Mira-Mini | IU Health: Large Enterprise of the Year

Gerry Dick: Well, this year's winner of the Large Enterprise of the Year award, IU Health, the largest healthcare provider in the state of Indiana. Nick Sturgeon is the Director of Information Service at IU Health. Nick, congratulations.

Nick Sturgeon: Thank you very much.

Gerry Dick: Yeah. IU Health, obviously a healthcare entity, but in so many ways it's a technology company.

Nick Sturgeon: Absolutely. If you look at all of our footprint across the state, hundreds of physician offices, hospitals, we are the largest consumer of health IT in the state by far.

Gerry Dick: Yeah. From a technology standpoint, because IU Health is so large and throughout the state, metropolitan areas, rural areas, it's got to be a challenge from a technology standpoint.

Nick Sturgeon: It absolutely is, but that's something that we have to overcome. We have overcome. We have to constantly innovate to make sure that we're keeping pace and making sure, especially in the face of COVID-19, that folks that are not wanting to go into a doctor's office or hospital, that we can meet them where they are most comfortable and most safe.

Gerry Dick: Yeah. You talk about innovation. It certainly didn't take a break during the pandemic. Quite the opposite. I know among the reasons for this award for IU Health, one of them, the new Bloomington Hospital.

Nick Sturgeon: During this last year, the planning for that didn't stop. We kept moving. In fact, because of COVID, we knew we needed to get it from the old hospital to the new regional academic health center just on the east side of Bloomington and strengthen our partnership with IU and the School of Medicine.

Gerry Dick: Big move with the Riley Tower move here in Indianapolis as well.

Nick Sturgeon: Yeah. The old tower with Methodist, again, part of the construction work that's going on with the new hospital coming in a few years now.

Gerry Dick: Right.

Nick Sturgeon: Getting them moved over to the Riley Center. A lot of new technology went in to support that, to make sure new mothers, new families, could have the best care that they could receive.

Gerry Dick: Yeah. I know one of the newest additions to the Indiana tech scene, 16 Tech on the near-

Nick Sturgeon: Yep.

Gerry Dick: ...west side of Indianapolis, you established a facility there inaudible.

Nick Sturgeon: Yeah, so I was personally responsible for establishing a medical device security lab at 16 Tech. It's not only a cybersecurity, inaudible, because we saw the cyber threats go up with the COVID-19 pandemic, they did not take a day off. As part of that move, we decided to open up a innovative cybersecurity lab where we're testing medical devices and make sure the things that are in our doctor's offices, our hospitals, are as secure as they can be.

Gerry Dick: Yeah. As far as what's next, IU Health building a massive investment on the near north side of Indianapolis, new hospital facilities. Technology, I know, is going to be a key part of that whole process.

Nick Sturgeon: Yeah. We want to make sure that we're not only building for today, but for the future and the technology that will be going into there will be a reflection of that innovation of what healthcare will be 10, 15, 20 years from now.

Gerry Dick: The Large Enterprise of the Year, IU Health. Nick Sturgeon is the Director of Information Service at IU Health. Nick, congratulations on the award.

Nick Sturgeon: Thanks, Gary.

Gerry Dick: All right.

Nick Sturgeon: I appreciate it.