Emergency Department (ED) boarding continues to strain hospitals, driving up costs, compromising patient outcomes, and contributing to clinician burnout. However, this critical issue presents an overlooked opportunity: what if solving ED boarding could pay for itself—and even fund a virtual nursing program? This whitepaper explores how tackling ED boarding not only improves operational efficiency and patient flow, but also offers a path to sustainably deploy virtual care solutions without additional budgetary strain.
Download the guide to learn:
How addressing ED boarding issues could help fund your virtual care program deployment through cost savings
How much ED boarding increases per-patient costs by day, totaling millions in annual losses
The clinical and operational impacts of ED boarding, including increased mortality and staff burnout
The top ways virtual nurses directly impact ED boarding
In a healthcare ecosystem full of fragmentation, achieving true interoperability is more complex—and more critical—than ever, especially for health systems scaling virtual care and consolidating tech stacks. In this Interop Corner episode, industry leaders dive into the real-world challenges and strategies behind healthcare integration. From navigating multi-instance EHR environments to supporting centralized command centers and remote care teams, we explore why virtual care success depends on more than just HL7 and FHIR.
In this webinar, you’ll learn:
Interoperability beyond the buzzwords
Real-world integration across regions and EHRs
Decentralizing virtual care for hybrid care models
Why one-size-fits-all doesn’t work in healthcare IT
Presenters:
Bre Loughlin, MSN, RN, Executive Director of Virtual Care, AvaSure
Dr. Dayna Dixon, PhD, RN, NPD-BC, CPHQ , Founder and CEO, Breaking Glass Consulting
Gurpreet (G.P.) Singh, SVP, Interoperability Strategy and Solutions, ELLKAY (Moderator)
Hospitals across the country are facing an epidemic of violence against caregivers. In response, forward-thinking leaders are turning to virtual safety technologies to extend support, visibility, and response for their frontline teams. This webinar features two healthcare leaders from Providence Swedish St. Peter Hospital that have integrated virtual observation into their violence prevention strategy. Learn how their program was designed, how staff have embraced the approach, and what impact they’ve seen on staff safety, morale, and incident reduction.
Presenters:
Erin E. Robertson-Otis, Manager Nursing-Oregon RVM & ProvRIDE, Patient Logistics Center
Heidi Allison, MBA, BSN, RN, Clinical Manager-Central Monitoring Unit, TeleSitter, Providence Swedish St. Peter Hospital
Get ready for some big news! In this webinar, we reveal exciting product updates, discuss our new partnership with EPIC Toolbox, and share highlights from our recent annual AvaSure Symposium.
The integration of virtual care and artificial intelligence (AI) into the standard care delivery model is permanently reshaping nursing practice. This leads to the pivotal question: How do we best prepare the next generation of nurses to thrive in this environment?
Let’s discuss how innovative technologies are being integrated into nursing curricula, the transition from education to clinical practice, and leadership strategies to foster resilience and innovation within nursing teams.
How to integrate innovative technologies into nursing criteria
It’s no longer optional for academic institutions to adapt to the rise of virtual care, it’s a necessity. Universities such as Chamberlain University, the nation’s largest nursing school, have implemented virtual nursing courses and certifications to better prepare students for the new care delivery model they’ll see in practice. President of Chamberlain University, Dr. Karen Cox, confirms that the traditional nursing education model needs to evolve rapidly to incorporate digital competencies, ensuring that new graduates are proficient in virtual patient care technologies.
What should nursing education institutions do today?
Shift nursing curricula to include AI and virtual care competencies
Provide opportunities for students to gain hands-on experience with telehealth platforms and remote monitoring
Be flexible and responsive to technological advancements
“Chamberlain’s approach allows us to be more nimble compared to traditional academic settings, ensuring students are prepared for real-world challenges.” – Dr. Karen Cox
The importance of supporting new nurses in the transition to practice
The transition from school to practice is a critical time for new nurses, and health care organizations like Community Health Systems (CHS) are integrating virtual care into their onboarding programs. Karen Henson, Corporate Vice President of Nursing Operations at CHS, suggests that facilities build virtual care competencies from day one. Workforce challenges today differ significantly from those a decade ago and organizations need to be adaptable to survive.
Key tips for healthcare institutions:
Embed virtual care training into new nurse onboarding
Prioritize nurse retention by implementing strategies that better support early-career nurses.
Add virtual care programs, presenting an opportunity to bridge workforce gaps and enhance patient safety
“The challenges facing new grads today—like adapting to technology-driven care models—were not issues 5-10 years ago. We have to ensure they feel supported and competent in this new environment.” – Karen Henson
The Role of Nurse Leaders in Driving Change
As virtual care adoption grows, nurse leaders play a pivotal role in shaping policy, accreditation, and workplace culture. Cole Edmonson, CEO of the Nurses on Boards Coalition, emphasizes the importance of leadership advocacy in removing barriers to virtual care implementation. From influencing accreditation standards to creating supportive environments for new nurses, nurse leaders must actively participate in shaping the future of nursing.
Tips for nurse leaders:
Advocate for policy changes that support virtual care transitions
Work to develop a strong culture of mentorship and support, this is crucial for the success of new nurses. Using virtual technology can help overcome the resource gap preventing the same level of preceptorship from pre-pandemic times
Foster collaboration between academia and healthcare organizations to ensure smoother transitions from education to practice.
“Accreditation standards must evolve alongside nursing practice. Leaders have a responsibility to push for policies that facilitate, rather than hinder, virtual care adoption.” – Cole Edmonson
Shaping the Future of Nursing
Nursing leaders, educators and healthcare organizations must collaborate in preparing the next generation of nurses for an AI-driven, virtual care-centric future. As healthcare continues to evolve, fostering a tech-savvy, adaptable nursing workforce will be essential for ensuring high-quality patient care.
Institutions must integrate virtual care and AI into nursing education
Healthcare organizations should support new nurses with robust transition programs
Nurse leaders must play a key role in driving policy changes and cultural shifts in healthcare
AvaSure is committed to keeping this important conversation going, that’s why we create a community of virtual care leaders and bring them together to discuss the pressing issues of healthcare transformation.
As virtual care becomes a permanent fixture in healthcare, organizations must rethink leadership structures to ensure seamless integration across the continuum. Traditional models often struggle to support the cross-functional collaboration required for virtual care success.
In this webinar, clinical executives and industry leaders discuss how forward-thinking organizations are evolving their leadership frameworks – bridging IT, nursing, physician, and operational teams – to drive sustainable virtual care models.
Learn how to structure leadership for long-term virtual care success while addressing challenges such as workforce engagement and technology adoption. Watch now on demand!
BELMONT, Mich., March 4th, 2025 – AvaSure, a market leader in acute virtual care, is proud to announce the launch of its new Virtual Care AssistantTM. Developed leveraging advanced technology from Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) and NVIDIA, this innovative solution is designed to improve patient care, streamline clinical workflows, and enhance operational efficiency within hospitals and healthcare systems.
The Virtual Care Assistant, powered by AI, is a transformative tool designed to bridge gaps in communication, prioritize urgent patient needs, and support healthcare teams in delivering timely, high-quality care. This innovation leverages the power of AvaSure’s Intelligent Virtual Care Platform, OCI’s AI infrastructure offerings—including OCI Compute—and NVIDIA full-stack hardware and software tools, including NVIDIA Riva and NVIDIA ACE, as part of the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform.
Transforming Patient Care and Clinical Workflows Hospitals and healthcare systems are under constant pressure to balance patient care with operational demands. Patients often struggle to get timely responses to their needs and clinical staff face overwhelming workloads. The AvaSure Virtual Care Assistant addresses these challenges by enabling patients to directly request assistance virtually, while on the back end helping healthcare providers quickly assess and prioritize those clinical and operational needs.
The AvaSure Virtual Care AssistantTM appears to the patient as an avatar named “Vicky,” but is also an intelligent, AI-driven tool that efficiently triages that patient’s question, need or request based on urgency and importance. Requests are categorized into clinical and operational groups, and the assistant ensures they are directed to the appropriate personnel or team. For example, a patient reporting chest pain is flagged as urgent and immediately routed to the on-floor clinical team, while a request to adjust room temperature is categorized as operational and directed to the maintenance team. All requests are centralized into a dashboard that is centrally managed, allowing hospitals to allocate resources effectively and respond to patient needs promptly.
Driving Breakthrough Innovation with Industry Leaders “The future of healthcare demands smart, responsive solutions that not only assist clinicians but also improve the patient experience,” said Adam McMullin, CEO of AvaSure. The AvaSure Virtual Care Assistant is our response to the growing needs of hospitals and healthcare teams—enabling a more efficient, organized, and compassionate care environment. By combining the power of AvaSure’s Virtual Care Platform with OCI and the NVIDIA accelerated computing platform, we are delivering a transformative tool that not only empowers healthcare providers to tackle today’s challenges but also sets a new standard for the future of care delivery.”
“We’re committed to helping AvaSure and other organizations improve patient care with AI and cloud infrastructure,” said Mahesh Thiagarajan, executive vice president, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. “With OCI AI infrastructure, AvaSure will be able to speed up clinical workflows while leveraging OCI’s full-stack protection that is secure by design to accelerate innovation in care delivery.”
“AI is transforming healthcare by enabling smarter workflows that enhance both staff and patient experiences,” said Brad Genereaux, global lead for healthcare alliances at NVIDIA. “With NVIDIA technologies—ACE, Riva, and generative AI—integrated into AvaSure’s Virtual Care Assistant, we empower clinicians with real-time support, allowing them to focus on patient care. This represents a crucial step toward AI-driven virtual care that improves outcomes and enhances the experiences of healthcare providers.”
“We’ve spent countless hours listening to and observing patients, caregivers, and clinical staff to truly understand their unique needs,” said Brad Smith, Principal Product Manager of AI Strategy at AvaSure. “This deep collaboration has allowed us to build a virtual assistant that goes beyond simply responding to requests—it provides critical decision support, helping prioritize what matters most. By leveraging the power of AI, we are enhancing clinical workflows and improving patient care, creating a more supportive and efficient healthcare environment for all.”
The AvaSure Virtual Care Assistant is anticipated to be commercially available in late 2025 and is currently accessible to select development partners, providing hospitals and health systems with a powerful tool to transform patient care.
For more information, visit AvaSure at HIMSS booth 4672 to meet Vicky, the Virtual Care Assistant.
About AvaSure AvaSure® is an intelligent virtual care platform that healthcare providers use to engage with patients, optimize staffing, and seamlessly blend remote and in-person care at scale. The platform deploys AI-powered virtual sitting and virtual nursing solutions, meets the highest enterprise IT standards, and drives measurable outcomes with support from care experts. AvaSure consistently delivers a 6x ROI and has been recognized by KLAS Research as the #1 solution for reducing the cost of care. With a team of 15% nurses, AvaSure is a trusted partner of 1,100+ hospitals with experience in over 5,000 deployments.
New AI technology, new device capabilities and more – 2025 has had an exciting start at AvaSure. Learn about the many platform and client experience enhancements we’re focusing on to ensure you’re getting the most out of your virtual care investment.
Nurses play a foundational role in advancing the health of society, yet their voices are often underrepresented in governance, technology, and policy decision-making. This webinar highlights why having nurses “at the table” is essential for shaping a healthcare landscape that prioritizes equity, innovation, and meaningful outcomes.
Join Dr. Sharon Pappas, CNE of Emory Healthcare and author of Insights on Excellence; A Guide to the Commission on Magnet as it Considers the Future, and Dr. Cole Edmonson, CEO of Nurses on Boards Coalition, as they share actionable strategies and recommendations. Together, they will explore how leadership, innovation, and influence are redefining nursing’s role in healthcare and society.
These were some takeaways from our most popular session at Symposium 2024! The live session highlighted Regina Foley, EVP and Chief Nurse Executive at Hackensack Meridian Health, and Dr. Nick Patel, CEO of Stealth Consulting, highlighting how clinical & IT teams can partner together.
Virtual care is rapidly changing the healthcare landscape, offering innovative solutions to age-old challenges. But successful implementation requires a strong partnership between IT and clinical leaders.
Two healthcare leaders who exemplify the gold standard of this partnership are Regina Foley, EVP and Chief Nurse Executive at Hackensack Meridian Health, and Dr. Nick Patel, CEO of Stealth Consulting.
Here are five of their recommended best practices for seamless collaboration:
1. Start with the Clinical Need, Not the Technology:
Define the problem: What are you trying to solve? Is it nurse burnout, patient satisfaction, or access to care?
Focus on solutions: How can virtual care programs improve workflows, reduce administrative burdens, and enhance patient care?
Avoid the “shiny object” syndrome: Don’t get distracted by the latest gadgets. Choose technology that truly addresses your needs.
2. Foster a Culture of Collaboration and Trust:
Leave egos at the door: Encourage open communication and mutual respect between IT and clinical teams.
Build a shared virtual care vision: Ensure both teams understand the goals and are working towards the same outcomes.
Involve clinicians in the process: Ensure their input is valued and incorporated into decision-making for implementation of virtual care programs.
4. Prioritize Training and Education:
Provide comprehensive training: Ensure both IT and clinical staff are comfortable using and supporting new technologies.
Offer ongoing support: Address questions, concerns, and challenges that arise during implementation.
Foster a culture of continuous learning: Encourage both teams to stay up-to-date on the latest advancements in virtual care.
5. Embrace AI Cautiously and Strategically:
Focus on data quality: Ensure your data is accurate, complete, and unbiased before implementing AI solutions.
Start with specific use cases: Prioritize areas where AI can have the greatest impact, such as clinical documentation and decision support.
Involve clinicians in AI development: Ensure their expertise is incorporated into the design and implementation of AI algorithms.
Bonus Tip: Don’t be afraid to learn from others! Network with colleagues, attend conferences, and share best practices to accelerate your virtual care program.
By following these guidelines, IT and clinical leaders can forge a powerful partnership that drives innovation, improves patient outcomes, and transforms the future of healthcare.
Interested in more content like this? Save the date for AvaSure Symposium 2025! Registration isn’t open yet, but stay tuned & take a look at our 2024 recap video from attendees.
