Podcast

The United States has a problem regarding health access and equity. 

As Senior Vice President of Clinical Innovation of Translation at Optum, Kevin Larsen’s role is to provide clinical leadership and voice to some of their solutions, but under that, there’s a desire for people to live their lives without health conditions being an obstacle. Through technology, they are gathering every data available to deliver a personalized recommendation based on the latest clinical guidelines for patients. He also mentions how partnerships can boost the solutions already rolling on the ground, and the diversity conversation around healthcare. 

Tune in and reach out to Kevin if something resonates! 

About Kevin Larsen:

Dr. Kevin Larsen is Senior Vice President, Clinical Innovation of Translation at Optum. Kevin’s role is to provide clinical leadership and a clinical voice to Optum Center for Advanced Clinical Solutions. He leads the clinical team in building and deploying provider enablement technologies, including clinical decision support integrated through electronic health records. Previously he was at OptumLabs where he supported the design and implementation of innovative research, analytics and evidence-based translation programs in diverse areas across our portfolio and be a primary clinical lead in support of the Optum Enterprise strategy.

Kevin is an internist and medical informaticist who started his career at Hennepin County Medical Center In Minneapolis where he had a variety of executive and clinical leadership roles. He has worked in academic, hospital and government settings, focusing on innovation through data and analytics, research, policy and developing/implementing innovative programs at scale.

He joined Optum from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), where most recently he has been Senior Health IT Advisor at the office of the Chief Technology Officer. Kevin led the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) strategic planning and transformation team. In that role he convened stakeholders across CMS and its partners to develop strategies and execute enterprise program improvements. He consulted on health IT policy, standards and project execution for numerous Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) models, such as Million Hearts, Oncology Bundle, State Innovation Models and Accountable Health Communities. He started his Washington D.C. career at Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) as the Medical Director of Meaningful Use where he lead ONCs work on quality policy, measurement and improvement, including clinical decision support and social determinants of health.

Earlier, Kevin was CMIO and Associate Medical Director of Hennepin Health System. He was associate professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota where his research included health care financing for people living in poverty, computer systems

Things You’ll Learn:

• If patients have enough support, they will care for their health. 
• Chronic disease patients should be able to manage their conditions throughout their lives. 
• Technology can help minimize some clinical processes. 
• Clinical Decision Support is a process that helps doctors make the best decisions after being well-informed. 
• What many existing solutions lack are the means to scale. 
• Healthcare should start reversing the inward-thinking mindset. 
• Communities often have solutions on the ground that healthcare companies are trying to create. 
• Many organizations are now asking their employees and their patients about social determinants of health. 

Resources:

• Connect with and follow Kevin on LinkedIn.
• Follow Optum on LinkedIn.
• Discover the Optum Website!
• Email Kevin directly at Kevin.Larsen@optum.com