Discussion: Insights from a Novant Health Leader on Utilizing Digital Transformation Insights in 2025
With the surge of virtual care options and an increasing variety of digital touchpoints, the healthcare industry has taken cues from other sectors to deliver the services that patients crave.
Nowadays, many patients can schedule appointments online and communicate with their physician through messages within digital portals. As digital tools continue to enhance access to care, human connections remain crucial to success in the field.
Onyeka Nchege, executive vice president and chief digital and information officer at Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Novant Health, understands this well. With his background stemming from leadership roles in manufacturing, IT, and nonprofits, he recognizes healthcare's unique opportunities.
"Our patients rely on us to get it right the first time," Nchege confesses. "Building relationships and fostering trust with key stakeholders, team members, the board - that's important for collaboration on solutions and doing what's best for the organization as a whole, not just for a single challenge."
Nchege touches upon his team's ongoing priorities, cybersecurity/AI growth, and more.
HEALTHTECH: What are some of your 2025 healthcare IT priorities? What are the top three focus areas for you and your team?
NCHEGE: Making every patient encounter exceptional is always our goal at Novant Health. Here's what my team will focus on: One, we'll be working towards squeezing every ounce of efficiency from our resources, both as regards technology and human resources. Two, we're going to amp up our cybersecurity defenses and bolster our overall posture. Three, we'll foster a collaborative culture and refine our strategy for talent development. This involves everything related to staff engagement, keeping the ideal mix within our team, and ensuring we remain a nurturing employer.
HEALTHTECH: Looking back at Novant Health’s digital transformation so far, where would you say the organization is excelling? What challenges remain?
NCHEGE: We've been devoted to moving our capabilities and systems forward, including implementing an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system that recently went live. This initiative has touched every part of our business, from HR to supply chain, finance, and IT fundamentals.
From our IT perspective, time is our most valuable resource, and we're working on how we think and operate through a portfolio of projects focused on tools and technologies that empower our teams. It's essential that we put the appropriate technologies in the right hands.
We've made great strides, but our new ERP system is still in its infancy. It offers promising efficiency gains. Improving our foundational processes will only lead to future successes. Our digital presence includes the popular MyNovant app which lets patients access their medical records, contact providers, schedule appointments, request refills, and much more.
We've made considerable strides in resilience and cybersecurity, but we can always improve to stay ahead. Furthermore, we're eager to implement AI to automate transactional tasks, both clinical and nonclinical. We believe this presents a significant opportunity for us to advance.
HEALTHTECH: How has collaboration among IT, clinical, finance, and other departments improved when it comes to adopting new technologies or workflows? How do you ensure user buy-in?
NCHEGE: We've made significant headway in collaboration between various departments. There's always ongoing work regarding capabilities adoption, largely an opportunity for education. We invest heavily in helping our colleagues understand the reasons behind the capabilities and technologies we introduce. We prioritize education even before a project starts and continue doing so during the project and following implementation. Extensive training supports collaborative efforts across all departments.
HEALTHTECH: What security lessons did you learn in 2024 that will inform strategies moving forward?
NCHEGE: People are the key. Leadership within the organization and having the right resources allocated to cybersecurity are paramount. In 2024, we brought on a new CISO who has been invaluable to our team. We have gifted cybersecurity team members who guard our assets, and we are investing in their professional development to ensure they have everything they need. This is something we will continue to emphasize for all of our teams as we believe it is the difference-maker.
HEALTHTECH: How has Novant Health approached AI and machine learning? What advice can you share with other healthcare organizations?
NCHEGE: Novant Health began experimenting with AI and machine learning in 2019 through the establishment of our data science team and the launch of our Institute of Innovation and AI, making us early adopters. Our institute is championed by executives across the organization and is responsible for governance structure and reviewing data cases before introducing them for implementation.
We've created a governance process, which is vital in moving forward with AI and machine learning programs prudently. Keeping dedicated innovation teams allows the organization to remain experimental without tying up core resources, treating experimentation as a service.
Education is essential across our organization, from the basics to how AI and machine learning can be applied synergistically. We spend considerable time educating people, helping them understand what AI is and potential use cases.
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- In the healthcare sector, Novant Health's team prioritizes enhancing patient experiences by focusing on three main areas: improving efficiency of resources (both technological and human), bolstering cybersecurity defenses, and fostering a collaborative culture for talent development.
- With the implementation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, Novant Health is making substantial strides in its digital transformation journey. The new system, still in its infancy, offers potential efficiency gains, but the organization is working on improving its foundational processes for future successes.
- As Novant Health continues to advance in technology, artificial intelligence plays a significant role. The organization began experimenting with AI and machine learning in 2019, and their advice to other healthcare organizations is to create a dedicated data science team, establish a governance process, invest in employee education, and treat experimentation as a service to avoid tying up core resources.
