Read the Conversation
EF: How will the GE HealthCare spinoff impact the Latin American market, and what are your key priorities for sustainable growth in this region?
RP: With the spinoff from GE conglomerate, GE HealthCare now has a dedicated board solely for healthcare. This shift has brought us quicker decisions, investments, and partnerships that align directly with our customer and patient needs. We can already observe the practical benefits and are looking ahead to shift from just providing equipment to offering integral solutions, adding to our value. Our approach builds on sustainable technology deployment through the best possible partnerships, addressing inefficiencies and the need for investments. We aim to highlight the healthcare sector's need for broader access.
Our primary focus in LATAM is achieving sustainable growth that prioritizes patient well-being. The spinoff components - speed, agility, co-creation, and market connection - perfectly align with our objectives. The timing is opportune for us to create a meaningful impact by swiftly taking action, collaborating closely with the market, and rigorously testing new hypotheses. We are leveraging our strong global presence to introduce AI solutions that accelerate diagnostics, enabling a focus on overall health rather than just disease. A well-connected approach that guides our day-to-day operations and drives concrete progress.
While the world around us is changing and turbulent, focusing on our priorities and providing clear solutions is essential. We are committed to guiding, learning, and implementing new strategies to deliver technology while ensuring sustainability- that is our core purpose.
EF: What is your access strategy for Brazil, and how do you engage with public or private stakeholders to enhance healthcare sustainability in the country?
RP: In healthcare, we must segment patients’ needs. This begins with addressing gaps in primary care and the distribution of vaccines.
A crucial aspect is to transform reactive patient care into a proactive approach. This can be achieved by enhancing the patient journey, integrating data, and leveraging diagnostics data captured over a lifespan. As we progress, artificial intelligence will significantly improve efficiency by expediting exams and providing preliminary diagnostics. AI empowers physicians to focus on critical cases, ensuring a more efficient and accurate approach, like pinpointing essential details in X-rays or mammograms.
Sustainability is vital, especially in the public sector and the current market environment. New investments are often challenging to secure, and the key question is to use existing resources effectively. It is common to see acquired equipment underutilized due to a lack of proper utilization strategies. Here, governments have a prime opportunity to be proactive and enhance patient outcomes by facilitating a smoother integration of different technologies. Collaborative conversations are essential to finding effective solutions. Strategic resource allocation and long-term thinking are crucial, as focusing solely on short-term gains is not ideal for healthcare's progress.
GE HealthCare operates in more than 160 countries around the globe. Sharing knowledge and enhancing KPIs around efficiency, precision, and productivity, are important priorities for us, and the team in Brazil is ready to do more for our customers.
EF: How does GE HealthCare assist hospitals or other stakeholders in transitioning from reactive care to proactive prevention?
RP: Our goal is to evolve into true partnerships where our success is intertwined with our customers' success and, ultimately, patient outcomes. To implement this, we are identifying pilot opportunities in collaboration with customers who share this vision. The focus is on co-creating solutions and scaling them based on positive outcomes. It is about achieving a genuine win-win scenario that aligns with their needs. One example is our pilot with a customer, where we explored better interoperability and its potential impact.
The sustainability of the healthcare sector is a laborious journey, but the conversations are more dynamic now, especially after the lessons learned from the pandemic. Today, our equipment serves more than 1 billion patients globally, and we have data to contribute to this transition.
Our new operating model, particularly in Brazil, enhances our closeness to customers, allowing for more meaningful collaborations. As we move forward, we actively engage with specific customers to implement innovative solutions contributing to the changing healthcare landscape.
EF: Could you elaborate on your regional portfolio and how you are bringing innovation to the country?
RP: Our product portfolio is organized into four main pillars- first, imaging, including mammography, X-ray, MRI, CT, etc. The second is Ultrasound. The third ranges from portable to high-end machines, named Patient Care Solutions, which includes monitoring vital signs and anesthesia. Finally, we have contrast media for enhancing imaging. These pillars align with various care pathways, such as oncology and cardiology, all aimed at improving patient outcomes.
Co-creating with our customers ensures that technological advancements, like AI and R&D efforts, are truly meaningful for patient treatment. We are also focusing on digital solutions to streamline information sharing and efficiency. Our efforts go beyond individual products, focusing on holistic patient pathways and enhancing treatment effectiveness. Our commitment extends to innovative treatments, such as Alzheimer's detection and treatment, reflecting our dedication to comprehensive healthcare solutions, in which we dedicated more than US$ 1 billion to bring new products to life every year.
EF: What key insights have you gained about effective leadership in times of crisis, and how do you apply those insights to guide your team?
RP: While technology is buzzing, the real strength lies in people. Caring for our team directly impacts patient care. With engaged and purpose-driven workers, achieving creativity, effort, and teamwork becomes easier. We have observed difficulties in talent management and mental health, which are more prominent now. Being open and sharing knowledge externally has proven beneficial. During the pandemic, we reshaped our organization into workstreams, safety, customer education, and other new ideas, to keep everyone connected and engaged during a crisis. Embracing change while genuinely valuing opinions fosters engagement. Similarly, external forums and discussions bring forth numerous opportunities. Therefore, the two key lessons are prioritizing our people and building closer customer relationships.
EF: What strategies does GE HealthCare use to promote patient and physician education?
RP: Education is a significant focus for us across various areas. We train our teams, physicians, field engineers, patients, and partner clinical engineers. This approach helps us assess investments, ensure proper equipment usage, reduce turnover, and optimize operational efficiency. We have built a strong foundation in education and intend to keep growing it.
We have training centers globally, including one Education Center in our Latin American Headquarters. These centers facilitate learning and interaction among engineers and other healthcare professionals with similar needs. While remote learning is valuable, we believe in the significance of physical presence for better value comprehension. Our focus on continuous improvement and lean management empowers teams to address challenges at their level. Education played a crucial role during the pandemic, allowing us to expand equipment usage through initiatives that involved experts on-site.
EF: What are your future goals as an independent company, and where do you envision yourself in the next 5 years?
RP: I envision working proudly in a company that profoundly impacts how we deliver tailored solutions to the market. We want to use technology to understand customers better and provide excellent solutions without reservations.
With a strong and valuable medical background, we can greatly enhance the public sector's healthcare offerings. This is not a criticism of any government but a call for improvement. I aim to contribute to this change locally and make a positive impact.
We want to be the partner of choice for all customers to support the challenges of the new era of the healthcare industry. In Latin America, we have a special opportunity to improve efficiency and enhance the patient experience by leveraging our knowledge, learning from equipment-generated data, and harnessing AI advancements while benefiting from our skilled workforce. The next five years reserve the necessary time to make it true.
