Healthcare leadership is at a critical crossroads.
Hospitals and healthcare systems are still grappling with financial and resource challenges exacerbated by the pandemic — nursing shortages, for example. This is occurring alongside increasing complexity of patient care needs: The U.S. population is aging — and getting sicker.
The question has become not only how to manage an overburdened clinical workforce but how to maintain high-quality patient outcomes while doing so.
For Erica DeBoer, Chief Nursing Officer at Sanford Health, post-pandemic fallout brought these questions into focus — as well as the insufficiencies of conventional solutions.
“The care model isn’t working the way it used to,” she explained. “We knew we needed to leverage technology and the wisdom of our nurses to start addressing patient care in new ways.”
The Nursing Crisis: Sanford Health Before Artisight
In 2023, there were approximately one million registered nurses older than 50 years. One-third of the nursing workforce will be at retirement age in the next 10 to 15 years.
“There just aren’t enough humans to continue providing care the way we used to,” said Erica.
Sanford Health, headquartered in Sioux Falls, SD, is the largest rural health system in the U.S., delivering care to over 1 million patients in over 400 locations spread across multiple states.
The nursing shortage, combined with post-pandemic burnout, created a perfect storm for organizations like Sanford Health. “After the pandemic, our staff were still healing. We had never experienced anything like it before,” she reflected. “But, the issue didn’t just magically disappear when the pandemic ended. We have seasoned nurses who are tired and getting ready to leave the profession. At the same time, we have brand new nurses who need guidance.”
This experience gap is additional stress on an already overburdened workforce; as nurses find themselves divided between administrative tasks, documentation, and patient care, the physical and emotional toll deepens.
What Didn’t Work and Why
Prior to partnering with Artisight, Erica and her team attempted to address critical pain points by adopting point solutions. Success was limited.
“We applied a niche solution for constant observers to help with patient falls … but it only solved this little piece. It didn’t really take that burden off our frontline team,” she reflected. “We were looking for solutions that would actually help our workforce, not just add more training or new equipment.”
Enter Artisight’s Virtual Nursing Solution
At the time, Erica and her team didn’t realize they were looking for a virtual nursing solution. One meeting with Artisight’s CEO, Andrew Gostine, MD, revealed the need. “During that first conversation, [Andrew’s] focus on solving real problems captured our attention instantaneously,” she stated. “He’s a physician … he understands how labor-intensive nursing is. He’s always thinking of ways to get our teams back to the work they’re most passionate about — making connections and caring for their patients.”
According to Erica, the value of Artisight’s virtual nursing solution is also its key differentiator: It’s built by clinicians, for clinicians.
The Platform Difference
This virtual nursing solution is delivered via Artisight’s Smart Hospital Platform, which combines computer vision and a multi-sensor network with industry-defining AI to create ambient intelligence that learns, understands, and responds across healthcare settings.
Fall monitoring, pressure ulcer prevention, staff duress alerting, care coordination assistance, and even AI-driven documentation are all possible.
One of the standout features for Sanford Health was how Artisight addressed what Erica refers to as “little friction points” — tedious, time-consuming tasks that sap energy from nurses. “Artisight solved the small but crucial things that make a big difference,” Erica explained. “For example, it automatically documents when a patient is wheeled into an OR suite. It may seem minor, but it saves us valuable time and reduces the administrative burden on our nurses.”
The Team Difference
“The technology is impressive,” according to Erica. But, it’s the other half of Artisight’s key differentiator that ensures the technology delivers on its promise: the team. “Artisight’s team was with us, side by side, throughout implementation,” she continued. “They listened to our feedback and worked with us to make the system work better.”
As part of its offering, Artisight deploys its AI scientists and clinician teams to collaborate with nurses and frontline staff. These experts then tailor AI algorithms based on nurses’ input to ensure the virtual nursing solution is refined to meet the precise needs of each unique hospital environment.
“That level of partnership is rare,” said Erica. “It’s clear that they aren’t just selling a product — they’re solving problems that they’ve experienced themselves.”
Real-World Impact
At Sanford Health, Artisight has provided tangible improvements in nurse job satisfaction and retention. The flexibility provided by the virtual nursing solution allows nurses to rotate between roles, giving them a break from the physical demands of bedside care without sacrificing their ability to contribute meaningfully.
“Our nurses are excited about the flexibility,” Erica shared. “It’s helped prevent burnout, and the ability to work remotely for part of their shifts has been a huge benefit.”
Patients are also noticing the difference. “We’ve had a patient say, ‘I’m so glad you’re getting help for your nurses,’” Erica said. “They can see the positive change. That’s a big win for us.” She also noted that patients’ families and loved ones feel comforted knowing someone is watching, especially when they can’t be there.
The Future of Smart Hospitals: Artisight and Beyond
At Sanford Health, Artisight’s virtual nursing solution serves as an extension of care itself.
“We can see patients’ fall risk earlier, we can assist in interdisciplinary rounds, we’ve been able to adjust staffing based on the busiest times,” Erica said, “and we’re informing all these decisions with data from Artisight’s platform.”
Virtual nursing may be at the core of Artisight’s current success, but, according to Erica, the platform’s potential extends far beyond the patient room.
“We started with the hardest use case — virtual nursing,” she said, “but Artisight doesn’t stop at solving one problem. They’re always thinking about new use cases, from monitoring patients in memory care to using computer vision to track activities of daily living.”
The future of smart hospitals lies in comprehensive, versatile platforms like Artisight, which adapt and scale alongside the evolving needs of healthcare organizations.
“It’s opening up a whole new way of delivering healthcare,” said Erica.
The Power of Partnership: Artisight and Epic
Artisight’s strategic partnership with Epic is a crucial piece of its growing impact.
“Andrew [Artisight’s CEO] and the team know that partnering with Epic is essential for making a big difference in healthcare organizations,” Erica explained. “It’s about solving the problems that eat at our clinicians and make people not want to be in healthcare anymore.”
The integration of Artisight’s platform with Epic’s electronic health records (EHR) system will allow hospitals to harness the full potential of virtual nursing and other Artisight solutions.
“It’s exciting because the tech innovations Artisight delivers are aligned with what we need in our EMR systems. The Artisight-Epic collaboration is going to make such a big impact on streamlining our workflows and enhancing our ability to deliver care.”
For hospitals using Epic, the partnership means enhanced documentation and more opportunities for scalability across large health systems — a critical factor in long-term success.
Conclusion
For hospital decision-makers and nurse leaders who are early in their own journeys toward this kind of care transformation, Erica has clear advice: “Go in with a bold vision about what you want and why you want it. Partner with your frontline team — they’re the ones who will help you understand the problems you’re trying to solve.”
Those problems require more than just incremental improvements. To truly transform care delivery and improve patient outcomes, hospitals need comprehensive solutions that address the root causes of burnout, inefficiency, and patient safety concerns.
With its clinician-designed platform, Artisight offers more than just a quick fix — it provides a pathway for reducing the strain on nursing staff, improving patient care, and building a more resilient system. At Sanford Health, Artisight is proving it’s possible.
Acknowledgements
Special thanks to Erica DeBoer, RN, MA, CCRN-K, CNL, Chief Nursing Officer at Sanford Health
Erica DeBoer, RN, MA, CCRN, CNL, has more than 20 years of experience as a front-line registered nurse, including roles in critical care, clinical leadership, and education. As a member of the organization’s executive leadership team, DeBoer provides clinical expertise for Sanford Health’s work in quality, safety, research, and care management and oversees the integration of clinical initiatives. She sponsors a variety of initiatives in both areas at Sanford, including the use of predictive analytics to inform care and plan workforce needs; leveraging technology to automate non-value-added work so teams can focus on patient care; reducing clinical variations in care; and improving health equity and reducing the barriers patients face in accessing care. DeBoer holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing from South Dakota State University and a master’s degree in nursing from Augustana University.
