By Dr. Jay Anders, Chief Medical Officer, Medicomp Systems
LinkedIn: Jay Anders MD
LinkedIn: Medicomp Systems, Inc.
Host of Tell Me Where IT Hurts – #TellMeWhereITHurts
On this episode I sit down with Chuck Tuchinda, MD, MBA, a physician leader at the intersection of data, artificial intelligence, and clinical innovation. As Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Hearst Health and Executive Chairman of First Databank (FDB), Dr. Tuchinda brings a unique perspective on how trusted clinical data and emerging technologies are shaping the future of healthcare.
Episode NOW on Demand
Meet the Guest
Chuck Tuchinda, MD, MBA, EVP and COO, Hearst Health and Executive Chairman of FDB
LinkedIn: Chuck Tuchinda, MD MBA
LinkedIn: Hearst
Chuck Tuchinda is the executive vice president, chief operating officer and deputy group head of Hearst Health, providing senior leadership for Hearst’s healthcare businesses in the U.S. and globally, including FDB (First Databank), Zynx Health, MCG, Homecare Homebase, MHK and QGenda. He also serves as executive chairman of FDB, executive chairman of MHK and vice president of Hearst.
From the outset of his career, Tuchinda has invented and commercialized solutions that leverage modern technology to improve clinical decision-making. His expertise is in developing scalable and sustainable business models for novel technology-enabled clinical knowledge.
Dr. Tuchinda shares how FDB has evolved from a paper-based drug pricing reference into a high-performance platform for medication decision support, now enhanced with APIs, artificial intelligence agents, and e-prescribing capabilities.
He also explores how FDB is applying Six Sigma standards to protect and improve data quality, supporting public resources such as RxNorm, and developing AI-enabled workflows to improve everything from medication reconciliation to allergy documentation.
Throughout the conversation, Dr. Tuchinda underscores the importance of data standardization, the risks of information blocking, and the potential for artificial intelligence to eliminate administrative burden while improving clinical safety. He also emphasizes the need for trustworthy frameworks to validate artificial intelligence outputs, especially when used to support patient care.
Finally, when handed the proverbial magic wand, Dr. Tuchinda does not hesitate. He would use it to improve access to healthcare anywhere and for everyone.
Among the topics covered:
- Evolution of FDB from paper drug pricing to an AI-powered medication database
- Six Sigma approach to clinical content and data accuracy
- APIs and e-prescribing expanding FDB’s reach across workflows
- Operational AI tools delivering more than 30% gains in productivity across Hearst Health, with some tasks six to eight times faster
- Use of artificial intelligence for medication reconciliation, prior authorization, and patient interaction
- FDB contributions to RxNorm and the National Library of Medicine to advance interoperability
- Need for standardized terminology and precise clinical concepts in data exchange
- Artificial intelligence applications for electronic health record data cleanup, including allergy normalization
- Importance of trust, transparency, and quality validation in clinical artificial intelligence
- “If you could change one thing…”
- And more…
Original source of content from Medicomp System’s blog and published here with permission.
About the Show
Join host Dr. Jay Anders on Tell Me Where IT Hurts as he sits down with experts from across healthcare and technology to discuss ways to improve EHR usability for end users. Dr. Anders and his guests explore opportunities to enhance clinical systems to make them work better for clinicians, reduce burnout, maximize revenue potential, and drive better patient care outcomes.
Join the conversation on Social Media at #TellMeWhereITHurts