Risk Never Sleeps Podcast

Episode #148: The Human Algorithm – How Clinicians Can Code Compassion into AI

Host: Ed Gaudet
Guest: Dr. Alessio Morley-Fletcher, Co-Chair, Effective AI Implementation Committee, Boston Children’s Hospital
Date: November 25, 2025

Episode Overview

In this thought-provoking episode recorded live at the Health conference in Las Vegas, Ed Gaudet sits down with Dr. Alessio Morley-Fletcher—pediatric hospitalist, simulation leader, and co-chair of Boston Children’s Hospital’s pioneering Effective AI Implementation Committee. The conversation dives into Dr. Morley-Fletcher’s multifaceted career in medicine, the intersection of technology and compassion, and how clinicians are uniquely positioned to shape AI for patient-centered, humanistic healthcare.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Rise of the Clinician-Entrepreneur

• [00:41] Dr. Morley-Fletcher reflects on his session leading the clinician-entrepreneur panel.
  • Emphasizes clinicians' pivotal role in driving tech-enabled innovation from within hospitals.
  • Notes the need to support clinicians as they navigate rapid technological change, ensuring tech deepens patient connection rather than detracting from it.

“How can we harness technology in a way that really makes us be more connected with patients and drive innovation from within the hospital setting?”
— Dr. Morley-Fletcher [00:44]

2. Dr. Morley-Fletcher’s Personal & Professional Journey

• Background: Born in Rome, medical degree in Italy, further training in pediatric gastroenterology, followed by U.S. rotations (Mount Sinai) and training at Mass General.
• Barriers as a Foreign Physician: Had to restart clinical training in the U.S. to have direct patient contact.
• Clinical Focus:
  • Now a pediatric hospitalist and urgent care attending at Boston Children’s and South Shore Hospital—a “broad scope from newborns to young adults.”
• Mind-Body Medicine:
  • Trained in resilience and listening, with an early interest in physician burnout and holistic care.

3. Championing Simulation and Psychological Safety

• [05:08] Healthcare Simulation:
  • Led simulation programs at both Boston Children’s and South Shore, inspired by aviation industry best practices.
  • Advocates for simulation as essential to patient safety, staff preparedness, and breaking hierarchical barriers (especially empowering nurses).

“I find it fascinating and also very sad in medicine … the field that is highest risk in terms of safety and we never get to practice. For us, it’s always Sunday, it’s always game day, and we have to change this.”
— Dr. Morley-Fletcher [06:31]

4. The 'Effective' in Effective AI

• [07:24] Creation of the Effective AI Committee:
  • Emerging need: “effectiveness,” not just innovation.
  • Addressing front-line skepticism, bridging the AI awareness gap, and ensuring technology addresses real, meaningful clinical pain points.

“For us, the most important word is not AI. It’s not committee … The most important word is effective. Because … there’s so much hype around AI … Sometimes we don’t even need an AI solution.”
— Dr. Morley-Fletcher [08:17]

• Education & AI Literacy:
  • Closing the digital divide among clinicians—empowering every provider, not just tech-savvy ones.
  • Internal systems to capture, vet, and incubate front-line innovation ideas.

5. Compassion as the Clinician’s 'Code'

• [10:34] Motivation for Medicine:
  • Not driven by family tradition, but by childhood hospitalizations and the experience of vulnerability.
  • Importance of presence, listening, and empathy rooted in early formative moments.

“I want to help the most vulnerable ones … help them feel encouraged in moments when they feel very unfamiliar with the setting.”
— Dr. Morley-Fletcher [12:02]

• Connecting Mind & Body:
  • Family influences: a dancer mother and intellectual father—medicine as a bridge between mind and body.
  • Belief that self-healing and empathy are core to medical vocation (“…if that is the reason [to heal yourself], that’s exactly why you should go into medicine.” [13:57])

6. Addressing Burnout & Nurturing Empathy

• Burnout: When compassion wanes, patient safety and care quality erode.
  • Empathy is a muscle; requires conscious nurturing.

“Even the most empathetic people, when they’re burned out … one of the first symptoms is they stop caring.”
— Dr. Morley-Fletcher [14:48]

• Advice to Younger Self:
  • Worry less; medicine can breed anxiety via worst-case-scenario thinking, but collaboration builds resilience.

7. The Present and Future of AI in Healthcare

• [16:21] Robots as Doctors – Where Are We Now?
  • AI already impacts clinical care (risk prediction, diagnostic, and prescriptive medicine).
  • Technology cannot supplant the human touch: “When you’re suffering, you want a human hand touching you.” [16:55]
• AI’s Promise:
  • Automating mundane tasks, reducing bias, enabling clinicians to work at the top of their license.
  • Empowering patients to be true partners in care.

8. Innovative Use of AI for Patient Storytelling

• [17:34] Pilot Study: ChatGPT in ED Triage
  • Using AI to help patients/parents articulate their story while waiting in triage, improving encounter quality and efficiency.
  • Results: Not only accurate summaries but also positive feedback—patients felt heard, clinicians received clearer information, and potential for improved health equity (language accessibility).

“ChatGPT couldn’t say it any better than this. Helped me be a better storyteller.”
— Patient Feedback, per Dr. Morley-Fletcher [20:16]

9. If Not Medicine, Then...

• Alternative Path:
  • Dr. Morley-Fletcher jokes he would have made a good actor or stuntman, highlighting his belief in “putting yourself in other people’s shoes”—a skill both for actors and compassionate clinicians.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Fixing Burnout:
  “Empathy is a muscle … you have to learn over and over and over to nurture.” [14:32]

• On Patient Collaboration:
  “We always talk about bringing patient into the care plan, but now I think it's reality with AI.” — Ed Gaudet [17:28]

• On the Promise of Clinician-Led Innovation:
  “I think the hospitals have many innovators who don't … know themselves are innovators. Or the hospital doesn't encourage them to be innovators. And this has to change.” [10:13]

• On Dispelling AI Hype:
  “Sometimes we don't even need an AI solution.” [08:19]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:41 — Clinician-entrepreneurship and technological transformation
• 01:11 - 04:30 — Personal/professional journey and clinical experience
• 05:08 — Simulation in healthcare and patient safety
• 07:24 — Founding the Effective AI Committee at Boston Children’s
• 10:34 — Personal motivation for medicine, compassion, and empathy
• 14:48 — Burnout, empathy, and teamwork in healthcare
• 16:21 — The prospects and boundaries of AI in clinical care
• 17:34 - 21:00 — Study of ChatGPT in emergency triage; patient storytelling and equity via AI

Final Takeaway

This episode illustrates why the future of compassionate, human-centered AI relies on clinicians like Dr. Alessio Morley-Fletcher. Through stories of personal growth and institutional innovation, he underscores that coding compassion into the “human algorithm” isn’t about technology alone—it’s about nurturing empathy, collaboration, and continuous learning, ensuring that AI augments—not replaces—the healing touch.