Cleveland Clinic CEO: AI Can’t Work Without Fixing the System First
Cleveland Clinic CEO Dr. Tom Mihaljevic emphasizes that AI alone cannot fix the U.S. healthcare system without foundational reforms, including standardization, data integration, and structural redesign. While AI has transformative potential to improve access and affordability, it requires significant pre-work and a unified healthcare delivery model to be effective. The Clinic has invested in digital infrastructure and non-healthcare tech talent to position AI at the core of future care models. Mihaljevic warns that fragmentation and resource disparities across U.S. hospitals risk widening inequities in AI adoption and patient outcomes.
- ▪AI is not a quick fix for healthcare challenges but can accelerate the redesign of care delivery when supported by systemic reforms.
- ▪Cleveland Clinic has restructured its operations and hired tech leaders from outside healthcare to build a scalable AI-ready infrastructure.
- ▪The Clinic views its AI initiatives as a proof-of-concept that could eventually democratize access to high-quality care in both urban and rural areas.
- ▪Mihaljevic cautions that the current fragmented U.S. healthcare system is poorly suited for maximizing AI’s benefits, especially for under-resourced hospitals.
- ▪He envisions AI as central to future primary care models, not as an add-on to existing inefficient systems.
- ▪The U.S. healthcare system lacks uniformity and cybersecurity readiness, making widespread, equitable AI adoption challenging.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
By Alexis KayserHealthcare EditorShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberSee more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.Dr. Tom Mihaljevic has been in medicine too long to believe that AI is a cure-all. The Cleveland Clinic president and CEO is at the forefront of technological innovation in health care, guiding the organization through partnerships with AI giants: Palantir, IBM, Oracle. But health systems—even those that stand on the cutting edge—will have to work hard to make AI work for them, Mihaljevic indicated during his April 27 conversation with Suraj Srinivasan, professor at Harvard Business School, as part of Newsweek’s “AI Agenda” webinar series.
…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Newsweek.
Discussion
0 commentsMore from Newsweek
