale. Prior to founding CloudMedx, Arshad worked as a woman in tech in various roles, including as a Business Analyst for Inbox Business Technologies and as the CEO of Imaginate Technologies. She has been awarded numerous industry awards, including selection as a U.S. Data Leader of the Year and U.S. Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2021 Women in IT Summit and Awards Series. She has also been named among the top 10 women leading healthcare startups by Healthcare Global and within the top 25 women leaders in consumer health tech by the Healthcare Technology Report. She earned her BS in Computer Science from the National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences.