Turning Clinical Data Into Action: Building Better Workflows Through Collaboration with Connexall

Summary

Becker’s Healthcare Podcast Summary

Episode: Turning Clinical Data Into Action: Building Better Workflows Through Collaboration with Connexall
Release Date: July 24, 2025
Host: Lucas Voss
Guests:

• Ashley Hunsucker, Senior Clinical Informatics Specialist at Connexall
• Jen Capps, Director of Clinical Services and Outcomes at Connexall

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Introduction

In this insightful episode of the Becker’s Healthcare Podcast, host Lucas Voss delves into the critical topic of transforming clinical data into actionable workflows. Joined by industry experts Ashley Hunsucker and Jen Capps from Connexall, the discussion centers on leveraging data to enhance healthcare delivery through effective collaboration and continuous improvement.

Guest Introductions

Lucas Voss begins by introducing his esteemed guests, emphasizing their extensive backgrounds in nursing and informatics.

Ashley Hunsucker shares her journey:

"I hold a master's degree in clinical nursing informatics with a clinical background in NICU and pediatric care... transitioned into informatics back in 2020 which has helped build and center foundation for me inside of that patient-centered care and to support our nurses into healthcare technology."
[00:40]

Jen Capps elaborates on her expertise:

"I've been in the healthcare space for over 30 years, with roles ranging from traditional bedside nursing to leading EMR implementations... Informatics was just a natural fit."
[01:39]

The Importance of Actionable Clinical Data

Lucas sets the stage by highlighting the necessity of actionable insights at the bedside to improve care delivery. He prompts Ashley to discuss how clinical teams can operationalize these insights seamlessly.

Ashley responds:

"Actual insight is extremely important when you're building workflows for those end users... we use real data and on-site assessments to provide clinical informatics, the insight using qualitative and quantitative data to identify gaps that might be contributing to breaking down the adoption for the end user."
[03:25]

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Operationalizing Insights with Minimal Disruption

The conversation underscores the significance of integrating insights into existing workflows with minimal disruption. Ashley emphasizes an organic approach:

"We look at how the end user is being effective. This allows for a more organic approach rather than pushing some sort of software or technology out and abruptly disrupting things."
[04:26]

Jen concurs, highlighting the need for ongoing monitoring:

"It's not a set it and forget it mentality. You have to go back, you have to monitor, you have to refine... it's an ongoing journey."
[04:40]

Ensuring Relevance and Continuous Improvement

Lucas probes into maintaining the relevance of insights across different organizations.

Jen elaborates on sustaining relevance:

"With all these advances in tech, there's an overwhelming amount of information that the bedside caregiver is being bombarded with... it has to be an ongoing journey. You have to be nimble enough to change."
[05:10]

This segment underscores the dynamic nature of healthcare technology and the necessity for continuous adaptation based on real-time data and feedback.

Collaboration Between Clinical and Technical Teams

Recognizing the potential overwhelm from vast data, Lucas inquires about the role of collaboration between clinical and technical teams.

Jen highlights the critical nature of early and continuous collaboration:

"Clinically and operationally led projects and IT enabled... you need to have clinical and IT alignment from the C-suite all the way down... during implementation, it's about understanding the day-to-day life of the person using the tech."
[06:47]

Ashley adds:

"We're that liaison and that bridge during the implementation and through optimization, helping guide those conversations and bringing those various stakeholders together."
[07:45]

Feedback Loops and Engagement

Lucas shifts focus to feedback mechanisms, asking Ashley about effective methods to drive engagement and sustain improvements.

Ashley outlines Connexall’s approach:

"We survey frontline staff early on to hear their pains and frustrations... post Go Live, we do optimization with the staff, follow up with them on-site, continue face-to-face interviews and feedback... run data reports from prior to Go Live during Go Live."
[08:40]

She emphasizes the importance of closing the feedback loop:

"This helps close the gaps and keeps those continuous measures... having executive summaries available for leadership is helpful."
[10:50]

Lessons Learned and Surprises

Lucas inquires about unexpected learnings from their implementations.

Ashley reflects:

"Nothing surprises me at this point. I'm surprised when things go as planned."
[11:18]

Jen concurs, adding:

"There's always an opportunity to learn and grow with each implementation... any surprises turn into nuggets of lessons learned."
[12:32]

This highlights the predictability and manageability of challenges when robust data and feedback systems are in place.

Conclusion

Lucas wraps up the episode by appreciating Ashley and Jen for their invaluable insights into leveraging clinical data for workflow optimization. He underscores the importance of continuous collaboration and feedback in achieving seamless healthcare delivery.

The episode concludes with an acknowledgment of Connexall’s role in facilitating these critical conversations, encouraging listeners to explore more healthcare insights through Becker’s podcast offerings.

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Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Ashley Hunsucker [03:25]: "Actual insight is extremely important when you're building workflows for those end users."
• Jen Capps [04:40]: "It's not a set it and forget it mentality. You have to go back, you have to monitor, you have to refine."
• Jen Capps [06:47]: "Clinically and operationally led projects and IT enabled... you need to have clinical and IT alignment from the C-suite all the way down."
• Ashley Hunsucker [08:40]: "We survey frontline staff early on to hear their pains and frustrations."
• Ashley Hunsucker [11:18]: "Nothing surprises me at this point. I'm surprised when things go as planned."
• Jen Capps [12:32]: "There's always an opportunity to learn and grow with each implementation."

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This comprehensive summary encapsulates the essence of the podcast episode, offering a structured overview of the discussions on transforming clinical data into actionable workflows through effective collaboration and continuous improvement.

Transcript

[Lucas Voss]

Hi everyone, this is Lucas Voss with Becker's Healthcare. Thanks so much for tuning in to the Becker's Healthcare podcast series. It's fantastic to have you all on. Today we're going to talk about turning clinical data into everyday action and I'm very excited to be joined by two guests today. For today's discussion, Ashley Hunsucker, senior clinical Informatics Specialist at Kinexel and Jen Capps, Director of Clinical Services and Outcomes, also with Canexel. Ashley and Jen, thanks so much for being here today. It's great to have you both.

[Jen Capps]

Thanks for having us.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah, absolutely. We'll start with introductions for our audience here. Ashley, why don't we start off with you if you want to introduce ourselves to our audience and share a little bit about your work in healthcare.

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Sure. My name is Ashley Hunsucker. I'm a registered nurse, been in a registered nurse for over 20 plus years. I hold a master's degree in clinical nursing informatics with a clinical background in NICU and pediatric care. Those strong foundational settings of acute patient centered care transitioned me over to education for eight years. So clinical instructor teaching, didactyl on site clinical rotation simulations and informatics and shaping that next generation of nurses is very important to me. Rolled over and transitioned into informatics back in 2020 where natural evolution of the bedside and education spread spun into informatics and has helped build and center foundation for me inside of that patient centered care and to support our nurses into healthcare technology.

[Lucas Voss]

So excited to hear all of your perspectives on this. Very excited. Jan, I'll hand it over to you for introductions as well.

[Jen Capps]

Sure. Thanks Lucas. My name's Jan Capps. As I said, I get to be the pleasure of leading our clinical team here at Conexol. I'm a registered nurse by background. I've been a nurse for 27 years. I've been in the healthcare space for a little over 30 traditional bedside nursing, emergency department, cath lab, interventional radiology. Really was quite interested in operations and hospital operations specifically. So several leadership opportunities within that space, also in the ambulatory space and then crossed over to the dark side of it and spent the second half of my career leading EMR implementations, ancillary systems implementations and really love that space between technology and the bedside caregiver. So informatics was just a natural fit and moved over into that space. So again you get the opportunity to leverage what you know at the bedside, what you've learned through operations, blend that with it, and that's the recipe for informatics. So that's why we're here.

[Lucas Voss]

Absolutely. I think it's so great too, because you know what insights really count from your own experience at the bedside, which is very, very important. And that's sort of what I want to start off with here too. When it comes to improving care delivery, those actionable insights are so important at the bedside. Having them at the bedside, having them available is so important. Ashley, I want to start with you here. Can you walk us through why that's so important and how clinical teams can operationalize those insights and in a way that aligns with their existing workflows?

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Yeah, sure. Actual insight is extremely important when you're building workflows for those end users. So making the right decisions and leading into that design of workflow. We use real data and on site assessments here at Conexol and that helps provide us the clinical informatis, the insight using that qualitative and quantitative data so that we can look and assess and identify those actual gaps that might be contributing to breaking down the adoption for the end user. So we look at how the end user is being effective. Right. So when we start there, it allows for that more organic approach rather than pushing some sort of software or technology out and then it's going to abruptly disrupt things. We look at how can we select soft, launch this into their day and deploy it to fit within their day and create not so much impact of their normal natural, organic workflow for the end user.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah, the least disruption possible, I think.

[Jen Capps]

Correct, correct.

[Lucas Voss]

One of the keys there, Jen, just a follow up to this. How do you ensure then those insights remain relevant across organizations?

[Jen Capps]

Well, it's not really a set it and forget it mentality. You have to go back, you have to monitor, you have to refine. Technology is a good thing. It can be a tremendous asset when it's properly leveraged. But with that, you have to be mindful that with all these advances in tech, there's just an overwhelming amount of information that the bedside caregiver is just being bombarded with. And a lot of that's not actionable, meaning it's not going to drive a meaningful interaction between the patient and the caregiver. And with all of these changes, I mean, things change in practice. You may introduce a new piece of technology. It just really highlights the fact that this has to be an ongoing journey. You have to be nimble enough to change. As Ashley said, you've got to lean into your data, you've got to do observations and you have to be willing to ask your the hard question, which is, do I need to change the way I'm doing my day to day work and if so, what parts of that workflow can be influenced and when. And so again, it just really sets you up for that ongoing process improvement journey. And data is such a key point of that. Looking at how your system's operating, you know, surveying and interviewing your teams, getting their feedback and just really taking all of those inputs for that continuous process improvements. Very important.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah. And John, you touched on a very important point. I think this can get overwhelming. Right. It's one of those things that there's so much, there is potential for it to be overwhelming. What role does collaboration between clinical and technical teams play during implementation and optimization phases? And what conversations should teams have early on to maybe avoid some of that overwhelming feeling and being able to really operationalize this.

[Jen Capps]

Well, I mean collaboration is just huge. And if you spend any time with me at all, you'll find out that I say repeatedly clinically and operationally led projects and IT enabled. And you've really got to lean into the expertise of both groups. They need to be at the table early. And this really even goes back before you implement. You need to have clinical and IT alignment at that C suite all the way down and be involved in those decisions around system selection. I mean that's huge for buy in throughout the project, prior to even just getting into the implementation phases. But obviously once you get to implementation, it's again, it's taking that time for the clinical team to understand how the tech should work or potentially could work and then vice versa. You need to understand what the day to day life is of the person that's going to be using the tech. That's how you guide thoughtful design sessions and decisions. And again with Conexol, that's one of the things that our informaticists do. We're that liaison and that bridge during the implementation and through optimization on helping guide those conversations and bringing those various stakeholders together.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah. And only then can something happen that Ashley mentioned earlier in the conversation. Right. The least amount of disruption for everybody and being able to support those workflows. I think that's very important. Ashley, I want to come back to you here. You talked about the importance of feedback loops and continuous improvement quite a bit. Can you talk about what methods of feedback have worked well and what's been most effective in driving engagement and sustaining improvements over time?

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Sure, sure. So first off, it's for us it's not just about launching a system, it's about setting it up to truly work for the people that are using it. So back to Jan mentioning that engaging in collaboration early and often one of the key, some of the key things that we do, I don't want to say there's just one because they're all really independent on each other. So we survey very early on in engagement. We survey the frontline staff. So we want to hear from them. We want to all the pains, all the frustrations, all the things we want to hear it. And we also ask questions that are more culture related and adopt as far as how things are being used not just on their alarms, but maybe with their devices and things of that nature, policies, procedures. We want to take a look at everything from that information. Then we start internally dissecting it out, looking at still the data, looking at the responses of from staff, trying to see where there are those gaps. But we discussed potential pitfalls and things of that with leadership which is a great way to help open the communication but identify it so we can close those gaps. We additionally going through the Go Live post Go Live we do optimization with the staff, follow up with them on site, continue to have face to face interviews and feedback getting information from them, watching them how this deployment is engaging in their day to day. What can we do better to take it back to the team of our customer to give them our suggestions of this is what we saw. This is what may could help. It could be there's an education gap that we need to revisit. So starting to look for ways to close those gaps helps close the loop and keeps those continuous measures. We're always looking at the data. So I run data reports from prior to Go Live during Go Live. Go Live is always, you know, shaky ground. So we we try not to get too hung up on. We want just to settle a little bit for staff to really kind of settle in so we can look at that repetitive behavior to see why things may not be working to the optimization piece. That's how we try to close those loops. And it's been pretty well received. Having those executive summaries available for leadership to take to the levels they need to for support is helpful as well.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah, and I just wanted to follow up on this too. Has there anything you have these conversations on implementation all the time from that feedback that you've gotten. Are there any learnings or insights that have surprised you, Ashley, in this process?

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Nothing surprises me, Lucas.

[Lucas Voss]

I would assume so, yes.

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Nothing surprises me. You have to be ready to pivot all the time. Nothing surprises me at this point. I'm surprised when things go as planned. That's probably the surprise.

[Lucas Voss]

You have the data. Right. There shouldn't be any surprises.

[Jen Capps]

Right.

[Ashley Hunsucker]

And it's interesting because the data, you look at it, you're like, well, this is what I'm seeing. And so when you. When you're able to confirm that that's truly what's happening on the floors and the units, so then we have to peel the layer back. Why is this happening? How can we change this behavior? How can we reduce this? How can we get this rate higher? Those kind of things. So the data supports it, but it's only one half of the picture, really going and seeing how it is. Yes, we can look to see. Okay, these are the big things I'm looking at in your data. Now let's get on site and really dig down into. Into the weeds with this.

[Lucas Voss]

Yeah, Jen, same for you. I'd love to hear from you as well, from sort of the feedback that you're hearing, the conversations that you're having. Are there any learnings or insights that. That surprise you or is it the same thing? Nothing surprises you?

[Jen Capps]

I mean, I had to laugh when Ashley said that because she stole my answer, quite frankly. And there you go. Just when you think you've seen it. But no, nothing really surprises me. What I do like about the space that we work in is you always go into it with the best intentions, and there's always an opportunity to learn and grow with each implementation. And so being able to pick up those lessons learned and share them with other people within our community, whether it's a customer, whether it's just networking with our peers, that's how we grow as a profession, and that's how we're able to continue to make a positive impact with these healthcare implementations with workflow optimization. And so any of those surprises really turn into nuggets of lessons learned?

[Lucas Voss]

Absolutely. And I think that's a great way to end our podcast episode today with these nuggets learned. Jen and Ashley, thank you so much for your time and insights today. This was a fantastic conversation. Thanks for being here. Being here.

[Ashley Hunsucker]

Yeah, thank you, Lucas.

[Jen Capps]

Yeah, thanks. We appreciate the opportunity and being a guest.

[Lucas Voss]

Absolutely. We also want to thank our podcast sponsor, Connects all. You can tune into more podcasts from Becker's Healthcare by visiting our podcast [e-mail].