TDP 187: Niagara Health’s Sonali Kohli: Lessons from a Modern Day EHR Implementation, Establishing Guardrails for Safe AI, and Success with Digital Care Journeys for Remote Surgical Monitoring

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On this episode of The Digital Patient, Dr. Joshua Liu, Co-founder & CEO of SeamlessMD, and colleague, Alan Sardana, chat with Sonali Kohli, EVP, Digital Transformation & Chief Information Officer at Niagara Health, about "Lessons from a Modern Day EHR Implementation, Establishing Guardrails for Safe AI, Success with Digital Care Journeys for Remote Surgical Monitoring, and more..." Click the play button to listen or read the show notes below.
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Audio:

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Guest(s):

• Sonali Kohli, EVP, Digital Transformation & Chief Information Officer at Niagara Health
• Dr. Joshua Liu, Co-founder & CEO at SeamlessMD

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‍Episode 187 - Show Notes:

[00:00:07] Episode preview

[00:06:38] From science to health IT by accident

[00:07:42] Early innovation with Patient Results Online

[00:09:54] Lessons from HIS/EHR implementation: training, anxiety, and ‘day‑in‑the‑life’ prep

[00:12:39] Putting patient care first when tech fails

[00:13:41] Ambient clinical documentation and Oracle’s Clinical Digital Assistant

[00:14:44] AI within data governance; early policies for responsible GenAI use

[00:17:36] Digital care journeys for remote surgical monitoring: 7+ pathways, high satisfaction, ED avoidance

[00:21:59] Strategy discipline: saying no to shiny‑object funding misaligned with priorities

[00:24:42] Cybersecurity transparency and local delivery groups

[00:28:09] Equity mindset: questioning hidden assumptions in digital

[00:30:32] Mentoring the next generation; passion over titles

[00:32:37] How AI shrinks research time for the next generation

[00:33:41] Caution on AI overreliance

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Fast 5 Lightning Round:

1. What is your favorite book or book you’ve gifted the most?
   Books by Jodi Picoult.
2. If you could instantly master any skill, what would it be?
   Living in the moment.
3. Would you rather have Super strength, super speed, or the ability to read people’s minds?
   Mind reading.
4. What is something in healthcare you believe that others might find insane?
   How creative and brilliant healthcare teams are... For example, using a mirror as a low‑budget lab notification system.
5. What is the last movie or TV show you saw?
   Downtown Abbey.

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