Digital Transformation in Healthcare: Melinda Yormick Of CLARA On How Medical Practices Can Use Digital Transformation To Provide Better Care

An Interview With Jake Frankel

People that Care: Engaged teams spot and solve problems before they escalate. I’ve seen firsthand how caring staff can prevent crises, like when a tech flagged a shortage of critical cardiac equipment, averting potential disaster.

As part of our series about “Medical Practices Can Use Digital Transformation To Provide Better Care”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Melinda Yormick.

Melinda Yormick is a purpose-driven healthcare innovator and the Founder and CEO of CLARA, a technology platform transforming the way hospitals respond to patients during critical moments. With over a decade of experience as a perioperative nurse and clinical leader, Melinda combines frontline knowledge with strategic leadership to address one of healthcare’s most overlooked risks: failure to respond due to disjointed navigation and coordination. A Registered Nurse and Executive MBA graduate of the University of Washington Foster School of Business (2024), Melinda is leading the charge to make hospitals safer, smarter, and more responsive. She invites the healthcare industry to join her in building a future where no patient is lost to inefficiency.

Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Before we dive in, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

My journey into healthcare began with a personal tragedy: my grandfather’s successful heart surgery was marred by a preventable error — a forgotten sponge led to a second surgery and a stroke that left him bedridden for a decade. This experience drove me to become an OR nurse, committed to reducing risks for patients who trust a very human system. Working across seven major health systems, I saw that leadership offered a broader platform to drive change. But when a patient died after a successful elective procedure — I realized the depth of systemic gaps. That loss became the spark for CLARA, my mission to close frontline operational gaps and prevent such tragedies.

Can you share the most interesting or most exciting story that has happened to you since you began at your company?

The most exciting part since founding CLARA has been the journey itself: from building our first UI with a designer, finding my CTO through an investor, and piloting our prototype, to moving to San Francisco and assembling a world-class team. Every milestone — pre-seed funding, pilot launches, and development milestones reinforce that we’re on a path to make a real impact for hospitals, clinicians, and patients.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Then, can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Early on, I forgot to consider details like time zones and currency conversions — sending the wrong amount for pilot hardware from Estonia was a memorable blunder. My biggest lesson came from our original name, CWTCH, which I loved, but the market didn’t. I learned quickly: it’s not about me, it’s about what resonates with users, customers, and investors. Flexibility and listening to the market are crucial.

You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Creativity, decisiveness, and responsibility. Creativity allows me to see the big picture and craft scalable strategies. Decisiveness keeps us moving forward, even if it means pivoting our go-to-market approach for CLARA. Responsibility grounds me; I know that progress depends on my willingness to act and to remember that our work is about serving others, not personal comfort.

Creativity shows up in designing solutions that scale beyond a single department. Decisiveness guided us from a broad hospital deployment to a focused OR solution, allowing flexibility without losing sight of the big picture. Responsibility means owning every step, knowing the mission stops if I do, and staying motivated by the impact on patients and hospital teams.

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?

I’m most excited about our product for Surgical Services, inspired by tragic patient loss. Once deployed, it will enable real-time care response and resource delivery to patients, provide administrators with actionable operational data, and directly improve OR efficiency, patient outcomes, and hospital cost savings.

Thank you for all that. Let’s now shift to the main focus of our interview about Digital Transformation in Healthcare. I am particularly passionate about this topic because my work focuses on how practices can streamline processes to better serve their patients. For the benefit of our readers, can you help explain what exactly Digital Transformation means? On a practical level what does it look like for a medical practice to engage in a digital transformation?

Digital transformation is more than adopting new tech — it’s a fundamental, often disruptive shift for historically slow-moving healthcare systems. It’s now essential, not optional, as hospitals face greater safety and financial risks by standing still. True transformation streamlines processes, improves care, and boosts productivity, but it also brings uncertainty and demands enterprise-wide change.

What does digital transformation look like in practice? It’s a major commitment: hospitals form dedicated teams, plan strategically, and involve stakeholders from IT to finance. Success depends on solutions aligning with key metrics and financial goals, and transformation touches every layer — from frontline staff learning new tools to patients experiencing improved care. It’s a deep, strategic process requiring careful planning and buy-in.

What are the specific pain points that digital transformation can help address in a medical practice?

Digital transformation tackles inefficiencies, siloed workflows, and the lack of real-time data. AI, automation, and platform technologies can turn hypothetical, error-prone records into actionable insights. For example, ORs cost $100 per minute, yet often have less real-time telemetry than your local post office. Real-time data can expose and solve costly delays, protect all stakeholders, and drive measurable improvement.

What are the obstacles that prevent a medical practice from engaging in a digital transformation?

Healthcare moves slowly, while tech moves fast — creating friction. Long sales cycles and endless pilots can kill even the best solutions before they gain paid traction. This inertia keeps hospitals behind, making the system itself the biggest barrier to meaningful digital change.

Managing a healthcare facility is more challenging than it has ever been. Based on your experience or research, can you please share with our readers a few examples of how digital transformation can help a medical practice to provide better care? If you can, please share a story or example for each.

Hospitals face massive budget gaps and high turnover, often freezing spending on anything non-essential. The key is targeting solutions where they matter most, like the OR. Improving efficiency here can ripple across the organization, enhancing care even during financial constraints.

Can you share a few examples of how digital interactions or digital intake processes can help create a frictionless patient experience and increase access for patients?

Thoughtful digital solutions streamline workflows, automate manual tasks, and connect people and resources in real time. This not only boosts clinician and patient experience but also leads to better outcomes and significant cost savings for hospitals.

Based on your opinion and experience, what are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Effective Medical Practice” and why?

• People that Care: Engaged teams spot and solve problems before they escalate. I’ve seen firsthand how caring staff can prevent crises, like when a tech flagged a shortage of critical cardiac equipment, averting potential disaster.
• Meaningful Data: Effective practices need structured, actionable data. I’ve wasted countless hours tracking down shared equipment — costing thousands and sapping morale. Frontline data stories can reveal hidden inefficiencies and drive smarter decisions.
• Financial Sustainability: Value-based care aligns cost, quality, and outcome, but information gaps make it hard to quantify. Technology now lets us see operations through a value lens, minimizing waste and maximizing quality.
• Long Game Strategy: True sustainability means prioritizing long-term impact over quick fixes. Cutting staff might show short-term gains, but without buy-in and data-driven change, it erodes morale and effectiveness. Un-siloed data helps organizations adapt and thrive.
• Satisfied Customers: Patient experience is central, as reimbursement is tied to satisfaction. Digital transformation should make patients feel valued and cared for, especially in their most vulnerable moments.

Because of your role, you are a person of significant influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most people, what would that be? You never know what your ideas can trigger.

I’d inspire a movement where everyone supports each other in making their greatest contribution. Imagine if every person woke up driven by purpose and was empowered to pursue it — society would benefit from unleashed potential, and missions that matter would achieve outsized impact. That’s the world I’m working toward, one safer, smarter hospital at a time.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Check out our website at www.claraguide.com

CLARA on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/clara-guide

Follow me on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/melinda-yormick

Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!