Driving Innovation and Upskilling in Healthcare with Sharon Easterling, CEO of Upskillz

Summary

Becker’s Healthcare Podcast: Driving Innovation and Upskilling in Healthcare with Sharon Easterling, CEO of Upskillz

Release Date: July 21, 2025

---

Introduction

In this episode of the Becker’s Healthcare Podcast, host Chanel Bunger engages in an insightful conversation with Sharon Easterling, the CEO and Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Upskillz. Sharon brings over two decades of experience in Clinical Documentation Improvement (CDI), denial management, and artificial intelligence (AI) applications in healthcare.

---

Sharon Easterling's Background

Sharon begins by outlining her extensive background in healthcare management and AI integration:

“I have a long history of CDI and denial management, but also I have a strong interest in closing AI gaps. I'm the CEO of Upskills and VP of Revenue Cycle Management, and I've been working with documentation and AI tools probably for about 20 years now.”
[00:21]

Her dual role at Upskillz emphasizes her commitment to enhancing revenue cycle processes through innovative technologies.

---

Current Healthcare Trends

Sharon delves into the prevailing trends shaping the healthcare landscape:

1. AI Adoption: AI is becoming ubiquitous, integrated into both consumer and business applications within healthcare.

   “AI is embedded in everything. So it will be exciting to see what some of the new technologies that will continue to arise from this.”
   [00:58]

2. Patient-Friendly Billing and Financial Transparency: Enhancing billing processes to reduce patient confusion and improve collections.

   “Helping to reduce that confusion that patients experience as well as a process to improve collections.”
   [01:15]

3. Revenue Cycle Outsourcing: Increasing reliance on outsourcing for functions like coding, CDI, and billing, shifted towards monitoring rather than task execution.

   “It's going to move more strongly to us monitoring things versus the doing of tasks.”
   [01:50]

4. Integrated End-to-End Hospital Systems: Unifying clinical, administrative, and financial data to optimize workflows and patient care coordination.

   “Bringing in that clinical administration, administrative and financial data into unified platforms, I think, which is going to help increase and optimize workflow and efficiencies.”
   [02:10]

5. Virtual Visits and Patient Monitoring: Incorporating virtual nurses and remote monitoring to enhance patient experience and comfort.

   “Providers, as they implement these new systems where we're doing that on-site patient monitoring, we remember that patient and make sure that they feel comfortable with it.”
   [03:30]

---

Future Focus: AI Solution Shakira

Looking ahead to the latter half of 2025, Sharon expresses excitement about a groundbreaking AI solution named Shakira:

“We've been working on a very innovative AI solution and this solution will address the entire revenue cycle from front end to back end, and it is going to level the pain field between the provider and the payer, making it better for the community.”
[04:02]

Key highlights of Shakira include:

• Unwinding Payer Algorithms: Enhancing transparency with payer processes.
• Comprehensive Workflow Integration: Facilitating better interactions between providers and payers.
• Impact on Hospital Operations: Streamlining tasks and improving facility success.

Sharon proudly mentions the provisional patent secured for Shakira, underscoring its unique contribution to healthcare revenue cycle management.

---

Achievements in Recent Months

Reflecting on the past 6 to 18 months, Sharon shares her notable accomplishments:

1. Development of Shakira: Securing a provisional patent for the AI solution.

   “Shakira, Shakira, I would say she is definitely something that I am most proud of, being a part of the team of getting that provisional patent...”
   [05:22]

2. Authorship: Publishing a book titled "Career Phoenix Rise, Reinvent and Reclaim Your Future" focused on upskilling healthcare professionals.

   “I wrote a recent book... and I have been really focused on upskilling healthcare professionals for the future.”
   [06:00]

Sharon emphasizes the importance of adapting to AI advancements and developing critical thinking skills to remain relevant and effective in the evolving healthcare environment.

---

Advice for Evolving Leaders

Sharon offers invaluable advice for current and aspiring leaders in healthcare:

1. Be Proactive with AI:

   “Be proactive, Chanel, and understanding AI. You know, we're going to have to familiarize ourselves with those tools so we can be proactive in our current roles.”
   [07:27]

2. Make Yourself Indispensable: Anticipate job impacts due to AI and strive to add unique value.

   “To be able to get ahead of that, you need to put yourself above and make yourself indispensable.”
   [07:40]

3. Embrace and Adapt to Change: Stay agile and prepare both oneself and staff for technological advancements.

   “Be agile. You know, changes are inevitable, especially with technology advancement.”
   [08:10]

4. Patient-Centric Virtual Care: Ensure that technological integrations enhance patient support and connectivity.

   “We have to ensure that that technology and that engagement is designed so the patient still feels supported and connected and not isolated.”
   [08:45]

5. Strengthen Critical Thinking Skills: Invest in developing analytical and decision-making capabilities to effectively integrate and manage technology.

   “Invest time in honing critical thinking skills. You know, the future leaders will not be able to just manage technology. They're going to have to integrate that.”
   [09:20]

Sharon concludes her advice with enthusiasm about the future, acknowledging both its challenges and opportunities:

“It's an exciting time. A little scary, but exciting at the same time.”
[09:50]

---

Conclusion

As the conversation wraps up, Sharon provides avenues for listeners to connect and learn more about her work:

“Connect with me on LinkedIn... You can email me at infoupskills.org or find [e-mail].”
[10:03]

Chanel expresses gratitude for Sharon's insights, concluding the episode on a note of appreciation for the valuable discussion.

---

Key Takeaways:

• AI Integration: Central to current and future healthcare innovations, particularly in revenue cycle management.
• Shakira AI Solution: A transformative tool aimed at harmonizing provider-payer interactions and enhancing operational efficiency.
• Upskilling Healthcare Professionals: Critical for adapting to technological changes and maintaining relevance in the industry.
• Leadership Adaptability: Emphasizes proactive learning, critical thinking, and patient-centric approaches to navigate the evolving healthcare landscape.

---

For more information and to connect with Sharon Easterling, visit Upskillz on LinkedIn or reach out via email at infoupskills.org and excelwithai.org.

Transcript

[A]

Hello and welcome to the Becker's Healthcare Podcast. My name is Chanel Bunger. Today I'm thrilled to speak with Sharon Easterling, the CEO and VP of Revenue Cycle at Upskills, who joins the podcast today to share insights in her background healthcare trends she's keeping an eye on and a bit more. Sharon, thank you so much for joining me. Could you get us started out by introducing yourself and sharing a bit about your background and organization?

[B]

Sure, absolutely. Chanel, thank you first of all for having me here today. So glad to be here. I have a long history of CDI and denial management, but also I have a strong interest in closing AI gaps. I'm the CEO of Upskills and VP of Revenue Cycle Management and I've been working with documentation and AI tools probably for about 20 years now.

[A]

Chanel, that's amazing. I'm happy that you can join us and to get us started out. Can you talk about the trends that you're currently watching in your role today in healthcare?

[B]

Sure, absolutely. You know, Chanel, so much is happening right now. So we have increasing AI adoption from consumer use to business use as well as healthcare. And you know, AI is embedded in everything. So it will be exciting to see what some of the new technologies that will continue to arise from this. I think from a healthcare standpoint, you know, we're going to see more impact with, you know, healthcare and patient friendly billing and of course that financial transparency piece, you know, helping to reduce that confusion that patients experiences as well as a process to improve collections there. I do think there's going to be significant, you know, continued focus as well as expansion of revenue cycle outsourcing. You know, as we journey into this age of AI. Right. I think we're going to move even more into outsourcing as we've been doing in the recent years. You know, it's going to move more strongly to us monitoring things versus the doing of tasks. So therefore when you're just monitoring, it gives that increased ability to outsource some of those functions within the revenue cycle, such as the coding and the CDI and the billing, because that job is going to shift somewhat. And also integrated end to end hospital systems, you know, from the front end to the back end, bringing in that clinical administration, administrative and financial data into unified platforms, I think, which is going to help increase and optimize workflow and efficiencies and of course enhance that patient care coordination because of course, healthy consumers is what we ultimately want and to be able to grasp that we're going to be Able have to be able to manage those process differently and be able to analyze that data in a different way. Also, I would like to mention the virtual visit and the reason I mentioned this, Chanel, is because my husband had a recent hospital visit and we had the opportunity to have a virtual nurse and he was on the floor. I would say that providers, as they implement these new systems where we're doing that on site patient monitoring, we remember that patient and make sure that they feel comfortable with it, have that education and even the person performing that task, be somewhat more oriented to this new patient type experience.

[A]

Absolutely. And now looking forward into the second half of 2025, what would you say you're most focused on and excited about?

[B]

Yeah, so, you know, it has been an exciting couple of years for me, so I would say I am most excited about. We've been working on a very innovative AI solution and this solution will address the entire revenue cycle from front end to back end, and it is going to level the pain field between the provider and the payer, making it better for the community. You know, I've been working with RCM Healthcare Solutions on this and they had a vision just to make sure that we can unwind payer algorithms, that we can have a comprehensive workflow to help overturn the dials and create transparency with what's going on with the payer. I'm very excited about Shakira. She is the name of our AI and she is going to really impact how work is done within the hospital and success within that facility as well.

[A]

I love that. I love that name, obviously. And now that we've looked into the future of it, looking back at the last six to 18 months, what would you say you're most proud of?

[B]

Yeah. So as I just mentioned, Chanel, Shakira, Shakira, I would say she is definitely something that I am most proud of, you know, being a part of, of the team of getting that provisional patent for the entire flow that Shakira will be able to perform. And then as well as you know, I wrote a recent book, Chanel, it's called the Career Phoenix Rise, Reinvent and Reclaim youm Future. And I have been really focused on upskilling healthcare professionals for the future because as I mentioned, Chanel, we're gonna move to somewhat more of monitoring and we're going to be building and we're going to be analyzing and to be able to do those things, we need to have awareness of what's happening with AI, be able to hone in on those critical thinking skills. And be able to shift ourselves. So when I say shift ourselves, I mean we're going to have to be a part of the AI, right? AI is the baby, the very smart baby. But we're going to be learning how to build and manage the AI more. So we're going to have to, some of us are going to have to shift how we've worked in the past and have that increased knowledge because it's going to be there, Chanel. It's going to be in everything we do and how we prepare ourselves for. For the future is critical. So definitely the career Phoenix.

[A]

Absolutely. You don't want to get left behind. And now, Sharon, with all of the hats that you wear, being a keynote speaker and author and heading up UP skills and the passion that you're exuding in this short conversation, I think you're the perfect person to ask this question. Could you maybe share some advice that you would give to evolving leaders maybe looking to have the same impact and success in their careers as you have?

[B]

Oh, gosh, absolutely. So definitely be proactive, Chanel, and understanding AI. You know, we're going to have to familiarize ourselves with those tools so we can be proactive in our current roles because there is going to be some impact and job loss, Chanel. So to be able to get ahead of that, you need to put yourself above and make yourself indispensable. And to become indispensable in this new AI driven age, you're going to have to go a little step further, prepare for the change. Right. And be agile. You know, changes is inevitable, especially with technology advancement. So leaders, we're going to have to anticipate that, embrace our change, prepare our staff and prepare ourselves as we adapt these skills and change our perspective. Something I talked about early, that patient centric virtual care, you know, we got hospital at home, we have all these devices that are going to be doing remote type of monitoring. You know, recognize that our patients are still adjusting to all this. They're still adjusting to telehealth and virtual interaction. So we have to ensure that that technology and that engagement and is designed so the patient still feels supported and connected and not isolated. Because maintaining patience is going to be as critical and crucial as ever. And of course, the main thing, Chanel, I talk about, and I talk about this with my friends, sometimes strengthening that critical thinking, going to be thinking at a different level in many different degree in position. So invest time in honing critical thinking skills. You know, the future leaders will not be able to just manage technology. They're going to have to integrate that. They're going to have to develop new things. They're going to have to have analytical skills and decision making capabilities for the future. So for you to be able to go forward, I think that's going to be a huge piece of it, Chanel. And I can't wait to see what's happening because really, it's an exciting time. A little scary, but exciting at the same time.

[A]

Absolutely. Excellent advice. Well, Sharon, I've enjoyed our time together, but before I let you go, is there anything else listeners should know and where can they find you if they want to learn more?

[B]

Yeah, sure. So of course, definitely connect with me on LinkedIn. I have a newsletter out there where I'm talking about different AI strategies and tools and things impacting healthcare as well as business. You can email me at infoupskills.org you can reach out there or you can find [e-mail] Got it.

[A]

Well, Sharon, I want to thank you once again for joining me today and for sharing your insights on the Becker's Healthcare podcast. Thank you so much.

[B]

Oh, you're very welcome. Thank you for having me, Chanel. This has been a great conversation.