Fostering Collaboration and Amplifying Voices: Embracing Inclusivity in Healthcare IT

As a healthcare technology leader with a 25-year journey in the industry, I have witnessed the incredible impact that collaboration and a wide range of perspectives can have on driving innovation in healthcare IT.

I am deeply committed to creating a culture of collaboration and inclusivity within the technology sector. This blog serves as a platform to celebrate the achievements and insights of individuals in healthcare IT, highlighting their valuable contributions to the industry. Our focus is on fostering collaboration and sharing ideas to further enhance the healthcare IT community.

To kick off our Women in Healthcare IT blog series, I sat down with Jody Branson, Senior Director of Sales at TeleVox, to learn about her journey with TeleVox, her perspective on the industry and her advice for a successful career in healthcare IT.

Jody, how did you get started in healthcare technology?

I grew up in the technology space focused on collaboration solutions for the F500 with a division of West for about 20 years. The pandemic commoditized that technology, so I shifted my career into solutions that benefit individual health and well-being. Still under the West umbrella, I came to TeleVox with a focus on healthcare.

Who has served as a role model or inspiration to you in your journey?

Being a wife and mother of three sons, my inspiration has been my own family. My son suffered a baseball injury. Knowing from my career the technology and innovation that is available, experiencing the health system firsthand left me frustrated with making phone calls, trying to find procedure instructions, and not fully having the care journey at my fingertips.

Describe your role and how you are working to make stronger relationships between patients and providers.

As Senior Director of Sales, my focus is to build bridges. That comes in the form of linking a health system’s challenges to TeleVox solutions, and likewise sharing with a health system the possibilities for greater outcomes. These bridges lead to building a better patient journey through the use of technology.

What trends and challenges are you currently seeing in healthcare technology?

The buzz at events like ViVE and HIMSS is about AI and simplicity for a streamlined patient experience that reflects how to progress despite staffing challenges. In my day to day, I experience new approaches for patient engagement with use cases at Mass General Brigham, Cincinnati Children’s, Memorial Healthcare System, and others.

What is TeleVox doing particularly in the AI space and how does that tie into greater industry activity?

Topics that surface consistently as I speak to large health systems across the U.S. are reducing no-show rates, improving pre-procedure prep and automating referrals from a manual process. TeleVox’s solutions allow links and scripting to be put in any message to allow patients access when, where, and how they need. This is part of building bridges to keep it simple for all involved. I like to think that TeleVox has built a welcoming Digital Front Door that brings the patient in and makes them want to stay.

How is TeleVox helping shape its industry and make a difference for its clients and patients?

Imagine getting an appointment reminder with a confirm/cancel option, but in reality, you want to reschedule, and you’d like to know of any prep for the particular appointment. TeleVox can herd all the patient needs in the same interaction vs. the patient moving from a text to a phone call to waiting for a call back, on and on. We all know how frustrating this becomes!

What are the key qualities that help women thrive in healthcare IT and in a leadership role?

I think women find themselves in the middle of a juggling act, building bridges between work and family life to ensure everyone in their family is happy, safe and healthy. I believe this arms women with the ability to multitask, work efficiently, and display empathy and strong, emotionally intelligent leadership skills.

I want to thank Jody for her time in answering my questions and her dedication to the healthcare IT industry. As we continue this series, future installments will explore the experiences and expertise of women in healthcare IT, uncovering their unique perspectives and innovative solutions. By emphasizing the power of collaboration, we aim to inspire individuals from all backgrounds to come together, share knowledge, and co-create a future where healthcare technology thrives.

While we prioritize amplifying a variety of voices, it’s important to emphasize that this blog is open to all who share our vision of a thriving healthcare IT community. Together, we can build a stronger and more innovative future for healthcare technology.

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