Agenda · HealthStack 2026

Two days of sessions to prepare you for what’s next.

Our sessions are more than your average keynote. Most sessions are 45 minutes, have a working agenda, and dedicated time for questions. You will leave with something you can use from this session when you return to work.

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Nov 4–5, 2026· Two-day program
15sessions across 6 tracks
Inside AfroTech · Marriott

Day 1

CME Credits: 0.5Telehealth & Digital Care

9:15AM - 9:50AM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

Beyond the Console: How Robotic Surgery is Reshaping Medicine

Robotic surgery is no longer experimental. It is where complex care is increasingly delivered. Dr. Irlna Tantchou, a colorectal surgeon with more than 700 robotic cases and one of very few Black women operating at this level, covers how AI and data analytics are reshaping surgical outcomes, what it takes to build a high-performance robotics program, and how to expand access beyond academic medical centers into underserved communities.

CME Credits: 0.5Telehealth & Digital Care

9:15AM - 9:45AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Telehealth Access: Who Digital Health Isn't Reaching and How to Fix It

Telehealth has expanded rapidly, but significant gaps persist in who actually benefits. Dr. Kevin Johnson examines the populations still underserved by digital health, including rural communities, older adults, Medicaid patients, and those facing language or digital literacy barriers, and outlines evidence-based strategies to design and scale more inclusive telehealth solutions without sacrificing clinical quality.

CME Credits: 0.5Telehealth & Digital Care

9:50AM - 10:20AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Remote Monitoring & Digital Therapeutics

Remote patient monitoring and digital therapeutics are extending care beyond traditional clinical settings and creating new models for continuous, data-driven intervention. Dr. Charles DeShazer provides a practical framework for implementation across cardiometabolic and behavioral health conditions, covering patient selection, workflow integration, data governance, and how to distinguish FDA-regulated digital therapeutics from consumer wellness tools.

Data & Clinical AI

10:20AM - 11:20AM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

Building Fairness Into the Data Supply Chain

Bias in healthcare AI begins before training, embedded in decisions about missing data, labels, and success metrics. Waverly Rose Brim demonstrates how a clinical prediction model with strong global performance can still fail Black patients and the underinsured, then walks through a fairness-aware correction workflow. Attendees leave with a practical framework for equity-first dataset design and go/no-go deployment standards.

CME Credits: 1.0Equity, Bias and Clinical Trust

10:40AM - 11:50AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

From Bias Evaluation to Trustworthy Healthcare AI Implementation

AI tools are moving from pilot to deployment across healthcare, and the stakes around bias, governance, and oversight are no longer theoretical. Dr. Tiffani J. Bright provides a practical roadmap for implementing trustworthy AI, covering how to evaluate algorithmic bias, assess data representativeness, build governance structures, and sustain continuous monitoring. Attendees leave with concrete strategies for deploying equitable, high-performing AI in real clinical settings.

CME Credits: 1.0Data & Clinical AI

11:50AM - 12:50PM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

Bad Data Is Costing Black Lives

Health disparities are too often blamed on biology. The data tells a different story. Dr. Uché Blackstock and Dr. Charles R. Rogers examine the origins of data inequities, how they persist, and what it takes to dismantle them. From fragmented clinical records to public health reporting gaps, biased data delays diagnoses and misallocates resources. This session makes the case for health systems designed around transparency and equity.

Maternal Health in Practice

1:50PM - 2:30PM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

State of Maternal Health and the Digital Future with Dr. Jessica Shepherd

Maternal health is being transformed by digital tools, AI, and telemedicine, but innovation alone does not equal better outcomes. Dr. Jessica Shepherd, Chief Medical Officer at Hers, examines what it will actually take to build maternal care systems that are more accessible, more effective, and more patient-centered, drawing on clinical expertise, health technology, and the responsibility that comes with building care at scale.

Day 2

CME Credits: 0.5Data & Clinical AI

9:00AM - 9:30AM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

AI in Nursing Workflows

AI is reshaping how nurses work across inpatient, ambulatory, and virtual care settings. This session examines practical applications, including clinical documentation automation, decision support tools, patient monitoring, and workforce optimization. Vanessa Riley covers how AI can reduce administrative burden and improve care coordination, and what nurses and healthcare leaders need to know to integrate these tools responsibly.

Maternal Health in Practice

9:30AM - 10:00AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Reducing Maternal Morbidity Through Inclusive Design

Maternal morbidity in the United States continues to rise, and clinical interventions alone have not closed the gaps. Dr. Dineo Khabele will explore real-world examples of how inclusive design principles, applied through culturally responsive care models, multidisciplinary collaboration, and data-informed redesign, can improve detection, engagement, and outcomes in obstetric care across diverse patient populations.

CME Credits: 0.8Equity, Bias and Clinical Trust

10:05AM - 10:50AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Clinical Operations, Policy, & Care Delays

Care delays are among the most consequential and preventable drivers of poor health outcomes. In this fireside conversation, Tamiko Foster and Aparna Ahuja examine how operational workflows, prior authorization bottlenecks, reimbursement constraints, and regulatory complexity contribute to patient harm, and where redesign and policy reform are already improving timeliness and equity of care.

HealthStack/ Medtech

10:15AM - 11:00AM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

What National Health Institutions Can Actually Do For You

Michellene Davis moved a $30 billion state budget before she took over National Medical Fellowships, which funds underrepresented students through medical school. Brandi Freeman leads the National Medical Association. Money, credentials, access to patients. Attendees will leave knowing what each institution funds, endorses, or adopts, how those calls get made, and who to contact first.

CME Credits: 0.8Equity, Bias and Clinical Trust

11:00AM - 11:45AM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Building Trust & Confidence Across Healthcare

Trust is the foundation of effective healthcare delivery, yet it remains fragile across patients, providers, and systems. In this fireside conversation, Dr. Vindell Washington shares how healthcare leaders can sustain trust while scaling data, technology, and new care models. He covers transparency, data stewardship, interoperability, and patient engagement as pillars for confident adoption of AI and digital health tools.

Data & Clinical AI

11:00AM - 11:40AM · HealthStack Seminar Room (Marriott)

Blood, Bytes & Bias: Clinical Trials and AI-Driven Research

Medical AI is being trained on data that too often leaves Black patients out. Clinical trial participation, representative datasets, and accountable research infrastructure are not optional equity measures. They are the foundation for AI that can accurately diagnose, treat, and save Black lives. With Sickle Cell Disease and Multiple Myeloma as anchors to his argument, Travis Cleaves breaks down how EHR systems and trial pipelines feed medical AI, where Black patients go missing, and what the gap costs.

Equity, Bias and Clinical Trust

1:30PM - 2:00PM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

The HCP Skill Stack for 2030

The skills that made a great clinician in 2015 are not the same ones needed in 2030. Dr. Shannon Barnes Martin examines the emerging competency stack healthcare professionals will need to navigate AI, digital transformation, and shifting care models, covering digital fluency, data literacy, clinical expertise, and leadership, and offers a practical framework for building those competencies into workforce development.

CME Credits: 0.5Equity, Bias and Clinical Trust

2:05PM - 2:35PM · HealthStack General Session (Marriott)

Who's Accountable for AI? Closing Health Care's Governance Gap

Health systems are racing to adopt AI while their governance hasn't caught up: Deloitte's own 2026 industry research found that just 15% of health care organizations have adapted governance to keep pace with AI. In this candid fireside conversation, Dr. Kulleni Gebreyes, Deloitte's Vice Chair and US Life Sciences & Health Care Industry Leader, unpacks why that gap exists, what it's costing organizations, and what leadership teams need to do now to responsibly scale AI to institutional scale.