JFlinch (Jamie Flinchbaugh)

Grace Bourke, Consulting Director, Baker Tilly: The Problem Isn't the Technology

Grace Bourke, consulting director at Baker Tilly, frames technology rollouts in health care as a symptom of deeper process failures. She argues that organizations rush to buy new systems—EHRs, ERP, AI call‑scheduling tools—without first articulating the specific problem they aim to solve, leading to hidden errors that surface faster in digital environments than on paper. She emphasizes a disciplined front‑end approach: conduct gap‑analysis workshops, map current work, and apply Failure Mode Effect Analysis (FMEA) on a concise, half‑page card to surface risks, prioritize them, and assign ownership. In a Pacific‑Northwest health‑system case, the team identified recall‑management gaps, discovered that half the improvements could be achieved by redesigning processes before the software arrived, and used the remaining technology to close the loop. Bourke illustrates the human side with anecdotes—staff who felt their voice was heard after rigorous FMEA validation, a union‑negotiated merge that succeeded once the “why” was communicated, and a stalled AI scheduling pilot that was trimmed to a minimum viable product after risk review. Her mantra is that technology must support stable, well‑defined workflows, and staff must retain agency within clear boundaries. The takeaway for health‑care leaders is clear: prioritize problem definition, involve frontline ambassadors, and embed systematic risk‑assessment tools early. Doing so curtails budget overruns, prevents hidden data errors, and builds a culture where every employee can spot and solve problems, ultimately safeguarding patient safety and operational efficiency.