Q&A with UT Health Austin CIO Aaron Miri, Part 1: “Take Calculated Bets. Fail Fast.”

For the past few years, we’ve seen a significant evolution in the role of the CIO. And although it isn’t always obvious, there are times when it couldn’t be clearer just how much has changed. Case in point: Aaron Miri, who has held the role at Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin for the past two years.

During a recent interview about his team’s efforts in response to Covid, he expressed the same passion while discussing the human aspect of leadership as he did while talking about the groundbreaking 3D-printing face shield imitative. When it comes to managing people, Miri believes the need to “tough it out and soldier on” can hinder relationships, and that during difficult times, it’s important to “be vulnerable” and “talk to your team in a way they understand.”

He also talks about how the innovative culture at UT Health Austin has enabled his team to flourish, their strategy when it comes to contact tracing, the enormous potential telemedicine offers in terms of health equity, and why he feels like two years has “flown by.”

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Key Takeaways



* It wasn’t a “magic pill” that helped flatten the curve in Austin, Texas area; but rather, a “comprehensive” response by health systems and the local public health authority.

* For IT leadership, holding “stand-up calls” every other day with physicians, nurses, and others has proven critical in keeping all departments informed on key matters.

* At one point in late March/early April, UT Health Austin was down to just 17 days of availability with PPE. Four weeks later, a solution was in place: 3D-print, custom-fit masks.

* Innovation is part of the culture at UT Health Austin, where all are encouraged to “Take calculated bets, fail fast, figure out whether something is viable, and go blaze new trails.”



Q&A with Aaron Miri

Miri:  I’ve been in health IT for quite some time and this has probably been the most intense, interesting, fearful, frightful, and anxious but successful period I’ve ever seen in terms of what technology can bring to the table in terms of enablement. It’s something where all of us are going to look back and shake our heads. But I think for those of us who are going through this right now in our careers, we’re going to come out the other side with some fantastic new ideas that maybe we wouldn’t have adopted initially, because we were so comfortable with the way things were.

The other thing that’s been beautiful to watch is the startup industry. So many startups have been successful and have grown because they’re able to morph and pivot to help with the Covid response. It’s been really nice to watch as our industry grows up.

 

Gamble:  That’s a very apt way to put it. I definitely want to get into some of the ways in which your organization is leveraging innovation to deal with the challenges of this unique situation. But first, what is the status of Covid in your area?

Miri:  Austin is doing great as a city. As the students returned to campus, there were concerns about 18-year-olds and their ability to self-isolate and mask. But putting that aside, the city has done fantastic. In terms of the public health response, I give a lot of credit to the local public health authority and local health systems like ourselves, as well as Ascension, HCA and Baylor Scott & White, in educating the general public on the importance of washing your hands, keeping a safe distance, and just being mindful. Because of that, Austin has seen a decline in terms of positive results and numbers of folks being ...