Memorial Hermann Health System is the largest nonprofit health system in Southeast Texas, operating more than 280 care sites across the Greater Houston region. It is anchored by Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, a Level I trauma center and flagship hospital within the Texas Medical Center, one of the world's largest medical complexes.
Memorial Hermann sits at the center of the Texas Medical Center, one of the most concentrated healthcare ecosystems in the world. How does that environment shape the way you think about innovation and patient care?
We're very fortunate to be in such a competitive and growing market. Being in the largest medical district—where you have universities, trainees, clinical programs, provider institutions and research co-located—it creates an ecosystem where people continue to push each other to be better. We're competing, and that helps us refine the care we provide, the experiences we create and the access we offer patients.
At the same time, we collaborate. During COVID, we responded together, collected data together and were comprehensive in how we did that. The Texas Medical Center serves as a neutral brand that has created spaces for innovation where life sciences and clinical teams can congregate and explore advancements in healthcare.
Memorial Hermann has partnered with the TMC Innovation Lab. How do innovations move from idea to implementation?
The TMC Innovation Lab allows us to explore devices and technologies without having to build the expensive startup structure that is needed. Memorial has an Innovation Hub where ideas—from new devices to mentorship models or new ways of using data—are vetted by stakeholders across the organization. We pilot ideas at a manageable size, evaluate the success and efficacy and then decide whether to scale across the organization.
One example comes from a frontline nurse in our Heart and Vascular Institute. She felt there was "a much better way" to perform enemas and worked with the TMC Innovation Lab to create a prototype. She then brought it to our Innovation Hub, secured funding and began piloting it. It's a better experience for both patients and the care team, and more cost-effective. It's not glamorous, but it's impactful, and it shows how ideas from people closest to the work can drive meaningful change.
Memorial Hermann has been an early adopter of robotic surgery, including the Otava robotic surgical system. What role do robotics play in modern surgery?
We've invested heavily in surgical innovation through our Surgical Innovation Robot Institute (SIRI), which allows robotic technologies to be part of a trial in a vendor-neutral training environment. As more companies enter the market, we're excited by the pace of innovation. Minimally invasive surgery is producing better outcomes, shorter lengths of stay and less impact on patients, while today's surgeons increasingly expect robotic platforms as part of their training and practice.
Robotics now supports procedures across gynecology, urology, general surgery, bariatrics,thoracic, and heart surgery. It reduces the physical demands on surgical teams, allowing them to focus on complex decision-making. The technology also provides greater precision through surgical mapping and advanced instrumentation. The result is fewer large open surgeries, faster recovery, minimal scarring and what we believe are improved patient outcomes.
Where are you seeing the most tangible value from AI?
One area I'm particularly excited about is ambient listening. It allows physicians and patients to have a more meaningful conversation while the technology captures the relevant clinical information, creates the note and generates a concise summary for both care teams and patients. Instead of receiving a 20-page document, patients get a few paragraphs covering what happened, what's most important and what comes next.
We're already seeing meaningful benefits. Clinicians used to spend hours at home documenting their day. This technology returns time back into their day to allow them to spend time in other facets of life that are important to them, whether that is family, hobbies, self-care, etc. . AI can remove administrative tasks, allowing clinicians to focus on critical thinking and patient care. As the population grows older and care needs become more complex, that added capacity will help us see more patients, support more clinical trials and continue advancing healthcare.
Memorial Hermann is expanding its facilities while also investing heavily in ambulatory care. How is the role of the acute-care campus changing?
The Greater Houston area continues to grow, and we haven't seen utilization rates decline as has been predicted. We need the bed capacity to care for both existing patients and those moving into the region. At the same time, we recognize that more care is becoming virtual, ambulatory and things that used to require surgical intervention can now be medically managed, so we're being thoughtful about how we build infrastructure.
More than half of our care portfolio is now focused on the ambulatory space. We're creating access points through partnerships with urgent care providers and ambulatory surgery organizations while maintaining strong inpatient capabilities. As more routine care moves outside the hospital, acute-care campuses are increasingly caring for highly complex patients who require sophisticated services, advanced pharmaceuticals and greater coordination of care. The acuity and complexity of hospital-based care continue to rise. At the same time, we're expanding access to highly specialized services through clinical trials, advanced cancer care and newer therapies such as CAR-T, allowing more patients to receive care close to home.
How do partnerships improve access and affordability?
Healthcare is a team sport, both inside and outside the hospital. We evaluate whether a particular capability is something we should build ourselves, partner on or simply support through investment. We look closely at whether values align and whether partners share our goals around quality, experience and managing the cost of care. The best partnerships are less transactional and more longitudinal.
Affordability starts with operational discipline. We focus on delivering high-quality care with the right teams in the right settings, while helping patients navigate where care is most appropriate. We provide nurse triage lines at no cost and invest heavily in community programs, including school-based clinics, mobile dental vans, parks, food pharmacies, gardens and other initiatives that address social determinants of health. Healthcare is much more than what happens in a hospital, and improving overall community health ultimately helps reduce the cost of care.
Following the relaunch of the transplant program, what lessons did Memorial Hermann take away about governance, oversight and maintaining public trust?
The experience reinforced the importance of continuously monitoring, verifying and ensuring the right processes and protocols are in place. With a highly specialized, multi-stakeholder program, we've had the opportunity to reimagine the model, strengthen governance and make sure all of our clinical practice guidelines are clearly defined and followed.
It's also given us the opportunity to build a strong, cohesive team around the program. Since reopening, we've completed a number of successful liver and kidney transplants, and we're proud of the progress we've made. Ultimately, we're here to take care of the community, and having the right oversight in place is critical to doing that in a meaningful way.
