University of Miami Health System has 150 AI projects in the works.
That type of digital innovation helped the health system garner a CIO 100 Award for being a top IT department.
Becker’s recently interviewed David Reis, PhD, senior vice president and chief information and digital officer at University of Miami Health System, about why his health system received the honor and what innovative projects he’s working on.
Question: What do you think stands out about your IT department to receive this type of recognition?
David Reis: We’re a multiyear award winner. We’ve won five years in a row for five different projects. I think that’s what stands out about our IT department — not only are we great, but we’re great at many things. It’s that excellence across a wide array of health IT that has positioned us for multiple years of CIO 100 Award-winning projects.
Another element is that we don’t do it just for the sake of it. Every one of the initiatives we won a CIO 100 Award for has supported a clinical or patient care vision. We brought IT know-how to solve novel problems using technology.
Q: What was the initiative you won for this time?
DR: Our initiative, called the Cancer Screening Digital Passport, in partnership with our Cancer Center Leadership, revolutionizes patient preventive care by providing tailored cancer screening recommendations via MyChart, our patient portal from Epic, giving patients information to understand their cancer screening needs based on their individual cancer risks.
This innovative tool allows patients to self-schedule those screening appointments seamlessly — without the lengthy process of calling to make an appointment with their physician, coming in for a visit, the physician ordering the screening, and then calling someone else to schedule it. We eliminated all of that by creating protocols for patients who meet certain criteria, and then our health system’s technology facilitates scheduling those screening tests.
By bridging the well-known gap in personalized preventive care, our tool enhances patient engagement, improves adherence to cancer screening protocols, and ultimately, improves early cancer detection for breast, colorectal and lung cancers.
Q: Beyond that, are there any other innovative projects you’re particularly excited about right now?
DR: In addition to that project, we’ve done another 150 AI-enabled projects over the past year and a half. I’m excited about the breadth of AI we’ve brought to our clinicians and our revenue cycle to make their jobs easier and more efficient.
The revenue cycle projects have been especially successful. We’ve used Epic data to support coding and documentation.
Another initiative is our ambient dictation project, which allows providers to document their discussions with patients while speaking with them. That project has been very well-received. We piloted it with the first 50 providers and are now expanding it to more.
Q: More broadly, what would you say is the biggest challenge in health IT today?
DR: There are so many point solutions — vendors offering niche products that solve a specific problem but don’t scale. One of the challenges is managing the diversity of applications in the portfolio and ensuring each one delivers on its value and promise.
Q: And what about the biggest opportunity?
DR: It’s definitely leveraging artificial intelligence, whether in cybersecurity, productivity tools like Copilot, or patient care — such as detecting malignancies in X-rays. We’re seeing a paradigm shift in using health information technology to deliver better care faster.
Q: You recently returned from the opening of a new cancer research center at University of Miami Health System. Did your team play a big role in that?
DR: Yes, we implemented all the technology in the building. It’s both a research and patient care facility. We play a major role in supporting research but an even larger role in bringing health information technology to the clinical care sections.
Each new facility comes with the latest wave of technology — digital signage, digital boards, patient arrival support via our mobile app or kiosks, and streamlined scheduling. Every new facility incorporates contemporary thinking about how to deliver care in that setting.
