Advancing Our Mission Through Responsible Artificial Intelligence

At Ascension, the use of artificial intelligence (AI) applications reflects a deep commitment to our Mission. Technology helps strengthen the connection between caregivers and patients, improve the quality and safety of care and make healthcare more personal and efficient. Each new initiative is rooted in our values and designed to support the healing work that defines who we are.

Ascension's AI strategy is designed to advance four goals: expand access and continuity of care, improve clinical quality and safety, empower associates to work more effectively and increase operational efficiency while creating a more personalized consumer experience.

Given the potential advancements in AI, we have the opportunity to think about healthcare from a place of abundance rather than one historically shaped by scarcity, enabling us to offer more, especially to those who have the least.

Across Ascension, AI is beginning to improve our associate experience through workspace tools such as Gemini for Google Workspace, which organizes data, generates summaries and supports productivity so associates can focus on collaboration and service. Across operations, automation and predictive analytics help leaders make informed and timely decisions about staffing and resources. This work is reducing administrative burden, giving caregivers more time with patients and helping patients access compassionate, high-quality care with confidence.

To ease physician burden, ambient documentation tools securely capture and transcribe conversations during visits, automatically creating clinical notes that reduce hours of work to minutes. For nurses, AI-enabled flowsheets and digital handoff summaries have the potential of giving time back to patient care by simplifying documentation and improving coordination between shifts.

AI-enabled tools are being explored to assist in earlier disease detection, to identify when patients may need additional support and to inform or supplement care plans aligned with a patient's individual needs. These advancements hold promise for improving access to timely, high-quality and safe care for every patient. Early results show improved efficiency and more informed decision-making across the continuum of care, strengthening quality, precision and safety while allowing clinicians to focus on what matters most: their patients.

For consumers, AI has the potential to make healthcare easier to navigate, more personalized and more responsive over time. Its greatest impact may come from helping people find the right care more easily, receive more relevant information and support, and experience a health system that is better equipped to anticipate needs, reduce friction and strengthen engagement across the care journey.

The progress we are making is built on a strong and secure foundation grounded in people, data, process and technology. Years of deliberate investment in modern infrastructure, analytics and workforce development positioned Ascension to introduce AI with care and purpose. Our teams bring together clinicians, designers, technologists, data scientists and business leaders who collaborate to ensure solutions support safety, compassion and mission alignment.

The strength of our infrastructure lies in secure, scalable, technology-based systems and interoperable tools that allow innovation to occur responsibly and at scale. High-quality data from clinical, operational and financial sources fuels meaningful insights that improve outcomes across the ministry. Our processes emphasize collaboration, transparency and ethical governance, ensuring that AI is applied in ways that honor dignity and human connection. Together, these elements create the environment that allows innovation to flourish and strengthens our ability to deliver personalized and high-quality care.

To keep every advancement aligned with our mission and values, Ascension established a multidisciplinary AI Governance Committee composed of leaders from across the ministry. This group oversees how AI is developed and deployed, guided by principles rooted in Catholic social teaching. The governance structure emphasizes transparency, fairness, privacy and respect for the dignity of every person. New applications are carefully reviewed to confirm they are ethical, secure and consistent with our commitment to serve those most in need.

AI at Ascension is already changing how we work and how we serve, and its potential continues to grow. As we look ahead, the governance Ascension has put in place will ensure that we approach AI with humility and discipline, always guided by our values and commitment to those we serve. We will continue to strengthen our data capabilities and expand responsible innovation across the ministry. In doing so, we remain anchored in our vision to bring health, healing and hope to all.

AI is an advanced capability that strengthens how we live our mission each day by expanding the reach of our caregivers, supporting compassionate care and preparing us to serve future generations with excellence.