Getting on the Same Page With IT Early is Key to Digital Innovation & Transformation Success

Healthcare IT executives often grapple with moving digital transformation initiatives from pilot programs to full-scale implementations. Crystal Broj, Enterprise Chief Digital Transformation Officer at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), offers insights into overcoming these hurdles, emphasizing the importance of strong governance, IT collaboration, and iterative change management.

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“Digital transformation isn’t just about technology—it’s about process and culture change,” Broj explains. MUSC’s approach focuses on ensuring pilot projects transition effectively into broader system-wide implementations.

One challenge many health systems face is “pilot fatigue,” where too many small-scale projects drain resources without clear pathways to expansion. Broj stresses the importance of first assessing available technology within an organization before seeking external solutions. “Our EHRs are rich with features, and sometimes we’re not even using them to their full potential,” she notes.

Aligning IT and Operational Teams

Health system IT departments are traditionally structured around well-defined projects with set timelines, such as EHR upgrades. However, digital transformation initiatives often require an agile approach. “You might need an API connection in week one, testing in week four, and then adjustments for scaling,” Broj explains. “That’s very different from a traditional IT project with a rigid timeline.”

To address this, MUSC integrates IT teams into the digital planning process from the start. This helps IT professionals understand the operational goals and anticipate resource needs. “We bring IT into early vendor discussions to make sure they understand how the technology works and what it’s trying to achieve,” Broj says.

Additionally, Broj acknowledges that the iterative nature of digital transformation can be challenging for IT teams accustomed to structured, deadline-driven projects. “IT teams are used to knowing exactly what’s coming and when. But when you’re working with AI, RPA, or other emerging technologies, the timeline isn’t always clear. We might think a pilot will take six weeks, but as we iterate, new needs emerge, requiring ongoing adjustments.”

The Role of AI and Automation

Broj highlights how AI and automation are streamlining operational workflows. One example is the automation of prior authorization processes, traditionally a manual, time-consuming effort. “We took a workflow that required a person 30 minutes per authorization and reduced it to one minute using robotic process automation,” she says. This change allows staff to focus on exceptions rather than routine approvals, accelerating patient care while improving operational efficiency.

Voice technology is another area MUSC has explored. Broj shares an example of working with AI-powered voice assistants and the challenges of speech recognition. “One issue we faced was training the AI to recognize names accurately. My last name, Broj, is spelled differently than it sounds. The AI kept misinterpreting it, which led us to preload common names in South Carolina to improve accuracy. But even that didn’t account for regional accents and phonetic variations.”

AI applications extend beyond administrative functions. MUSC is leveraging AI for clinical decision support, helping clinicians synthesize vast amounts of patient data. “AI can help us spot patterns that a human might miss, reducing diagnostic errors and improving patient outcomes,” Broj says. However, she acknowledges that AI is not a silver bullet. “AI is good, but it’s not that good yet. We need to understand its limitations and continuously refine how we integrat...