Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • ESG: THE IMPLEMENTATION IMPERATIVE
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Digital Health
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Transformation
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Unwell in America
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Digital Health
May 19, 2022 01:41 PM

Digital health execs on health system reluctance: ‘Partnering with people isn’t a bad thing’

Gabriel Perna
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print
    MHtransform7.jpg

    Left to right: Dr. Amit Phull, vice president of strategy at Doximity and an emergency physician at Northwestern Medicine; Dr. Rushika Fernadopulle, chief innovation officer at One Medical; Linda Finkel, CEO of Avia; Dr. Lucienne Ide, CEO of Rimidi; James Nicholls, partner at Fitzroy Health.

    Veteran executives of digital health companies have heard it all when it comes to health system reluctance in adopting new technology.

    “We often get a litany of reasons why it’s not possible,” said Dr. Rushika Fernadopulle, chief innovation officer at One Medical. “First they ask, ‘Why should I be doing this?’ Let’s assume they get over that part. Then they say, ‘We already do this,’ which is usually not true. Then my favorite is, ‘We couldn’t do this if we wanted to.’”

    Fernadopulle said there is a certain level of hubris at health systems and payers regarding their unwillingness to disrupt their own businesses and partner with digital health companies. The organizations tend to think they can do it all, although he added that attitude is changing.

    “They’re starting to realize that partnering with people isn’t a bad thing and maybe that’s the path forward,” he said earlier this week at Modern Healthcare’s Transformation Summit, Austin, Texas.

    Fernadopulle founded Iora Health, a company that offers tech-enabled primary care services to Medicare patients by partnering with health systems and payers. It was sold to One Medical, another tech-enabled primary care company, for $2.1 billion in June 2021.

    He was joined on the panel by James Nicholls, partner at Fitzroy Health; Linda Finkel, CEO of Avia; Dr. Lucienne Ide, CEO of Rimidi; and Dr. Amit Phull, vice president of strategy at Doximity and an emergency physician at Northwestern Medicine.

    Download Modern Healthcare’s app to stay informed when industry news breaks.

    While some executives at health systems are eager to change, digital health companies perceive a culture clash between the two sides holding back widespread transformation. The very word ‘disruption’ is likely to make health systems cringe, Nicholls said.

    “You have to acknowledge that while disruption is an exciting and provocative word in Silicon Valley, that’s not the reaction you get in healthcare,” Nicholls said. “Changing the word is a sensible idea because the psychology of it doesn’t fit neatly with healthcare.”

    Nicholls said there is a huge disconnect between a health system’s C-suite and board, which talk about the need to disrupt from within, and the people who run an organization on a daily basis. Change management remains one of the biggest barriers to transformation, he said.

    Panelists said C-suite executives often participate in “innovation theater,” meaning they talk about innovation and disruption, but then take the safe bet and don’t put their words into action. A common excuse that health systems tend to use when avoiding digital health adoption is centered on Epic, the prominent electronic health record system.

    “My favorite saying [from health systems] is, ‘We’re an Epic shop so we’re going to have Epic do everything,’” Ide said. “For years, the dialogue was, ‘Epic is going to build that.’ It’s frustrating because it’s an excuse in a lot of ways. And I’m not trying to diminish that because it’s a huge enterprise investment and they should maximize it, but that’s the safe bet.”

    Whether they want to or not, Fernadopulle said health system and insurance executives have no choice but to disrupt themselves from within.

     “Healthcare in its roots is a consumer business,” Fernadopulle said. “Patients and consumers are free to vote with their feet. If someone builds a better mouse trap, they’re going to walk.”

    This story first appeared in Digital Health Business & Technology.

    Related Articles
    5 takeaways from Modern Healthcare’s Transformation Summit
    Digital health execs call for faster innovation: ‘Patients are expecting more’
    Oscar Health CEO: The days of high valuations are over
    Transformation Summit 2022 On Demand
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    sondermind-mindstrong-merger2.png
    SonderMind buys Mindstrong's tech assets, ending company's run
    The Check Up: Alice Zheng, RH Capital
    The Check Up: Alice Zheng, RH Capital
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Digital Health
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Unwell in America
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top 25 Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing