Becker’s Healthcare Podcast – Dr. Yasir Tarabichi, CHAIO & CMIO of Ovations, MetroHealth
Date: December 15, 2025
Host: Grace Lynn Keller
Guest: Dr. Yasir Tarabichi, Chief Health AI Officer, MetroHealth & CMIO, Ovations
Event: 10th Annual Health IT, Digital Health & RCM Meeting
Episode Overview
This episode features Dr. Yasir Tarabichi, a physician informaticist, pulmonary and critical care doctor, and current Chief Health AI Officer at MetroHealth. He is also the CMIO at Ovations, a virtual care startup. Dr. Tarabichi discusses the real-world applications and operational challenges of integrating AI and digital health solutions into healthcare, emphasizing responsible innovation and focusing on meaningful outcomes rather than technology for its own sake.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. Professional Background & Mission
[00:50]
- Dr. Tarabichi describes himself as a "physician informaticist first and foremost," continuing clinical practice alongside his informatics leadership roles.
- As CHAIO at MetroHealth, he guides the adoption of health innovations, grounding them in responsible use, ROI, and outcome monitoring.
- With Ovations, he works on an integrated, virtual-first care platform designed to keep patients within health systems using a seamless combination of virtual and in-person services:
“It’s integrated virtual-first care as opposed to point solutions, keeping patients in your system rather than losing them.” — Dr. Tarabichi [01:41]
2. AI Use Cases Making a Difference in Healthcare
[01:51–06:13]
- Predictive AI:
- MetroHealth has worked extensively with predictive models, particularly for sepsis detection.
- They focus on ensuring accuracy, fairness, and, as a safety-net hospital, equitable outcomes for diverse patient populations.
“Can you use a reasonable AI model in a way that actually enhances care for all and... does not exacerbate disparities that we see…” — Dr. Tarabichi [02:22]
- Generative AI:
- Emphasis on broad, integrated solutions with enterprise-wide value, rather than fragmented point solutions.
- Largest areas of focus:
- Ambient AI: Reducing clinician burden at the point of care; enhances documentation and potentially revenue, but primarily improves provider experience.
- AI Summarization: Using generative AI to surface key information for clinicians, enabling quick patient understanding during shift changes.
- Automated Documentation: Drafting progress notes and discharge summaries to reduce workload and improve billing accuracy.
“We’re optimistic about where [ambient AI] is going in terms of relieving the burden on our clinicians... and even potentially revenue as a result of that.” — Dr. Tarabichi [03:50]
- Partnership Approach:
- Prefers working with forward-thinking vendors open to feedback and co-development, ensuring solutions meet operational needs.
3. Balancing Innovation and Operations in Digital Health
[06:13–09:28]
- Critiques "AI for the sake of AI" approaches from vendors; insists on problem-first, solution-driven deployments.
- Warns leaders about being seduced by AI “magic” promises—focus instead on strategic alignment and genuine need.
“Don’t tell me why I need an AI solution, tell me about the problem you’re trying to solve and why AI is the answer to that problem.” — Dr. Tarabichi [06:42]
- ROI must be examined holistically:
- Not just in “hard dollars” but also considering operational efficiency, provider well-being, and retention.
- Example: Ambient AI may not directly increase revenue, but it helps retain clinicians by making their work more enjoyable.
“The ROI is not always measurable in hard dollars. I like to know that the outcomes are not just related to finances. There’s operational efficiency, there’s clinical safety...” — Dr. Tarabichi [08:41]
4. Impact of Legislation on Health IT & AI
[09:28–10:57]
- MetroHealth maintains close alignment between strategy and compliance/risk teams.
- Proactive approach: Takes responsibility for technology safety, not waiting for external mandates or regulation to ensure responsible AI implementation.
“We are responsible for our own fate… we’re not waiting to be told how to be safe and responsible when it comes to implementing these new technologies.” — Dr. Tarabichi [09:51]
- Emphasizes rigorous internal validation—solutions need to perform reliably for their specific patient population.
5. Final Advice for Healthcare Leaders on Technology Advancement
[11:08–11:33]
- Core recommendation: Stick to operational needs and strategy; focus on solving real problems, not chasing technology fads.
“Go back to your strategy. Go back to your operational needs. Focus on the problems you’re trying to solve. AI is not always the answer, nor should it be.” — Dr. Tarabichi [11:10]
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On keeping innovation patient- and problem-focused:
“We are problem oriented. Solutions based on the problem cart, not before the horse, right?” — Dr. Tarabichi [06:35]
-
On AI vendor selection strategy:
“Always start with a vendor partner… more often than not, they may already be working on something that you’re trying to solve.” — Dr. Tarabichi [08:08]
-
On sustainable adoption:
“You don’t have to feed all of those streams to make a case for your solution, but you have to hit as many of those boxes as you can for it to be viable and, more importantly, for it to be sustainable.” — Dr. Tarabichi [09:18]
Important Timestamps
- 00:50 — Dr. Tarabichi’s background and roles
- 01:51 — Predictive & generative AI use cases at MetroHealth
- 03:50 — Promise and limitations of ambient AI
- 06:35 — Problem-first approach to AI deployment; vendor selection
- 08:41 — Broader look at ROI in digital health innovation
- 09:37 — Navigating legislative and compliance factors in AI adoption
- 11:08 — Dr. Tarabichi’s final advice to leaders
Summary Tone & Takeaways
Dr. Tarabichi speaks candidly, with a clear-eyed pragmatism about technology in healthcare. His approach urges organizational leaders to pursue innovation thoughtfully—anchored in strategy, patient benefit, and staff well-being. AI and virtual health tools are powerful, but only when truly solving the right problems and implemented with rigor.
This episode provides practical insights for healthcare leaders seeking to navigate the hype around AI and digital health, and offers a blueprint for sustainable, value-based innovation in clinical environments.