A New Chapter for Sutter Health

Thomas, the CEO of Sutter Health in Northern California, spoke about the organisation's future strategic direction, labelled 'destination 20-30'. The focus is on five areas: creating the best work environment in the country; coordinating health services to serve more patients throughout and beyond Northern California; offering a convenient, integrated, digitally-connected patient experience; guiding and promoting holistic health by shifting towards value-based reimbursement; and improving patient and societal health. A crucial aspect of these plans is a digital ecosystem, designed to be proactive and predictive in meeting patients’ health needs. A key example of their innovation is the Scout application, aimed at promoting mental resilience in teenagers, which was developed by the Sutter Health Innovation team. Thomas announced the creation of an Innovation Center in San Francisco, intended to host the Innovation team and collaborate with partner organisations to develop healthcare technologies. He emphasised the need for integrated healthcare experiences rather than disconnected point solutions and highlighted plans to invest in co-development and new start-ups. The CEO ended by stressing that the goal is not just to grow, but to care for more people and make their healthcare experiences easier and more productive.