Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1475204
30 GASTROENTEROLOGY US Digestive Health CEO Jerry Tillinger wants GI leaders to embrace competition By Riz Hatton J erry Tillinger, CEO of U.S. Di- gestive Health in Exton, Pa., connected with Becker's via email June 28 to discuss how com- petitors can be gastroenterology leaders' greatest allies and more. Mr. Tillinger has more than 25 years of senior leadership experience in medical groups and integrated de- livery systems. He has been with U.S. Digestive Health since 2019. Editor's note: Responses were edited lightly for clarity and brevity. Question: What would your perfect day look like outside of work? Jerry Tillinger: Gathering with fam- ily always tops the list. This summer we have my 7-year-old grandson, 21-year-old son and 29-year-old niece staying with us, so our perfect days will involve the pool at our com- munity center and enjoying long afternoons with the family and the pups in the backyard. Maybe a round of golf as well. Q: What makes all your hard work worth it? JT: Every morning I see the reports on the numbers of patients we saw the day before. We care for thousands of patients per week and hundreds of thousands per year. Every time we do a screening on a patient, I know we are protecting them from colorectal cancer and many other debilitating conditions. I also know that our in- vestment in advanced technology is supporting my physicians with cut- ting edge [artificial intelligence] and other tools to make that care even stronger. That knowledge keeps me grounded and focused on our core mission: highest quality patient care. Q: What's one piece of advice you'd give to up-and-coming leaders in the GI space? JT: Build partnerships with all of the stakeholders in GI. Maintain strong relationships with our GI physicians, other GI physicians, the hospital lead- ership teams, the payers, the ASC companies, and our peers around the country. Even your competitors can be powerful allies and advisers in some circumstances. Treat all of them with honesty and integrity, be- cause the future may bring many of us together as healthcare evolves. n Gastroenterology is 'really warming up' to telehealth, Vivante Health CEO says By Riz Hatton G astroenterology has the second highest telemedicine usage of any adult speciality, according to Doximity's "State of Tele- medicine Report." Bill Snyder, CEO of Vivante Health, a digital health company, spoke with Becker's on June 29 to discuss where telehealth stands in gastroen- terology and where it's headed. Vivante Health created GIThrive, a gastroenterology telehealth platform. Editor's note: Responses have been edited lightly for length and clarity. Question: What's the temperature of telehealth usage in GI right now? Bill Snyder: It's really warming up. ere's a ton of increased interest from individuals and from large employers and health plans as well. Q: What are some of the benefits and drawbacks of telehealth in GI? BS: Unfortunately a lot of these conditions are difficult for people to talk about because you're talking about symptoms that happen in the bathroom. ey have an unfair stigma associated with these condi- tions. A huge opportunity and benefit is it provides a safe space for people to start having that conversation especially because you can do it through different means of communication. It might be a video chat or messaging back and forth with a care provider. at's a huge benefit — that people can have that access. In addition to giving people the opportunity to feel empowered and start that conversation, it also provides the virtual access component. For people who maybe have limited access to providers, it's a great way for people everywhere to access this type of care. I don't see specific drawbacks related to GI care as it relates to tele- health. In virtual care and healthcare in general, I always think there's an opportunity to improve how we're sharing information. So ensuring the information we're capturing in conversations with the members [is shared with] other care providers is really important to facilitate that kind of bidirectional information sharing so that any care team mem- ber has a holistic and personalized view of the individual. Q: Looking toward the future, how do you see telehealth be- ing used in the GI space? BS: I think it will continue to grow because we're seeing increased prevalence of GI conditions across the U.S. e need will just continue to grow. ere's a great opportunity to continue to empower people, to really show symptom reduction and get people feeling better. [As well as] to improve things like medication adherence and to avoid things like people ending up in the emergency room. at continued access to information and a personalized care team is going to be more and more important. n