Jeff Smith was CEO of Bamboo Well being in 2023, after serving as president of the value-based care enablement industry at Lumeris, a supplier of value-based care and technology-enabled inhabitants well being services and products. In a wide-ranging interview with Healthcare Innovation, he introduced up some predictions concerning the function of pharmacies, value-based care, and the have an effect on of synthetic intelligence for 2024. 

Earlier than his roles at Bamboo and Lumeris, Smith was once the founding father of an digital prescribing corporate that was once ultimately bought via Allscripts. He additionally held a number of roles at CVS Well being, together with overseeing inhabitants well being control.

Healthcare Innovation: What you in taking this management place at Bamboo Well being? 

Smith: Whilst you have a look at Bamboo, we have now this clever care coordination community, the place we are in reality upstream connecting a number of stakeholders, together with prescribers and pharmacists the place they are interacting with those people. That, to me, was once in point of fact interesting. Now not best is that this pervasive scaled community of serious enchantment, however what it is doing from a venture standpoint was once very interesting to me as it aligns smartly with my pastime for using certain healthcare alternate — particularly within the realm of behavioral well being. Roughly 5 % of sufferers power 50 % of healthcare prices. And plenty of of those people have behavioral well being problems, along side co-morbidities. After I checked out what Bamboo had to provide, I noticed this clever care community that is in position coast to coast, connecting with all of those other stakeholders, and noticed a chance for us to take hold of on what I feel is an important venture and industry alternative to have an effect on certain alternate for the ones people. 

HCI: Bamboo grew via acquisitions. First it was once Appriss Well being, and so they bought PatientPing, after which they added OpenBeds. So has that melded right into a cohesive corporate and providing? 

Smith: You’re completely proper in relation to the other acquisitions that had been pulled in combination. Every of the ones acquisitions contributed to a suite of what I’d name exceptional features as you deliver them in combination into our community. We are turning in actionable insights a couple of affected person as a complete individual as they transfer via the ones other stakeholders, and it is in point of fact empowering the ones other suppliers of care with extra details about that affected person as they interact with them. 

Here’s a tangible instance: In Delaware, we have now a significant venture operating with the state round behavioral well being care coordination. We leverage our OpenBeds answer, all of our statewide admit, switch, and discharge knowledge, and our pervasive point-of-care prescribing platform. That is enabling disaster groups to move out to the house to stabilize people. It is permitting behavioral well being suppliers to have coherent and up-to-date knowledge that is very well timed across the sufferers that they are enticing with. And it is developing genuine coordination throughout the ones other stakeholders. 

HCI: Who’re every other sorts of consumers or possible consumers for this? 

Smith: Different states are very on this providing. As we take into accounts our go-forward technique, we’re fascinated by how we will pull in combination this total platform to lend a hand states, suppliers and payers who’re seeking to supply higher results for the ones with behavioral well being wishes. How can we in reality lend a hand all of those other stakeholders be higher knowledgeable, after which additionally lend a hand pivot the ones people into the precise subsequent step of their care?

HCI: I noticed sooner than the brand new yr that you simply had made some fascinating predictions for 2024, and I used to be hoping you have to elaborate on a couple of of them. The primary is the speculation of “Knowledge Lend a hand” previous AI. What do you imply via that? 

Smith: There’s this fantastic highlight on synthetic intelligence, and in particular in healthcare, we are seeing it as a good chance. On the other hand, I’d say the adventure towards true synthetic intelligence in healthcare goes to be first mastering this idea of data help. So in contrast to AI, IA prioritizes the synergy of people working out different people and making use of that synthetic intelligence. The place AI goes to supply all of those insights, it’s going to be essential that we’re considerate and we combine it into that precise healthcare tournament in an overly high quality approach. And I consider that is going to begin with AI informing people to do that knowledge lend a hand to different people. I feel that would be the number one motion in 2024. 

HCI: May you give an instance of what you’re speaking about from your personal platform?

Smith: We’re going to supply details about a specific affected person in response to the knowledge we have now, and thru synthetic intelligence we can serve up knowledge {that a} affected person will have now not best substance use dysfunction, however will have power kidney illness or will have diabetes. And it is going to be in point of fact essential for that supplier of care to have that knowledge served as much as them. However that interplay between the human and the human goes to lend a hand us exactly explain that the tips is proper, after which take the precise subsequent step. 

It is going to require a human to have the empathy to permit that that different human to reveal details about their situation. That received’t come simply via studying the unreal intelligence. I feel that IA will result in higher interactions between people, which is able to result in higher results. I feel all of us wish to take into accounts how we empower that human during the clever lend a hand, to get to the simpler care as opposed to circumventing that essential engagement.

HCI: Any other prediction was once that drug chains and different outlets will proceed to concentrate on end-to-end care supply. You’ve got some enjoy in that house from operating at CVS Well being. May you communicate slightly bit about this prediction? 

Smith: Prescription allotting represents a real-time and common engagement alternative between a pharmacist and a person. Many of those sufferers with power stipulations are enticing with pharmacists greater than they are enticing with their physicians.This represents a in point of fact important alternative to power results and client habits alternate. I feel you’ll see massive retail pharmacies additional leaning into that as they devise a vertical integration with the entirety from insurance coverage to doctor care. Those outlets which might be additionally insurers which might be additionally suppliers of care will likely be rethinking how the whole cost chain will likely be arranged, and the way they may be able to best possible power results within the communities that they are in to power higher results and price developments.

HCI: The overall prediction comes to value-based care proceeding to scale up and the desire for suppliers to tackle drawback chance to ensure that it to in point of fact take off.


Smith: Now and again I could also be on an island suggesting that value-based care is seeing momentum, however I do consider it’ll proceed to look extra scale and be extra related, in particular within the authorities systems, and I feel it is for 3 causes. One is you’ll proceed to look an important build up within the selection of other people coated via Medicare because the Boomer technology ages into retirement. 2d, CMS has this function of 100% of Medicare beneficiaries and a majority of Medicaid enrollees to be in value-based preparations via 2030. 3rd, the expanding share of suppliers’ affected person panels being in authorities insurance coverage. Worth-based care is related in the ones government-funded systems and populations. For suppliers to take part within the value-based care monetary style, they are going to wish to ultimately take drawback chance if they will power in point of fact subject material results for his or her respective companies going ahead. The reason being that payers are best keen to proportion subject material upside with suppliers which might be keen to take drawback chance.

I feel that as extra well being methods see a bigger share in their affected person panel being in authorities pay, you’ll proceed to look their clinically built-in networks embracing value-based care in some way that is going to power higher results.