@craigmjoseph
Was a doctor who was geeky. Now a geek who is doctory. Chief Medical Officer at Nordic Global. Co-author of "Designing for Health: The Human-Centered Approach." Tottenham supporter. #COYS #informatics #healthIT #DigitalHealth #medsky
New episode of Designing for Health: behavioral science tools that actually move the needle on vaccine hesitancy, antibiotic stewardship, and patient communication. Evidence-based, immediately actionable. #MedSky
The Pitt TV show just showed us an EHR cyberattack shutting down an ED. Researchers showed the same scenario caused worse stroke outcomes across an entire metro. If you haven't run a real downtime drill, you don't have a plan. #MedSky buff.ly/Kj2tHe9
Any blog post about healthcare that begins by referencing Armstrong Rubber is worth a read! Dr. Adam Carewe pontificates about the future of big healthcare systems in the US, and ... it ain't pretty. #WorldModels buff.ly/0atz9HO
Epic data show primary care telehealth has stabilized at ~6–7% of visits since mid‑2023. Use remains highest in metro areas and among non‑English speakers, signaling telehealth’s enduring role as targeted access infrastructure, not a pandemic workaround. #MedSky
I spoke with Lisa Kilgore about why connected medical devices are patient‑safety infrastructure, not gadgets, covering standardization, cybersecurity, and designing for real clinical workflows. Essential listening for execs responsible for risk and reliability. #MedSky
I spoke with Becket Mahnke, MD on why clinician burnout isn’t an EHR problem; it’s a design and leadership problem. Inbox overload, patient messaging, and well‑being improve when teams, expectations, and culture are redesigned together. #MedSky
Novant Health’s ACO paired embedded CDS in Epic with a value-based care expert team to drive performance under Medicare Shared Savings Program, improving quality outcomes and generating significant shared savings while keeping guidance embedded in clinician workflows.
Sutter Health cut 400,000+ daily EHR clicks (≈110 nursing hours) by streamlining Epic workflows and adopting a “document by exception” model, slashing redundant documentation and boosting nurse satisfaction and overtime efficiency. #MedSky
Telehealth follow-up after starting antihypertensive treatment yields BP control outcomes as good as in-person care when BP is actually measured and documented; the key driver of quality metric differences is incomplete remote BP capture, not inferior clinical effectiveness. #MedSky
I argue that healthcare’s biggest measurement failure isn’t lack of data; it’s loss of context. We optimize codes and checkboxes while missing what actually drives good care. Until we measure nuance, AI, analytics, and quality programs will keep underdelivering. #MedSky buff.ly/pDKurgG
What’s not on my notes app? I’m old enough that now I have a note for all my meds and PMH. #sad
OpenNotes turned clinical notes into a patient-facing product. With Drs. Vanka & Stern, I dug into how “noncompliant/denies” can encode bias, and why AI scribes don’t absolve us: you still own the words. Teach this like a clinical skill. #MedSky buff.ly/qFYLWaa
ThedaCare replaced the traditional front desk with a digital arrival experience integrated with their EHR: mobile check-in, kiosks, and staff-assisted self-service. Result: shorter waits, higher patient satisfaction, and less clerical burden. This is front-door redesign! #MedSky
Population health analytics turns clinical and claims data into targeted interventions that improve outcomes and reduce costs, shifting care from retrospective reporting to proactive risk management. Essential for succeeding in value-based care. #MedSky buff.ly/VDDhgaS
AI shouldn’t feel like a fake colleague. Making tools seem human with personalities and chit-chat raises expectations, overtrust, and distraction without improving usefulness. Design AI as clearly scoped, reliable helpers that augment decisions, not as “digital coworkers.” #Medsky
I spoke with leaders from Montefiore and FeedbackNow about why post-visit surveys fail and how real-time, human-centered feedback can reduce nurse burden, improve patient experience, and unlock smarter operations -- without adding IT friction. #MedSky
Medicine’s habit of looking busy on paper has been industrialized by AI and templates into what Bryan Vartabedian, MD calls “medical slop”: inflating records without clinical value. The problem isn’t the tech itself but how we authorize and deploy it. #MedSky
I spoke with Aditi Joshi, MD about why telehealth’s biggest barriers were never technical, why adoption stalls at ~20%, and what leaders must change to make digital health work for clinicians, patients, and equity. #MedSky buff.ly/ufDUC5R
My predictions for 2026:
1️⃣ Winners will have good governance, clean data, and thoughtful workflows
2️⃣ Successful health systems will position AI as a teammate, not an overseer
3️⃣ Large medical models (LMMs) will augment LLMs in the clinical space
You read it here first, peeps.
AI projects flop not because the tech is weak but because leaders treat adoption as a tech buy instead of a behavior change problem. People resist tools that don’t fit real workflows, trust dynamics, and cognitive biases; ROI stays elusive until you design for humans, not models.
AI doesn’t run on vibes; it runs on data. In healthcare, video may be the most underused fuel we have, adding clinical context that text and clicks can’t capture. If we want AI that actually improves care, we need to start seeing video as core infrastructure, not a garnish. #MedSky buff.ly/MxU6t3D
Physicians don’t hate EHRs because of UI alone; they hate inconsistent data. As Brendan Keeler notes: when outside data are ubiquitous, tools feel usable; when they’re sporadic, everything feels broken. Ubiquity is a network problem, not an EHR one. #MedSky
Patient engagement doesn’t start with patients; it starts with clinicians. Tools like Care Companion only work when designed around real clinical workflows, trust, and cognitive load. Human-centered design isn’t optional if continuity is the goal. #MedSky
Healthcare is overbetting on chatbots and underestimating embodied AI. Evidence suggests physical presence—not better prompts—drives real behavior change. In care delivered at home, presence may be the intervention. #MedSky
I spoke with Matthew Trowbridge, MD, about how design—not just tech or policy—shapes behavior, equity, and outcomes in healthcare. From hospitals to cities, small design choices have outsized impact, and AI is accelerating how we test them. #MedSky
Big thanks to Mr. Histalk for his shout out regarding my blog post on robots. For real. Nah, not those kinds of robots. The soft and squishy kind. buff.ly/469cWis
Discussed with Penn Medicine’s digital leaders how ambient AI is reshaping documentation, reducing cognitive load, and restoring true patient connection, all while avoiding the trap of automating bad workflows. A sharp, pragmatic look at what’s next. #MedSky
My latest post uses unreturned shopping carts to explain how small acts of neglect—open charts, ignored alerts, unfinished handoffs—quietly erode care. Fixing this isn’t tech alone; it’s culture, norms, and design. #MedSky
Talked with Dr. Eve Cunningham (Cadence CMO) about cutting through vaporware to scale RPM that truly integrates with the #EHR, reduces inbox load, and improves CHF/HTN management. Clinician-led design + governance + sustainable economics > pilots. #MedSky
Insight ≠ action. Health dashboards like Function Health assume numbers drive behavior, but motivation fades fast. Design for the tiny window when users might act: make next steps immediate, frictionless, and behaviorally smart. #MedSky buff.ly/FlllpVz