A nurse from Hackensack Meridian Health’s John Theurer Cancer Center in Hackensack, N.J., is on what she calls a “world tour” to raise awareness about a new AI-powered clinical tool designed to help frontline clinicians quickly surface critical patient information.
The tool, called EKAM, uses Google’s machine learning technology to help nurses synthesize up to two years of provider notes in seconds. Margia Fonseca, RN, MSN, OCN, an outpatient oncology nurse at the John Theurer Cancer Center, has taken on the role of demonstrating the technology across Hackensack Meridian sites.
“Most healthcare technology is built for systems, not for clinicians,” Ms. Fonseca told Becker’s. “EKAM is built for the nurse who has a ton of patients and not so much time.”
Hackensack Meridian is deploying the technology across oncology and other departments to reduce documentation burden and improve patient safety. EKAM allows clinicians to click a button within the electronic health record to surface key patient details from years of progress notes.
“There are days where the notes are so long I can’t read the whole note, and I’m missing a lot of key information about the patient,” Ms. Fonseca said.
The summaries are generated using templates designed by clinicians, including a seven-question framework Ms. Fonseca created for oncology infusion nurses.
“I wanted a template that would tell me what I need to know right away,” she said.
Ms. Fonseca began working with Hackensack Meridian’s data science team after learning about EKAM at an internal AI summit in 2024. Her goal was to ensure the tool reflected real clinical workflows rather than theoretical use cases.
“We’re basically bridging two worlds together,” she said. “You have data science and you have medicine, and we have to make it work to make this product work.”
Rather than relying on email announcements or training decks, Ms. Fonseca has taken a hands-on approach, traveling between Hackensack Meridian sites to demonstrate the tool in person.
“You can’t just put a PowerPoint in an email and expect people to know how to use it,” she said. “You have to show them in real time.”
She emphasized that the tool is not intended to replace clinical judgment but to reduce the time nurses spend searching through documentation and improve safety.
“It’s not taking over the nurse’s role,” she said. “It’s just helping us do redundant tasks and get the answers we need fast.”
Ms. Fonseca added that EKAM could also support workflows for social workers, dietitians and other clinicians.
“This is not a tool just for nurses,” she said. “Think of EKAM like Google for your medical brain.”
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