Survey: AI and digital health are key to expanding health system capacity
Health system executives are clear on the path forward: AI and digital tools are central to expanding capacity without adding buildings or headcount. In September 2025, a Chartis survey of 150 health leaders found nine in ten are prioritizing these capabilities to move from reactive to proactive care.
The same survey underscored the pressure points you're likely feeling today. Leaders cited unaffordable care (61%), weak management of health and wellness (52%) and limited access to primary care (49%) as top challenges. Over half expect the sustainability of the current delivery model to worsen over the next five years.
Where leaders see real capacity gains
- Free provider time with AI (52%). Reduce inbox load, documentation, care coordination and nonclinical friction.
- Maximize access to clinical expertise (51%). Use e-consults, digital triage and decision support to extend specialists.
- Digitally enabled referral channels (45%). Standardize intake, guide to in-network care and tighten leakage.
- Hospital-at-home programs (36%). Shift appropriate admissions to the home and open beds for higher acuity.
Access, prevention and throughput
- Extend reach (53%). Care-at-home and mobile clinics expand touchpoints without new facilities.
- AI coaches for patient questions (44%). Always-on support for navigation, prep and post-visit follow-up.
- Connected devices and remote diagnostics (43%). Continuous data to catch issues earlier and reduce avoidable visits.
- Predictive risk (43%). Identify high-need patients and intervene before escalation.
Personalizing the patient journey
- Multiple digital communication channels (52%). Meet patients where they are: SMS, patient app, portal, email.
- Data + AI for tailored care plans (48%). Use history, preferences and risk signals to target outreach and care paths.
"Organizations need to capitalize on the momentum in this moment - and ensure that they are truly realizing the potential presented by AI and digital capabilities to drive needed business transformation at scale," said Tom Kiesau, chief AI and digital officer at Chartis.
Action plan for the next 90 days
- Map bottlenecks. Identify top three throughput constraints: access, referrals, documentation, discharge, or escalation.
- Pick 2-3 AI use cases with clear ROI. Examples: ambient scribing, e-triage, prior auth automation, referral routing.
- Launch a digital referral pilot. Standardize templates, automate status updates and close the loop with PCPs.
- Stand up a hospital-at-home sprint. Define eligibility, remote monitoring kit, virtual rounding and rapid response.
- Data plumbing and governance. Integrate EHR, claims and device feeds; set guardrails for privacy, safety and model drift.
- Prove it with metrics. Track time-to-appointment, provider time returned, referral completion, LOS, avoidable ED, and margin per episode.
Guardrails that keep initiatives on track
- Clinical safety. Clear escalation paths, human-in-the-loop review and decision support visibility.
- Equity and access. Offer non-digital options, multilingual channels and device alternatives.
- Change management. Co-design workflows with clinicians; train, simulate and iterate fast.
- Security and compliance. PHI controls, vendor risk review and transparent AI use policies.
Why this matters for strategy
Capacity growth now depends more on workflow and data than bricks and mortar. Health systems that operationalize AI where it removes friction will serve more patients, improve access and protect margin - without overextending capital.
To see the survey context and benchmarks, visit Chartis. If you're building internal skills to execute, consider focused upskilling for clinical, operations and IT teams: AI courses by job function.
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