Partnerships aim to bridge healthcare gaps and achieve health equity through collaboration and technology.

In this episode, we feature David Rhew, Global Chief Medical Officer & VP of Healthcare at Microsoft, Dan Desmond, Health System Architect for the Health Equity Consortium, and Bela Matyas, Health Officer and Deputy Director of Health and Social Services for Solano County, California, who talk about the California Health Medical Reserve Corps and its Health Equity Consortium launch. The Consortium is a unique public-private partnership innovating to improve community-based health equity. They believe healthcare needs to collect and utilize data effectively, ensure data security and privacy, and leverage AI and ML technology to streamline processes. The HEC aims to customize services based on community needs and provide location-based care for people, as this collaborative approach is sustainable and makes a nationwide impact by fostering trust and convenience. Throughout this conversation, David, Dan, and Bela highlight the significance of addressing health disparities and leveraging technology and partnerships to achieve better outcomes.

Tune in and learn about this innovative, collaborative effort in healthcare aiming for equity!

About David Rhew:

Dr. David C. Rhew is the Global Chief Medical Officer (CMO) & VP of Healthcare for Microsoft. He is Adjunct Professor at Stanford University; holds six U.S. technology patents that enable authoring, mapping, and integration of clinical decision support into electronic health records; and has been recognized as one of the 50 most influential clinical executives by Modern Healthcare.

Dr. Rhew received his Bachelor of Science degrees in computer science and cellular molecular biology from the University of Michigan. He received his MD degree from Northwestern University and completed his internal medicine residency at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. He completed fellowships in health services research at Cedars-Sinai and infectious diseases at the University of California, Los Angeles.

He has served as CMO and VP for Samsung; SVP and CMO at Zynx Health Incorporated; clinician/researcher at the VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System and RAND; and Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine at UCLA. Dr. Rhew has served on the National Quality Forum’s Executive Committee for Consensus Standards and Approval, Chaired the Consumer Technology Association Health Technology Board, and sits on the Governing Committee for NESTcc (National Evaluation System for Health Technology coordinating center), the medical device advisory group for the FDA, CMS, and NIH.

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About Dan Desmond:

Dan Desmond is the health systems architect for the Health Equity Consortium. He focuses on innovations at the nexus of public health, healthcare, payers, pharma, and community-based organizations. Dan has been advancing public health data reporting for over 25 years. Including work with health systems to improve workflows, operational efficiencies, and data quality. During COVID he oversaw the deployment of solutions to bring care to underserved, rural, and hard-to-reach populations. His team is now driving efforts for equitable community engagement leveraging Azure Confidential Computing to improve vaccination and wellness campaigns; public health surveillance; and HEDIS, QIP, and Star measures in a sustainable manner.

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About Bela Matyas:

Bela T. Matyas is currently Health Officer and Deputy Director of Health and Social Services for Solano County in California. He previously served as Chief of the Communicable Disease Emergency Response Branch of the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), after briefly serving as Chief of the Disease Investigations Section of CDPH. He also served for thirteen years as the Medical Director of the Epidemiology Program in the Massachusetts Department of Public Health after serving for four years as the Medical Director of Disease Control and State Epidemiologist for the Rhode Island Department of Health. Dr. Matyas received his medical degree from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and completed a residency in Occupational Medicine/Preventive Medicine at the Harvard School of Public Health, where he also received a Master of Science Degree in Epidemiology and a Master of Public Health Degree.

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Things You’ll Learn:

• Data utilization, technology integration, and AI are critical factors in streamlining processes and enhancing healthcare delivery.
• The HEC wants to ensure data security, respect privacy, and build trust with their communities. 
• Healthcare, community-based organizations, and the public health sector must work together to tackle current healthcare issues and improve care.
• Data sharing and collaboration have been challenges for healthcare stakeholders so far.
• Too much data is not useful, but with the help of AI and ML, the data can be cleaned and structured to be leveraged correctly.

Resources:

Connect with and follow David Rhew on LinkedIn.

Connect with and follow Bela Matyas on LinkedIn.

Visit the Health Equity Consortium Website!