Women leaders in health care ready to drive opportunities in the industry
Jahn Marie Surette shares insights from the Innovate to Elevate forum in Puerto Rico on how AI and women-led innovation are shaping health care.
Closing gaps in women’s health has the potential to add $1 trillion to global gross domestic product, while integrating artificial intelligence can significantly transform health care — from research to clinical trials to improving patient engagement and operational efficiency.
These were key insights from the recent Innovate to Elevate: Transforming Healthcare forum, held at the Hilton Garden Inn in Condado. Organized by Oliver Wyman, JM Surette Advisors and Triple-S, the event aimed to highlight transformative discussions with women leaders in Puerto Rico’s health sector.
Each panel provided groundbreaking perspectives. Terry Stone, vice chairman at Oliver Wyman and leader of its Health and Life Sciences Practice, outlined AI’s vast potential in revolutionizing health care.
Tools like DeepScribe enable providers to automate clinical note-taking, synchronize records and streamline billing — reducing documentation time by 75% and enhancing ICD-10 code capture by 34%. Stone emphasized how AI can accelerate drug discovery, fast-tracking new treatments into clinical trials.
Danielle Ralic, founder of Ancora.ai, shared her platform’s mission to democratize access to clinical trials, enabling patients to quickly identify relevant studies. In a fireside chat, Ralic highlighted the challenges patients face in accessing life-saving trials and the transformative impact AI can have in addressing those barriers.
Stone also flagged a glaring gender gap in AI usage in health and life sciences, a difference of 14% between men and women. She stressed the need to empower women to effectively utilize AI.
Debunking myths around women’s health
Lucy Pérez, a Puerto Rican and senior partner at McKinsey & Co. as well as a global leader of the McKinsey Health Institute, underscored the global economic opportunities tied to improving women’s healthcare.
Contrary to the assumption that women, who live longer than men, are healthier, Pérez explained that women spend 25% more time in poor health than men. According to World Bank data, women experience 12 years of disability versus nine for men. Moreover, more than half of the health gap affects women during their working years, resulting in significant GDP losses.
Pérez also highlighted untapped market potential in women’s health conditions like endometriosis, which affects one in 10 women globally — the same prevalence as diabetes. Yet endometriosis has fewer than 20 drugs in the pipeline, compared to more than 580 for diabetes.
Her panel also discussed gaps in treating obesity and other conditions, featuring insights from Eva Cruz of Senos Puerto Rico, Shelly Lanning of Visana Health and Katherine Saunders of FlyteHealth.
Empowering local entrepreneurs
The forum’s final panel spotlighted Puerto Rican entrepreneurs tackling unmet health care needs. Doris Marie Candelario, co-founder of Insu Health Design, shared her innovation: a battery-powered cooler for medications.
Nimia Vázquez, founder of Biochoices, discussed personalized bioidentical hormone therapies, while Lyvette Mercado, president of Metamed LLC, highlighted diabetes-focused products and services.
These inspiring exchanges underscored the transformative possibilities for Puerto Rico’s health care sector. By addressing women’s health gaps and embracing AI’s potential, we can trigger meaningful change in health care systems globally.
Jahn Marie Surette is CEO of JM Surette Advisors.
