Thurston Smith Defines the CIO role at Swope Health

When Thurston Smith became chief information officer at Swope Health in March 2021, he stepped into a role with no predecessor. Smith would have to build the organization’s information technology strategy from scratch. The new CIO hadn’t even been looking for a job, and suddenly he was tasked with defining a new function at the health system.

“The reason I came was because our CEO [Jeron Ravin] reached out to me and shared a vision based on his passion for patients,” Smith explains. “We serve a population that is often overlooked and forgotten about. Our job is to make them feel seen and heard, and healthy. I wasn’t looking for a job and figured that I would ride out my years at my previous employer. But coming to Swope is the best decision I’ve ever made.”

Smith’s first major challenge was crafting a robust, data-driven IT infrastructure. He led the migration of Swope Health’s electronic medical records from on-premises to the cloud, almost immediately after coming to the organization. The move included the development of a test environment to ensure smooth rollouts of new features and updates, minimizing disruptions to patient care.

Moving on, Smith took on the creation of a comprehensive data lake and analytics platform, integrating data from across the organization, providing actionable insights for both internal operations and community outreach. For example, Smith’s team uses data to identify “desert populations” lacking access to specific specialists, like podiatry or pediatric care, and to measure clinic wait times and provider productivity.

That measurement isn’t to punish providers; it’s to source new ways of helping them save time on tasks that can potentially be automated. For instance, the integration of Sunoh.ai allows the streamlining of critical documentation and reduces provider burnout by automating the process of notetaking during patient encounters.

Sunoh.ai transcribes interactions between provider and patient, extracts relevant medical information, and simplifies complicated medical jargon so that patients receive clear, concise notes once the provider reviews and sends them.

The initial AI tool was piloted with a short list of providers within Swope, and the integration has helped reduce a task that may take fifteen to twenty minutes to only two to three minutes.

Smith has also helped continue to expand Swope’s telehealth and digital health programs, ensuring continuity of care for vulnerable populations. These combined efforts have helped Swope exceed its strategic goals for access and convenience, serving some fifty-four thousand unique patients annually.

More broadly, the CIO realized the IT function at Swope needed evolution. He rebranded the team as “Information Technology Services.” This may seem like a strange place to start, but there was a method to the CIO’s change.

“I wanted the team to understand that we are here to serve, support, and make technology a tool for better outcomes, both for patients and for the organization,” Smith says. “Our job isn’t just fixing problems. You have to change that mindset. IT isn’t just about fixing tickets and answering calls. How can we utilize technology to make people’s lives better here? How can we help providers spend more time with patients? How can we be a better partner to the organization?”

The IT organization implemented a hyperconverged communication system that is fully integrated across Swope. Where people would have had to be in the office to receive notifications previously, they can now take calls and communications on the go. It’s a move fully in line with making Smith’s own team ready to serve, wherever they may be.

The result of these efforts is that IT now has a seat at the decision-making table. Smith says previously, IT would likely only be called in when there was a problem to fix, but too late in the process to make lasting change.

“We’re not all the way there, but we are in such a better space than when I got here,” the CIO says. “Being at the table means that before we make decisions about a new application, infrastructure, or a new x-ray machine, IT is involved. We can help make the best decision possible and minimize potential problems by being there from the start.”

In 2022, Smith received an Outstanding Leadership Award from the Health 2.0 conference for his impactful contributions and industry leadership. The CIO’s advocacy and service of vulnerable populations goes way beyond his day-to-day.

Smith has been an active participant in the Boys and Girls Club of America organization for decades. He became a national ambassador in 2023.

“I don’t know where I would be if there had been no one to mentor me,” Smith says. “I was a Boys and Girls Club kid. That put me on a path of examining what I wanted to do with my life. Being an ambassador now, I can help impact kids all over the world.”

Through numerous nonprofits and the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Smith is a mentor and advocate, particularly for young men seeking guidance in their lives and careers. The CIO understands how valuable that guidance can be at a young age, and he’s spent decades being that role model for others.