The Beat Building the Data Foundation for Healthcare AI with Jeff Thomas, SVP and Chief Technology Officer at Sentara Health
Healthcare organizations cannot afford to chase every new technology trend without first building the foundation to make those tools effective, scalable, and financially sustainable.
In this episode, Jeff Thomas, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Sentara Health, discusses how his team is approaching cloud transformation, AI readiness, and cost management across a vertically integrated payer-provider organization. He explains why technology decisions must ultimately support better care delivery, how tech debt continues to slow innovation, and why data accessibility is the real prerequisite for meaningful AI adoption. Jeff also shares how Sentara has reduced system sprawl, flattened infrastructure costs while growing, and built a more resilient technology environment that supports both operational efficiency and clinician presence. He closes by emphasizing a point many leaders overlook: no technology transformation succeeds without strong change management.
Tune in and learn how healthcare leaders can build a smarter, more disciplined path to innovation without losing sight of the people they serve.
About Jeff Thomas:
Jeff Thomas is Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Sentara Health, where he leads technology strategy, cloud transformation, and infrastructure modernization for one of the region’s major integrated healthcare organizations. With more than 20 years of experience across global infrastructure, operations, enterprise architecture, and application development, Jeff has led large-scale transformation efforts across healthcare, government, consulting, higher education, and commercial enterprises. Before joining Sentara, he held senior technology leadership roles at Smithfield Foods and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. He is known for his focus on cloud consolidation, operational efficiency, and the use of technology to improve service delivery while reducing costs. Jeff holds an MBA from The College of William and Mary, a master’s degree from Syracuse University, and a BA from Brigham Young University.
Things You’ll Learn:
- Technology investments only create value when they improve care delivery, reduce friction, and help clinicians stay present with patients.
- AI readiness depends less on hype and more on whether organizations can make their data accessible, timely, and usable for real-world inference.
- Reducing tech debt and system sprawl creates the capacity organizations need to innovate without letting infrastructure costs spiral upward.
- Healthcare technology leaders must manage IT like a business, balancing innovation with financial discipline, operational efficiency, and measurable outcomes.
- Successful transformation requires more than new tools, since lasting progress depends on helping people adapt to change thoughtfully.
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