The Healthcare Infrastructure Working Behind the Scenes

The Healthcare Infrastructure Working Behind the Scenes

Author: John Lynn September 16, 2026 Duration: 33:45

One of the most interesting organizations in healthcare is Civitas Networks for Health.  This non-profit organization brings together some of the key organizations that provide the national infrastructure for health and health data.  One of their best venues to convene their community is at the upcoming Civitas 2026 Annual conference.

I recently sat down with Jolie Ritzo, CEO at Civitas Networks for Health, Anne Santifer, Executive Director at Arkansas State Health Alliance for Records Exchange, and Dan Cranshaw, Executive Director at KC Health Collaborative, to learn more about what's happening in the Civitas community and get a preview of their annual conference.  One thing they shared was how often healthcare infrastructure serves an important purpose but goes unrecognized. This is by design.  For example, an HIE (Health Information Exchange) may make a patient's information from multiple organizations available to a clinician at the point of care.  The clinician and patient often have no idea how the information from external organizations was made available to them, but having that data often improves care. Good infrastructure like an HIE quietly does this work in the background, often with little recognition.

Learn more about Civitas: https://civitasforhealth.org/

Learn more about Arkansas State Health Alliance for Records Exchange: https://sharearkansas.com/

Learn more about KC Health Collaborative: https://www.kchealthcollaborative.org/

Healthcare IT Community: https://www.healthcareittoday.com/


For anyone navigating the complex and ever-evolving world of healthcare technology, Healthcare IT Today Interviews offers a direct line to the people shaping its future. Host John Lynn sits down with leading experts, moving beyond theory to explore the real-world applications and challenges they face every day. This isn't about surface-level news; it’s a series of deep, conversational explorations. You’ll hear firsthand accounts about implementing and optimizing electronic health records, the critical balance between data security and patient privacy, and how analytics are transforming patient care. The discussions naturally cover the practicalities of telehealth, the nuances of healthcare communication systems, and the many other technologies redefining clinical and administrative workflows. Each episode of this podcast pulls back the curtain on the front lines, providing clarity and insight that’s both substantive and accessible. Tune in for honest perspectives on where healthcare IT has been, the problems being solved right now, and what’s coming next.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 50

Healthcare IT Today Interviews
Podcast Episodes
Integration Into the Workflow Is Key to Ambient Scribe Success [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:38
The first year that Central Oklahoma Family Medical Center deployed the Sunoh.ai ambient transcription software, it was getting very little use and therefore wasn't achieving their goals for installing it. To address thi…
Why Health Payers Need a Unified Content Strategy [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:21
Ashish Desai, President of Benefits Lifecycle Solutions at Simplify Healthcare, believes that a health care provider should not have to call a payer to plan treatment or submit a bill; he should be self-served through a…
AdvancedMD’s New eMAR Fills Gap in Behavioral Health [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 18:49
Behavioral health rarely gets the funding or attention it deserves. Relying on makeshift tracking for controlled substances is a massive liability.David Wilson, Vice President of Business Development at AdvancedMD, sat d…
From Patient Outreach to Patient Engagement at IKS Health [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 6:48
In our recent interview at the AMGA 2026 conference, Mayank Pant, Executive Vice President of Product Management at IKS Health, focuses on making patient engagement effective. IKS Health covers the entire "patient journe…
Healthcare AI Success Starts with a Bias Toward Action [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:58
The potential applications of AI are endless; there are so many solutions in the marketplace that health care organizations can get "paralyzed," according to Kim Lynch, Founder and CEO at Metis Health Technologies. She a…
Making AI and Value-Based Care Work in Rural Health Facilities [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:03
Everyone knows that rural health care systems are stressed: costly populations, low reimbursements, staffing shortages, transportation problems—and the 900 billion to one trillion dollar cuts upcoming in Medicaid will se…
How Physicians Are Using AI to Improve Care and Coding with Navina [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:25
While at the recent Navina Ascend user conference, Healthcare IT Today had the opportunity to sit down with three of Navina's customers to learn more about their experience using Navina at their organizations. Needless t…