InterviewInterviews

Elie Chaillot

President and CEO of GE Healthcare, Eastern Growth Markets

Elie Chaillot

“Discussions with our partners to transform into entire health systems”

GE Healthcare is moving towards precision health which is another common trend—ensuring that the right actions are taken at the right time, for each and every patient, as per Mr. Elie Chaillot, President and CEO of GE Healthcare, Eastern Growth Markets, during his interview with “Hospitals” magazine.

How can digital transform the way healthcare is delivered in the region and how does GE help enable this transformation? 

Hospitals are generating massive amounts of healthcare data.  This data requires analysis to get the right information to the right person at the right time. Applied intelligence uses analytics—such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and deep learning algorithms and models to identify insights, patterns and suggestions.  These insights can then be deployed through applications, devices and services to help enhance and augment clinical, financial and operational decision-making.

Let’s look at the x-ray as an example.  A collapsed lung, or pneumothorax, is a condition which strikes countless patients each year and can be deadly if not diagnosed quickly and accurately.   GE’s Critical Care Suite on our Optima XR240amx X-ray machine is designed to identify cases with the critical condition of pneumothorax at point-of-care to enable prioritization of image review. 

This is but one example AI in action—leveraging the power of data to help healthcare providers deliver faster, more precise care to the patients that need it most.

The Middle East and Turkey are key markets for GE Healthcare.  What is it about healthcare in this region that makes these markets a priority?

Today our partners are talking to us about what we can do to help transform into entire health systems.  What we see in these discussions is that technology is often part of a much larger and more complex delivery model that requires an ecosystem built around it, supported by sustainable financing and skills development. From consortium structures, risk-sharing models and outsourcing, to infrastructure design solutions, we are partnering with our customers to share risk, reward, and a combined commitment to solving harder, bigger problems.

A recent example we’re particularly proud of is from Turkey.  Last month with our partner CCN Holding, I attended the inauguration of the Bilkent Integrated Health Campus, the state-of-the-art 3,711 bed healthcare facility in Ankara.

The $1.3 billion campus becomes Turkey’s largest public private partnership to date and one of the world’s largest public hospitals ever constructed in a single phase.  Now citizens from across the country and region benefit from greater access to higher quality healthcare, at one state-of-the-art, centrally located facility.  

Could you tell us more about GE Healthcare’s Edison platform? 

We were excited to unveil Edison in the region.  What makes Edison unique is that it is the most holistic and integrated digital platform in healthcare. Clinical partners will use the platform to develop algorithms, and technology partners will work with GE Healthcare to bring the latest advancements in data processing to Edison applications and smart devices.  These new technologies improve scan consistency, help clinicians detect and prioritize acute cases and extend the lifecycle of devices.  In short, the platform helps accelerate the development of artificial intelligence technology that empowers providers to deliver faster, more precise care.

The UAE is one of the most advanced markets in terms of healthcare. What is your vision for this sector?

The UAE is a pioneer in healthcare transformation.  The nation’s visionary leadership has prioritized healthcare and is investing in the development of a sustainable ecosystem that allows for the provision of high-quality care to its 1 million citizens and over 9 million residents.  

I touched earlier on the importance of partnerships in enabling change.  I see great opportunity in the UAE for private sector players like GE to create capacity and make healthcare systems more productive, at scale.  We’ve seen firsthand how innovative public private partnerships can help address healthcare challenges, combining the best in public-sector execution models with private sector competencies.  

Based on your work at GE, where do you see the most opportunity in the healthcare sector across the region? 

The region’s healthcare sector is undergoing tremendous change, not just in where care is being delivered, but also in the efficiency of care required to get rising healthcare costs under control.  

Ministries of Health and private sector providers are increasingly demanding ‘return on investment solutions’ that can create better operational efficiencies and better financial outcomes.

As a traditional healthcare equipment provider, we’ve had to really evolve and become true development partners. Technology improves decision-making.  It is also about improving the patient experience, building a stronger and closer relationship between patient and clinician.  This is where the private sector can play a critical role—driving sustainable, high-quality healthcare delivery.

You’ve worked in healthcare in Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. How does healthcare differ between markets and regions?

I think there are more commonalities than differences in healthcare delivery.  One of the major differences, however, are the population demographics.  Here in the Middle East we have a burgeoning population—the rates of population growth across most of the region are still increasing and are not showing any signs of slowing down.  Recent reports indicate that nearly 60% of the population in the Arab world is under the age of 25.

 Contrast this with the ageing, shrinking population demographics across most of Europe, North America and Asia Pacific.  As healthcare systems here look to add capacity, in other parts of the world healthcare systems are more focused on efficiency and productivity.

There are several common themes that drive healthcare around the world, regardless region: access, cost and efficiency; how you can do more with less, while improving outcomes.  One common trend is the transition of healthcare delivery from expensive, unnecessary hospital-based acute care to appropriate, lower-cost settings like outpatient and community clinics, hospices or even using telemedicine for primary care.  

Precision health is yet another common trend—ensuring that the right actions are taken at the right time, for each and every patient.  Done right, and done at scale, precision health delivers on healthcare’s triple aim: better quality, at lower cost, with access for millions of people.

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