Dr. David Zaas is stepping into a new role on familiar grounds as the new CEO of Duke University Health System.
Over the course of his career, Zaas has served as a transplant physician, researcher, and healthcare leader within the Duke Health system.
In an interview with WRAL, Zaas shared one of the experiences that most transformed his views on patient care happened not in a boardroom or clinic, but in a hospital bed.
“I knew for a few weeks that I wasn’t feeling well,” he recalled. “It was hard to workout, I was short of breath, I had started to develop a skin rash, and my gums were hurting me.”
Zaas took his symptoms to a colleague within the Duke Health system, and asked him to draw his labs. The results showed Zaas had acute leukemia, a rapidly progressing cancer of the blood and bone marrow.
“I was so thankful to be able to catch it early enough and have therapies,” Zaas shared. “My 13-year-old son had the opportunity to be the donor for my bone marrow transplant.”
The health leader shared that the diagnosis transformed him from physician to patient, forcing him to navigate the same fears and uncertainties many of the people he cared for experienced every day.
“I also realized that it wasn’t just myself going through this journey, it was my family and the impact on my wife and children,” Zaas said. “I had a chance to not only experience what it was like to be a patient facing a 70-80% chance of death, but I had the ability to get that amazing care, access to clinical research, and family support.”
Now, as CEO, Zaas says many of those lessons are shaping his priorities for Duke Health.
“It totally changes your perspective,” he said. “It made me realize that the most important part of patient-family relationships is trust. How do we as providers help build that relationship with our patients to develop that trust, especially facing times that are really scary when you’re the patient.”
Zaas said many of his goals revolve around building a stronger “digital front door” by expanding access to care.
“I want the same standards of care for everyone that comes in contact with Duke Health that I would want for my own family,” he said.
Part of that effort includes making it easier for patients to connect with care through online scheduling, virtual specialty visits, and expanded digital access.
“I want us to take responsibility for care the moment someone asks for our help,” he said.
The health system is among many in North Carolina experiencing the strain of growing populations, while working to keep enough providers.
To address those challenges, Zaas pointed to programs such as Duke Health’s rural family medicine residency and nursing education initiatives, which are designed to train healthcare workers in communities where they are needed the most.
“When we train and develop workforce from those areas, they stay in North Carolina, and they stay in our rural areas,” Zaas said.
Technology will also play a growing role in Duke Health’s future, according to Zaas. The health system has become a national leader in conversations surrounding the safe integration of artificial intelligence into medicine.
Duke Health expanded internal access last year to protected AI software to help clinicians transcribe clinical notes faster, allowing them to spend more time talking face-to-face with patients.
“I think we’re just at the infancy of how AI and technology can make healthcare safer and better for patients and care teams,” he said. “I think it’s important that we are a leader in the responsible use of technology and AI to ensure that we’re using it correctly and ethically, to ensure that it benefits our patients and being very transparent.”
Zaas is taking over the role at a time when healthcare systems nationwide face workforce shortages, financial pressures, and declining public trust in medicine. Despite challenges facing the healthcare industry, Zaas shared he believes, “It’s the best time to be in medicine.”
“The pace of scientific discovery is growing so fast. Diseases that used to be life-threatening are now areas where we have cures. Cancer – we’re seeing so many outcomes,” Zaas said. “I think we need to take back the narrative. I think the challenges going on have created distrust in health care.”
The DUHS CEO stated rebuilding trust also requires the health system to be more public-facing, from sharing stories on social media to engaging with community members at public events.
Zaas added, “We have a unique advantage within healthcare; we have the most amazing patient stories and the impact that we’re making on others. I think it’s important that we are proactive and less worried about reacting.”
As he begins his tenure as CEO, Zaas says his ultimate goal remains rooted in the lessons he learned as both a physician and a patient.
“Everybody deserves access to care,” he said. “Everybody deserves opportunities to have the latest, most innovative therapies in clinical research. Our goal is to create that opportunity for everyone.”