Kelsie Green Receives 2024 Telehealth Excellence Award
Utah Telehealth Network Honors Kelsie Green with the 2024 Deborah LaMarche Telehealth Excellence Award
The Utah Telehealth Network (UTN) announces Kelsie Green as the 2024 recipient of the 5th Annual Deborah LaMarche Telehealth Excellence Award. Green, Assistant Vice President of HCA Healthcare's Virtual Patient Logistic Center, has contributed to telehealth across Utah, particularly through the implementation of AI technologies.
“I am honored to accept this award on behalf of the 1,800 physicians and 6,000 clinicians here in Utah at HCA Mountain Division hospitals that followed a dream and are taking care of patients, and truly care like family,” Kelsie said in her acceptance speech. The award was presented on November 13, 2024, at the Rural Health Association of Utah (RHAU) Conference in St. George, Utah.
Under Green's leadership, HCA Healthcare leveraged care coordination AI technology to allow early identification of life-threatening conditions and streamline the collaboration between rural hospitals and major care centers. Her work also includes the “Direct Beam-In” program, which brings neurologists directly into emergency stroke assessments in real time, enhancing treatment coordination with EMS teams and ER providers.
Clinical results have exceeded expectations since implementing the new technology and the Direct Beam-In program. Over the past 18 months, the median door-to-needle time for stroke patients has dropped to just 30 minutes, well below the American Heart Association's target of 60 minutes. Nearly 90% of stroke cases in that period have had a door-to-needle time of under 60 minutes, and year-to-date, this has risen to 95.6%. These results highlight the exceptional impact of Green's initiatives on patient outcomes across the state, demonstrating how effective technology can be in transforming healthcare delivery.
“Kelsie has been instrumental in implementing many telehealth and AI programs across our eight Utah hospitals and associated care sites,” said Evan Ray, HCA Mountain Division President, Green's nominator. “These innovative technologies and approaches have strengthened the results of our stroke program, improved patient outcomes, and accelerated access to the right level of care by operating more like a seamless system of hospitals.”
Sarah Bauman, Director of UTN, added, “Kelsie's leadership in the areas of AI implementation and the utilization of technology to develop telehealth programs has tremendously impacted patient care in Utah. Her efforts highlight the power of telehealth to improve access to healthcare, especially in rural and underserved areas. We're proud to recognize Kelsie with this well-deserved award.”
Green's approach has set a high standard. She has extended AI's use to conditions like pulmonary embolism and subdural hemorrhages, ensuring patients receive timely intervention. Her leadership and passion for telehealth innovation are a testament to the award's mission and the impact of telehealth technology.
UTN's mission is to expand access to healthcare services and resources through the innovative application of technology, providing healthcare providers with robust broadband infrastructure telehealth applications, technical support, and education. For details, visit utn.org.
UTN also hosts the Northwest Regional Telehealth Resource Center (NRTRC), a Health Services Resource Administration (HRSA) grant-funded program. NRTRC's mission is to advance the development, integration and equity of telehealth programs in rural and medically underserved communities by providing telehealth technical assistance. NRTRC serves a seven-state region (AK, WA, OR, MT, ID, WY, UT) creating and supporting a synergistic telehealth community. For details, visit nrtrc.org.
