Jennifer Wesson Greenman
Chief Information Officer at Cancer Treatment Centers of America
What does innovation in Health IT mean to you? 
While some view innovation as a radical and often disruptive paradigm, I tend to view it across a spectrum - from smaller, incremental improvement activities to broader, transformative initiatives that often garner recognition. Both approaches – and everything in between - are critical for advancing patient care, scientific discovery, and operations. Great organizations have realized meaningful progress can root from a range of innovation models. Whatever the methodology or philosophy, our common barometer should be positive patient impact.
Accomplishing our innovation goals in cancer care, for example, means real improvements in survival, quality of life, and shared patient/provider decision making. The process and tools for reaching these goals may vary depending on the type of organization, but the outcome we seek to achieve is universal.
What changes would you like to see in Health IT?
First, I’d like to promote empathy as a critical competency for IT professionals in healthcare. All too often, this is a skill that differentiates the truly exceptional leaders and practitioners in our industry. To deliver high-value products and services to our stakeholder community, we must understand their daily realities. This includes the decisions, challenges, and trade-offs they face when serving patients.
Second, I would amplify and reinforce the importance of change management in adopting new technologies. While this principle should be well understood by now, I continue to encounter situations in which solutions are viewed entirely through the technology lens, without acknowledging the very real structural and people challenges in changing human behavior.
Finally, I would love to see more female leaders in digital health. While there are some shining examples of women advancing in this field, we still aren’t achieving diversity at a level representative of our organizations and communities.
What led you to become involved in healthcare technology?
I started working in healthcare in high school, working as a pharmacy tech at two hospitals. It was a great way to feel that I was making an impact at an early age. As I got older and pursued my college education, I enjoyed the problem-solving aspect of technology management yet still desired the social impact of healthcare. So, when the opportunity to work for a healthcare vendor arose after college, I considered it a perfect fit and have never looked back!
How are current trends in Health IT impacting your organization?
Like many organizations, we are prioritizing the patient and provider digital experience with a particular focus on enhancing the care journey from intake through survivorship. This includes virtual health, which has been emerging as a standard care delivery model, and consumer expectation since the onset of the pandemic. In addition to virtual visits, we have established delivery of home-based infusions and injections for qualified patients, supported with remote patient monitoring. These initiatives are meant to augment, but not replace, the profound relationship between our patients, their caregivers, and our care teams. These digital experiences must be driven by patient preferences for communicating and receiving care.
What is the most rewarding part about being in the healthcare industry?
When I walk through the halls of our hospitals, seeing the patients whose lives we can impact through technology, I am moved beyond words. As nearly all of us have been impacted by cancer in some way, it is profoundly fulfilling to know that we can ease the burden of those suffering and provide comfort to those facing what is often the hardest experience of their lives. At the end of my career, I hope that this will be my legacy to the industry and world.