John Sitilides

National Security Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Research Institute; State Department Diplomacy Consultant (2006-2023); Expert on Geopolitical Risk, Global Affairs, and American Politics

8:00 AM - 9:15 AM

World events intersect at your health system. Perhaps no time in history have world events impacted your decisions more than they do today. Globalization, near-shoring, offshoring, tariffs, regional conflicts and other geopolitical risks have a more direct impact on capital budgets than ever before. These forces influence supply availability, construction timelines, equipment costs, and access to project funding, challenging health systems to balance capital priorities while continuing to deliver high-quality patient care.

During this Keynote, geopolitical strategist John Sitilides, a senior Fellow for National Security at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and a Diplomacy Consultant during President Trump’s first term, will probe recent events and their impact on global trade. John will outline global affairs priorities and strategies for the next four years, assessing the complex geopolitical and geo-economic decisions impacting your everyday operations.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify world events with the greatest impact on your organization and its delivery of patient care during this period of volatility.

2. Investigate recent world events and their unique and nuanced impact on your capital process.

3. List global affairs priorities and strategies influencing your health system's operations through 2029.

4. Forecast future risks to your organization and develop proactive resiliency strategies

Tarun Kapoor

Founder, 

Digital Health Foundry

9:30 AM - 10:45 AM

Health systems invest billions in capital every year—yet too many investments fail to meaningfully improve the patient journey. Why? Because capital alone doesn’t transform care. Operating models, technology adoption, accountability, and organizational readiness determine whether capital spend becomes impact—or just depreciation.

This keynote challenges leaders to rethink capital strategy through a transformation lens that is practical, disciplined, and grounded in healthcare reality. Dr. Tarun Kapoor will explore how digital tools, AI, and human-centered design can elevate the patient experience when paired with the right capital decisions—and how they fail when layered onto outdated structures.

Designed for senior healthcare executives, this session offers clear frameworks to determine where transformation is warranted, where incremental improvement wins, and how to avoid costly misalignment between new technology and old organizations—all while keeping the patient journey front and center.

Learning Objectives:

1. Evaluate capital investments to determine when transformation or incremental improvement is most effective.

2. Identify organizational factors that enable capital to improve patient-centered outcomes.

3. Assess digital tools, AI, and human-centered design for enhancing the patient journey and avoiding failure.

4. Compare frameworks for aligning capital strategy with patient experience and reducing misaligned investments.

Jamie Valvano

Inspirational Speaker, Advocate,

and Cancer Survivor

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM 

Jamie Valvano captivates audiences through emotional storytelling. Although she lost her father, Jim Valvano, in 1993, he created a powerful legacy that has continued to serve as her guide. Jamie draws wisdom from her own diagnosis of cancer, raising a special needs child, healing from loss, and gratefully embracing survivorship.

Conceiving an audacious vision, surrounding yourself with a passionate team, and refusing to give up are the key components to experiencing your “cutting down the nets” moments. Jamie will share an unbelievable story of her father’s legacy, and her own battle to survive and advance through hardships. We will be inspired to examine every area of our lives as we contemplate the unimaginable that is within reach. 

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify methods for shifting an ordinary life outlook to one that is extraordinary and purpose driven.

2. Define what “cutting down the nets” moments have looked like in your past and what they can look like moving forward. 

3. Investigate the origin of Jamie’s emotional resilience and determine how this can be implemented in your own life experiences.

4. Outline action steps needed to transform your goals into bold and audacious visions.