We kicked off 2026 with incredible momentum thanks to our successful Workday launch on Jan. 1 — what a way to start the year — and a huge thank you to everyone whose hard work made this milestone possible. While Workday set the tone with a strong start, it’s just as exciting to look back at last year’s achievements and highlight the major projects and initiatives that will make 2026 another standout year.

I want to extend my sincere thanks to everyone who took the time last year to complete our IT Service Transformation survey. Your feedback is invaluable and plays a critical role in shaping the direction of our technology strategy. I appreciate your candid, thoughtful responses — they have given us insight to better understand what’s working, where we can improve and how IT can best support you in delivering exceptional care and service. I want you to know that we take your feedback seriously and are working on key initiatives around many of your responses that will better support your IT needs. To find out more, read the IT Service Transformation Survey Results are In article in this edition of CIO Quarterly Report.

On the communications front, in 2025 we deployed over 4,100 shared clinical iPhones, implemented Vocera Edge as our voice calling platform, launched QGenda/Epic On-Call Finder at all campuses and moved critical care team activations (STEMI, stroke/telestroke and ELVO) at all of our network hospitals from PerfectServe to Epic. These initiatives provide more seamless, reliable and integrated solutions for clinical communication and team coordination, helping to streamline operations and improve response times across key clinical scenarios.

Last year, we also kicked off our Beaker project. Beaker is Epic’s laboratory information system that manages everything related to medical lab testing, from the moment a provider orders a test to the moment results are delivered and acted upon in a patient’s chart. It’s set to launch in 2027.

As we look ahead to 2026, I’m excited to share several key focus areas that will drive our continued growth and innovation throughout the year. Some of our top priorities include:

• Advancing Generative AI in practical, high-value ways to safely and meaningfully use AI in some of your workflows to reduce complexity and administrative burden.
• Modernizing clinical communication by continuing to make improvements that support faster care coordination and reduce the number of systems you need to navigate.
• Strengthening our cybersecurity efforts, keeping cyber resilience at the forefront as we introduce additional protections, monitoring capabilities and user-friendly security tools.
• Accelerating our move to HM cloud to improve reliability, support scalability and give us the flexibility to adopt new technologies more quickly.
• Elevating service excellence by improving how we support teams — resolving issues faster, working more effectively across departments and delivering a consistent, high‑quality experience for everyone systemwide.

The systems we support play a critical role in safety, access and outcomes across Houston Methodist. By working together, we can continue delivering the high‑quality, innovative care our patients expect, now and into the future. Together, we’re shaping an IT foundation that truly supports our people and the care we provide every day, helping you work more efficiently, make informed decisions and stay focused on what matters most — our patients.