Penn Medicine’s Chief Transformation Officer Raina Merchant, MD, MSHP, is at the helm of innovation efforts at Penn to make health care easier—utilizing technology to reduce administrative burdens and free employees to do more meaningful work. In her role, Merchant coordinates multiple projects from teams across Penn Medicine, from Information Services to Operations to the office of the Chief Medical Officer, and more.

“Penn is really focused on thinking about efficiency for health care workers across every spectrum, from clinicians to frontline staff to those who work behind the scenes,” said Merchant, who is also an associate vice president and director of the Center for Health Care Transformation and Innovation. “We’re trying to reduce repetitive tasks to make the work that employees are doing meaningful, allowing them to operate at the top of their license.”

For example, a recent agreement between Penn Medicine and Independence Blue Cross is eliminating preapprovals and prior authorization for scans ordered by certain doctors. This means more than 1,200 physicians will face fewer hurdles to get their patients approved for certain scans and ultrasounds, and patients will be able to get into Radiology appointments more quickly. 

Staff can expect more innovative efforts along these lines, without cutting corners where quality counts, said Merchant: “Not only do we want to be the easiest place to work, but to also maintain our excellence at providing the highest-quality, most evidence-based care.”

Visit the Penn Medicine News Blog to learn more, and check back here on the OIDE blog where we’ll be highlighting other leaders across Penn Medicine during Women in Medicine Month this September.

By Jonathan Waller