Technology such as ambient AI documentation tools and smart rooms has been helping hospitals and health systems retain and attract talent.
At Richmond, Ind.-based Reid Health, the health system has rooms equipped with digital whiteboards and door signs displaying information fed from the Epic EHR.
Misti Foust-Cofield, MSN, RN, vice president and chief nursing officer of Reid Health, told Becker’s that the technology has helped attract talent through a smart room simulation center at a local community college and Indiana University campus.
“Our goal is for this to be a recruitment and retention tool for our teams and to better serve our patients. Anytime that we can save on our steps, that we can take off some of the cognitive burden, that’s our intention,” Ms. Foust-Cofield said.
Meanwhile, at Sioux Falls, S.D.-based Sanford Health, Roxana Lupu, MD, chief medical information officer, told Becker’s that the health system is piloting an ambient AI documentation tool. The addition of this tool to clinicians’ workflows has played a key role in clinician retention.
Out of 100 clinicians who have piloted the tool, 76% said they are now more likely to remain with their current organization, while 80% reported they are more likely to continue practicing in the field.
Similarly, Walnut Creek, Calif.-based John Muir Health is also piloting an AI-driven documentation tool. Priti Patel, MD, the health system’s chief medical information officer, told Becker’s that it is estimating $3 million in cost savings from reduced physician turnover since adopting the tool.
“This is an estimate based on turnover data that we are in the process of reviewing and verifying,” she said. “We have been tracking annual physician turnover rates and observed a significantly lower rate in 2024 compared to previous years. There are many factors that contribute to the lower rate. Based on direct feedback, one of those factors seems to be Ambience’s ability to alleviate documentation burden and enhance the practice of medicine.”
