At a packed underground auditorium filled with thousands of healthcare executives this week, Judy Faulkner, the CEO of Epic Systems, made a memorable entrance. Dressed in a full swan costume, complete with feathers, Faulkner delivered her keynote speech at Epic’s annual Users Group Meeting (UGM). While some first-time attendees might have been surprised by her attire, for many seasoned healthcare industry professionals and Epic employees, it was a familiar sight signaling the start of the much-anticipated event. This year, the central theme at Epic’s gathering was clear: the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance the experiences of both doctors and patients.
Epic Systems is a prominent healthcare software company whose technology is used by thousands of hospitals and clinics across the United States. The company’s platform houses medical records for over 280 million individuals in the country, although it is common for patient data to be spread across multiple vendors.
A Unique Conference Setting
Each year, Epic’s headquarters in Verona, Wisconsin, becomes a focal point for thousands who come to learn about the company’s latest products and innovations. UGM is one of Epic’s largest annual on-campus events, and on Tuesday, CNBC was there to cover it. The sprawling 1,670-acre campus is adorned with whimsical features, including farm animals, wizard statues, and buildings themed after stories like “Alice in Wonderland” and “The Wizard of Oz.” Appropriately, this year’s conference embraced a “storytime” theme. Faulkner, along with other Epic executives, took to the stage dressed as characters inspired by various children’s books.
Throughout the event, there were numerous skits and jingles as executives provided updates on Epic’s major products, including MyChart, an application that allows patients to access their medical records, and Cosmos, a de-identified patient dataset used by clinicians for research.
Focus on Artificial Intelligence
A significant portion of the announcements at the conference revolved around how Epic is incorporating AI into its products. Faulkner revealed that Epic has over 100 AI features in development, although many are still in the early stages. For example, by the end of the year, Epic plans to introduce generative AI that will assist doctors in rewriting message responses, letters, and instructions into simpler language that patients can easily understand. The AI will also help physicians by automatically preparing orders for prescriptions and laboratory tests.
Recognizing that many physicians spend a substantial amount of time on administrative tasks, such as drafting insurance denial appeal letters and reviewing prior authorization requirements, Epic is developing AI tools to streamline these processes. These tools are expected to roll out by the end of the year.
Looking ahead, Epic aims to further enhance its generative AI capabilities. By the end of 2025, the AI will be able to gather relevant test results, medications, and other crucial information needed when responding to patient messages through the MyChart app. Additionally, specialized functions, such as using AI to calculate wound measurements from images, are expected to become available next year.
Epic also announced the forthcoming launch of a new staff scheduling application for physicians and nurses, named “Teamwork.” Furthermore, Faulkner mentioned that Epic is “investigating” the possibility of enabling direct claims submissions through its software, potentially eliminating the need for intermediaries like clearinghouses. If successful, this could revolutionize the way insurance claims are processed across the healthcare industry.
While it remains uncertain if all these features will come to fruition or be widely adopted by health systems, Epic concluded Tuesday’s presentation with a bold demonstration showcasing its vision for the future of healthcare technology.
A Glimpse into the Future
Seth Hain, Epic’s senior vice president of research and development, led the demo, interacting with an AI agent via the MyChart app about his recovery following a fictional wrist surgery. The AI agent asked Hain questions about his pain level and instructed him to use his camera to capture his wrist’s range of motion, allowing the AI to assess his recovery progress. The AI determined that Hain’s wrist extension ranged from 60 to 75 degrees, indicating that his recovery was ahead of schedule compared to data from similar patients in Epic’s Cosmos database.
When Hain inquired about resuming his pickleball activities, the AI advised him to “wait a little longer” before engaging in such activities again.
After the presentation, Hain met with reporters and clarified that the demo was conducted in real-time without any human intervention. However, he acknowledged that the technology is still very new, to the point where it does not even have a name yet. Hain suggested that it could be several years before such AI capabilities are widely available in the medical community. “It is very, very, very early in regards to how and where the community, the broader medical community, will adopt that type of thing, but it’s viable,” he explained.
Epic’s forward-looking approach, demonstrated through their commitment to AI innovation, indicates the potential for significant advancements in healthcare delivery and patient engagement. As the company continues to refine these technologies, the industry will closely watch how Epic’s AI-driven tools and applications evolve and impact daily healthcare practices.
