Part IV: Ava Lim
Head of Partnerships, Alio
In recognition of this year’s International Women’s Day theme, #EmbraceEquity, we are featuring conversations with some of our favorite women in healthcare. We’ve asked these trailblazers to share insights about the challenges facing healthcare today and the solutions that will define its future.
In Part IV of this series, we’re highlighting Ava Lim, Head of Partnerships at Alio. And don't miss our prior chats with Liane Parker, Kristin Norton, and Dr. Pamela Duncan.
Share something interesting about yourself that others may not know.
In my spare time (which is rare), I take lessons from a seamstress. I love being able to design and add my own flair to my wardrobe.
What is the most pressing frustration that clinicians have with regard to healthcare technology?
Technology is intended to make our lives easier, but, for clinicians, it can add shiny new extra bells and whistles that actually do the opposite. Impactful technology fits into existing workflows or adds benefits seamlessly. It doesn’t add more administrative tasks or require substantial training or onboarding — it just works. Much of the legacy technology in healthcare was built with good intentions. But it was not purpose-built with the end-user feedback and experience as a priority, whether that’s the patient or the clinical care team. As a result, we see a lack of adoption, adherence and engagement. The technology has to seamlessly enhance a physician’s workflow and needs as well as the patient’s daily life.
To that end, I’m excited for Alio’s partnership with Carium. We have a mutual vision to achieve better health outcomes and lower costs for patients and the health system overall. What’s most exciting is how we are leveraging technology to expand access to care for patients outside of the clinical setting. Your distance to a doctor’s office is no longer a determinant in how and when you can receive care.
Within healthcare technology, what do you believe has the most potential to drive meaningful change?
Meeting patients where they are. The world is becoming more fast-paced and scattered every day. On top of that, most patients are challenged with managing one or more chronic conditions while trying to connect the dots within a fragmented and siloed healthcare system. Technology that empowers patients by giving them greater insight into their own condition whenever and wherever they are will have the greatest potential to drive meaningful change. To make that change possible, we need to take into account where they are in their care journey, the challenges they face and the context in which they are managing their own care.
In honor of International Women’s Day 2023 (and this year’s theme of #EmbraceEquity), how can healthcare technology support equity?
I think the biggest opportunity is in increasing accessibility through innovation and technology. The pandemic showed us that patient care can indeed be managed virtually, and factors like geography and economic status have become much less of a barrier. By increasing coverage/reimbursement for these types of technology, we can expand health equity and make it possible for a greater number of people to get quality care from the comfort of their home or wherever they are.
At this year’s HIMSS Conference, we raised a caffeinated toast to female innovators in health IT as part of the HIT Like a Girl Pod Coffee Networking Event.
If we missed you there and at other recent events, check out our recap of this very busy event season and the hot topics that dominated the conversation.
