Healthcare organizations are managing increasingly complex workflows across clinical, financial, and payer-driven processes that don’t always work seamlessly together. These areas include patient payments, utilization management review, and patient billing — where RCM innovations like agentic AI and advanced automation can quickly improve efficiency and outcomes.
However, identifying the right solutions and successfully integrating them can still be difficult.
Through the Waystar Early Adopter program, healthcare leaders work directly with the Waystar product and technology teams to test new capabilities, provide feedback, and influence how solutions are developed before broader release.
In a recent panel, two Waystar early adopters shared four ways they’re putting new technology like Waystar AltitudeAI™ into practice — and where it’s making a difference.
1. Elevate patient financial care with digital-first self-service
Many leaders are rethinking the patient financial experience. As patient responsibility continues to increase, outdated payment processes can create unnecessary friction and delay revenue.
To meet these challenges, teams are moving toward self-service models, streamlined financial communications, and flexible payment options. These changes help meet rising patient expectations while decreasing reliance on manual billing processes.
When patients have convenient ways to pay, they are more likely to pay promptly and in full — accelerating cash flow while easing margin pressure.
Sierra Peck, Pathology Billing Manager at Arbor Diagnostics, explained that improving transparency and creating a digital-first experience reduced patient billing confusion — and helped bring in more revenue.
A modern financial experience also helps build trust, which Peck noted is especially important for providers like diagnostic labs that patients often perceive as third-party billers.
2. Scale capacity with clinical automation
Clinical workflows remain one of the most resource-intensive areas of the mid-revenue cycle, particularly in functions like utilization management review.
Brooke McDonald, Manager of Case Management and Utilization Review at UKHS, explained that these processes often require significant manual effort, making it difficult for teams to keep pace as volumes increase — especially with ongoing nursing shortages.
Agentic AI and advanced automation embedded in these workflows streamline the majority of reviews, freeing staff to focus on the exceptions that require more critical thinking. It also allows clinicians to spend more time focusing on patient care.
For McDonald’s team, improved efficiency was instrumental in helping to manage increasing volume while maintaining the clinical oversight required for more complex reviews.
During UKHS’ trial period of the Waystar UM solution, the organization saw utilization management review time drop from 20 minutes to just five minutes.
For many organizations, similar gains in efficiency are helping teams keep pace with demand while preserving the quality of clinical decision-making.
3. Take a phased approach to AI adoption
Leaders making the most progress with agentic AI aren’t applying it broadly from the outset. Instead, they are beginning with specific use cases, testing new tools within established processes, and expanding based on early results.
In this way, organizations can build confidence without disrupting day-to-day operations. This enables teams to scale more intentionally, focusing on workflows where AI and advanced automation have the greatest impact.
Programs like the Waystar Early Adopter Program support this approach, giving organizations a structured way to test new capabilities and provide feedback during development.
4. Build trust through change management
Even when AI and automation deliver meaningful results, adoption doesn’t happen automatically. How new tools are introduced can have as much impact as the technology itself.
Early adopters seeing the most success are using a hands-on approach — involving end users from the outset. When organizations collaborate early with technology providers, they help shape the solutions to best meet their needs.
For example, clinical professionals are discovering that AI supports human judgment rather than replacing it — keeping their expertise central to decision-making.
McDonald explained that her team at UKHS saw this firsthand. As confidence increased, adoption became more sustainable, helping to improve day-to-day operations and staff morale.
What healthcare organizations can learn from early adoption
Progress in revenue cycle management doesn’t come from waiting for the perfect solution. It comes from identifying the right use cases, connecting early with technology partners, and scaling over time.
Waystar early adopters are already doing this — testing new capabilities and playing a direct role in how these solutions are built. Discover how they are driving RCM innovation and what your team can learn from their success.
Explore the Waystar Early Adopter Program
