How three organizations are leveraging IT to assist them in responding to the COVID crisis in WNY

Panelists:

Robert Ruocco, CIO, BlueCross BlueShield of WNY

Thomas Furlani, PhD., CIO, Roswell Park

Raul Vazquez, MD, President/CEO, Urban Family Practice

Presented by:        

Format: Webex Virtual Panel Discussion with Q&A

FREE Event | REGISTER HERE (NOTE: you will receive the Webex link via email)

About the Speakers:

Moderator: Armand Morrison has been involved in healthcare IT for over 20 years working with c-suite executives across the continuum of care to help leverage new technologies toward improving patient care and reducing cost.  Armand is currently on the board of directors of InfoTech WNY and serves on the executive board for the NYS chapter of Health Information Management Systems Society "HIMSS". Armand is currently a Vice President with emids, a leader in digital engineering and transformation solutions to the healthcare industry, including IT consulting and advisory services, data & analytics platform development, and digital transformation solutions like RPA and digital assistants.

Bob Ruocco joined HealthNow New York (BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York) in 2016 and is the company's vice president and chief information officer. With more than 20 years of technology experience, Ruocco is responsible for establishing the health plan's technical vision and leading the company's technological development.  Prior to joining BlueCross BlueShield, Ruocco served as vice president, chief operating officer-information technology, for Healthfirst, a not-for-profit managed care organization serving close to 1.2 million members in the greater New York City area. In that role, he maximized performance and service delivery for information services, reducing administrative costs and transforming healthcare delivery for the company.

Tom Furlani is currently chief information officer at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Dr. Furlani, also Professor of Oncology in the Department of Information Technology, provides vision and leadership for information technology at Roswell Park. Dr. Furlani has more than 25 years experience in research computing and visualization, including high-performance computing, computational chemistry, and cloud computing.

Dr. Raul Vazquez is a primary care physician who opened Urban Family Practice on Buffalo’s Lower West Side in 1996. Recognizing the need for coordinated, person-centered care for Medicaid recipients with multiple chronic medical conditions, he formed the Greater Buffalo United Accountable Healthcare Network (GBUAHN). The New York State Department of Health approved the designation of GBUAHN as a provider-lead Medicaid health home in 2012. As president of GBUAHN, Dr. Vazquez leads a team of dedicated professionals in the medical and business fields. He has set the strategy and direction for the fast-track growth of GBUAHN. Under his guidance, GBUAHN has grown to serve several thousand members and employs a staff of approximately 150 individuals. GBUAHN is one of the largest minority employers in Western New York.