Why Saying Yes to Discomfort Is the Fastest Path to Innovation Leadership with Tracy Elmer of TrueCare
Disruptive Innovators: Champions of Digital Business - CIO & IT Leader Interviews, Digital Transformation, Digital InnovationShow Notes
David Wright sits down with Tracy Elmer, Chief Innovation Officer of TrueCare. They discuss building a career on saying yes before feeling ready, leading innovation in community healthcare and using AI to restore human connection at the point of care.
Key Takeaways
00:00 Introduction 03:04 Saying yes before feeling ready has driven every major career leap — discomfort is a growth signal, not a warning sign 06:07 A summer job in Army medical records at 16 set the foundation: service, curiosity and the belief that even short experience counts 09:10 Leading an Epic implementation mid-pandemic reinforced that excellence rather than perfection is the standard 14:37 Admitting what you don't know builds trust and creates the safety culture innovation requires 21:30 TrueCare's access mission extends to food, housing, transportation and a street medicine program for those with the most basic unmet needs 27:30 The workforce represents the community: taking care of the team is how TrueCare takes care of everyone else 29:45 Ambient AI is not about cutting documentation time — it restores eye contact and deepens patient trust 31:05 Agentic AI is being piloted in the contact centre to elevate staff, freeing people for complex work while AI handles the routine
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Resources Mentioned
TrueCare: https://www.truecare.org/
“The Light We Carry” by Michelle Obama https://www.amazon.com/Light-We-Carry-Overcoming-Uncertain/dp/0593237463
“A Bit of Optimism Podcast” – Simon Sinek https://simonsinek.com/podcast/
#DisruptiveInnovation #Innovation #DisruptiveTech
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