By Ruth Ann Ruiz
The Post Newspaper Features Editor
Galveston welcomed KPRC’s Health Reporter, Haley Hernandez as moderator for the Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce’s first-ever State of Healthcare Luncheon.
Thursday at the Island Convention Center, six leaders from the region’s healthcare providers were on stage in the Grand Ballroom responding to questions on topics ranging from the role of artificial intelligence (AI) to the future of healthcare workers.
Each panelist was given the opportunity to respond to each question, here is a sample of some of what they shared.
Dr. Tracey Antill, an emergency physician at Elitecares Emergency Hospital, explained that, for now, where he practices medicine, AI is not playing a very big role.
“We certainly are not on the cutting edge of AI,” Dr Antill said.
Larger facilities such as the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) are looking at the options that AI offers for improving quality of care within their system.
Wayne Keathley, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the UTMB Health System, is confident that the future of patient care will include AI assisting medical providers who are making diagnoses and providing timely information about each patient.
“AI can take all the data in a moment’s notice and assist (with) what will best work for an individual patient’s genotype,” Keathley explained.
All the medical experts agreed that there will need to be rules in place before AI is able to begin absorbing patient data, and they all foresee AI being an asset in more efficient delivery of healthcare, but it won’t be an asset in this way until AI progresses further and the confidentiality of patient information is safeguarded.
All agreed that AI will not replace humans in making a diagnosis.
Another challenge facing medical care is employee retention. According to Noel J. Cardenas, Senior Vice President and Chief Executive Officer at Memorial Hermann Southeast and Pearland Hospitals, there is a 17% shortfall in nursing and medical providers since the pandemic.
Cardenas described some of what Memorial Hermann is doing to retain medical workers.
Memorial Hermann is instituting programs to assist their staff with life issues, such as providing time off to care for their adult parents and/or their own children. Also, Memorial Hermann is implementing a system for staff who have been exposed to a traumatic event on the job so these team members can receive expert assistance right after the event.
Dr. Janay McKie, Chief of Staff at Shriners Children’s Texas, shared that it isn’t just about paying medical personnel more to keep them onboard.
“Money is not enough for employees, they need to be seen,” McKie said.
McKie explained that with a smaller staff at Shriners, she finds it easier to focus on building relationships with the staff, which she describes as a key to employee retention, as is recognizing the work and accomplishments of employees.
In discussing the future of medical workers, McKie spoke of what she believes are going to be key traits for future employees in the medical field.
“Be aware of why you want to do it this,” McKie said. “It will help with the ebbs and flows that will come up.”
The other experts agreed that flexibility will be essential for everyone affiliated with the medical field.
When asked how they both compete and yet provide quality care for patients, Carl Little, CEO and Senior Vice President at Houston Methodist Clear Lake Hospital, emphasized collaboration. The importance of collaboration was echoed by the others on the panel.
Dr. Abel Longoria, the founder of Hospitality Health ER and an emergency room physician, took up the torch and voiced some of the negatives going on in medical care regionally and nationally. For instance, he said, there are no 24-hour pharmacies in Galveston.
Longoria expressed his personal frustration with trying to reach a human voice when reaching out to a doctor.
“When you call Hospitality, a human will pick up the phone,” Longoria said. “If we don’t, then something is wrong with our phone.”
A giggle rippled across the audience when Longoria said, “There are some people like me who could not access a complicated online platform, even if their life depended on it.”
Transparency in insurance is something Longoria said he would like to see happen. He also expressed the need for legislatures to make health care and insurance a priority.
After the panel concluded many of the guests remained and sought time with the speakers or talked with others about their own views and experiences with health care.
One attendee at the event was disappointed that a representative from insurance was not on the panel.
Another one was very pleased to learn that hospitals are being more attentive to their staffs’ overall well-being.
Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce (GRCC) President Gina Spagnola summed up the event.
“The Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce’s State of Healthcare Luncheon was a tremendous success, bringing together key healthcare leaders and stakeholders to discuss critical issues and innovations in the industry. The event highlighted our community’s commitment to advancing healthcare and provided invaluable insights that will drive future progress,” Spagnola said. “We are proud to have hosted such a meaningful and impactful gathering. We are already working on the Second Annual State of Healthcare Luncheon that will be held October 2025.”
Given that the first luncheon was originally planned for July 10, which happened to be a bad day for most of us in the region because of the lack of power and other problems caused by Hurricane Beryl, it seems like a good plan to schedule next year’s event in the fall and avoid interference from our region’s tropical weather systems.
