Health systems continue to struggle under the weight of administrative burdens, fragmented workflows and rising patient expectations.
At Becker’s 10th Annual Health IT + Digital Health + RCM Conference, leaders from Notable and the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston shared how agentic artificial intelligence is being deployed enterprisewide to improve the patient journey and reduce staff workload.
Five takeaways:
Note: Quotes have been edited for length and clarity.
1. The status quo is unsustainable for patients and staff
Tushar Garg, Lead Product Manager at Notable, opened the session with the story of “Amy,” a fictional cancer patient whose care experience exemplifies the challenges facing patients today: faxed referrals, long work queues, prior authorization delays and a disjointed follow-up process. The result, Mr. Garg said, is a system where patients spend “20 to 30 hours per month” navigating care logistics and staff are overwhelmed by repetitive manual tasks.
“No matter how many people we throw at the problem, the workload keeps piling up,” he said. “But finally, with AI, this equation is starting to change.”
2. AI agents can handle entire workflows, not just tasks
Unlike traditional AI, which often performs isolated functions, Notable’s Platform uses agentic AI to execute full administrative workflows. The company’s Flow Builder tool allows users to create and deploy low-code, healthcare-specific workflows integrated into the EHR.
“If you can codify and document a standard workflow for someone to follow, then you can train AI agents to do that with limited supervision,” Mr. Garg said.
3. At MUSC Health, AI-driven intake improved access and patient engagement
Kathryn King, MD, Chief Medical Information Officer at MUSC Health, described how her team started with automating the intake and registration process — including insurance verification and eligibility checks — as a high-impact, low-friction use case.
“We were able to see increased patient access, increased efficiency for our staff and actually overcame some of the main barriers to healthcare equity,” Dr. King said. “We got more patients in the door.”
A notable result: MUSC Health identified 5,000 women overdue for mammograms — within weeks, 1,000 of them had scheduled an appointment through AI-enabled outreach. Of those, 122 had abnormal results.
4. Staff acceptance grew with tangible results
Initial skepticism from staff gave way to enthusiasm once the platform proved its value. Front desk and scheduling teams, initially concerned about workflow changes, saw time savings of three to five minutes per patient interaction. Rather than replacing staff, AI tools allowed them to focus on higher-value tasks.
“When you make their job easier, when they get to focus on the more complicated issues that a human really needs to focus on, the joy in their job returns,” Dr. King said.
5. Continuous feedback and quality assurance are baked in
Notable’s Platform includes tools to evaluate agent performance in real time. Supervisors can access call transcripts, review AI-generated responses and track metrics such as call length and patient satisfaction. AI is also used to cluster patient feedback and suggest improvements to workflows.
“It’s not just about the engagement with the patient,” Mr. Garg said. “It’s about gaining enterprise-level confidence that we can do this at scale.”
Looking ahead, MUSC Health plans to expand its AI use into contact center transformation, well-child check outreach and other preventive care areas.
