Getting started with AI in health care: Keep it simple, then expand

Medical group leaders don't need to treat artificial intelligence (AI) as a sweeping technology initiative. The most practical uses are in the everyday clinical and administrative tasks that slow down physicians and staff, according to Gena A. Graves, D.H.Sc., M.A., B.S.

Graves is vice president of home and community services and value-based strategies at HealthPartners in Minnesota, where she leads population health, care management, home-based care operations and value strategy. She is a member of the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) board and was co-presenter of "AI in Action: Tools, Tactics & Transformation for Medical Group Leaders" at the MGMA 2026 Annual Conference held in September.

Graves spoke with Medical Economics about her experience and the evolution of AI in health care — some of which is happening now. She traced her organization's use of AI back to predictive risk scores that help identify patients who could benefit from specific programs.

"AI has been around. We just didn't call it AI, right?" she said.

She described HealthPartners' rollout of an ambient listening tool, which reached its targeted scale six months ahead of schedule and cut the time clinicians spend on notes and after-hours work. Graves explained why the organization started by asking what problem it was solving, how it won over skeptical clinicians and patients, and why clinicians still review every AI-generated note.

She also discussed a common pitfall, adding AI to a flawed process, and offered her view of how AI will reshape the health care workforce without replacing the human side of care.

"I think first and foremost, health care is really deeply human work, and my experience leads me to believe that it always will be," she said.

For practice administrators, Graves offered a simple starting point. Know your organization's AI policies, approved tools and governance structure, then begin experimenting with everyday tasks such as drafting a meeting agenda, updating a job description or building a new-hire orientation checklist.

"So start and practice and explore the different tools and keep it simple," Graves said.

Medical Economics was in San Antonio at the MGMA Annual Conference, Sept. 27-30, 2026, celebrating 100 years of MGMA, attending sessions and speaking with industry leaders. Follow our coverage on our MGMA conference page.