AI’s Place in a Quality World
Many people are convinced that AI will change everything.
But what is its proper role in improving healthcare quality?
Look to the “Show-Me State”—Missouri—for answers.
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About The Guest
Dr. Josh Wymer is the Chief Health Information & Data Strategy Officer with the State of Missouri Health Data Consortium. He is also faculty for advanced informatics and executive leadership and contributes as a co-founder, advisor and board member in the health care space.
His previous roles include Chief Health Information Officer for the Defense Health Agency’s San Diego Market and Chief Nursing Informatics Office with Naval Medical Center San Diego and Regional Health Clinics. His other contributions during 20 years on active duty with the US Navy include impactful leadership in surgical services and direct combat-zone field surgical support to joint special operations, multinational forces, and national tasking missions across three continents. He is a Fellow with the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), the American College of Healthcare Executives (FACHE), and the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and a recognized advocate for human-centered design, digital health transformation, effective governance, sustainable change, and interprofessional teams.
Josh’s undergraduate degree in nursing is from Seattle University. He completed an MS in Nursing, Health Care Informatics, at the University of San Diego, an MS in Project Management from Granite State College, and an MA in Enterprise Strategic Planning from the US Naval War College. His doctoral work in executive leadership was completed at Johns Hopkins University.
Episode Description
In this episode of Quality Matters, host Andy Reynolds is joined by Josh Wymer, Chief Health Information and Data Strategy Officer for the State of Missouri Health Data Consortium. Together, they explore how Missouri is building a smarter health care system that uses AI not just to automate care, but to elevate it.
Drawing on Josh’s experience in clinical care and informatics, the conversation reveals how states and standards bodies can work together to ensure innovation serves people—not just systems.
Listen to this episode to discover:
- AI with a Human Touch: Josh shares how Missouri is designing AI systems that center citizen experience, protect privacy and preserve empathy in care delivery.
- Cross-Agency Collaboration as a Catalyst: Learn how Missouri’s unified health data strategy breaks silos and builds trust across public health, social services and mental health care systems.
- Workforce Readiness in the Age of AI: Explore how upskilling and retention strategies are helping Missouri address staffing shortfalls and prepare its workforce for a future of data-driven care.
- The Sunny Side of AI: Hear why optimism, not fear, is driving Missouri’s approach to innovation, and how thoughtful, ethical design can unlock better outcomes at scale.
This episode is essential listening for health IT leaders, policymakers and quality professionals who want to understand how proactive states are turning AI into a force for good, through a commitment to protecting the human element in health care.
Never have we had the ability to extrapolate against data like we do now. Never have we had the chance to do deep, meaningful research against large data sets. Never have we had a chance to spread and educate populations and accelerate innovation and learning like we do now. With the right focus and the right priorities, we can narrow that to areas that will drive meaningful change and better the lives of everyone we engage with.
Timestamps
(02:06) Missouri’s Health Data Consortium
(04:58) AI’s Growing Role in Health Care
(10:06) Workforce Readiness for AI
(12:22) NCQA’s AI Initiatives
(18:19) Preserving the Human Element in Health Care