Kelly Boyd, General Manager
Meet Kelly Boyd, General Manager of SONIFI Health. In her role, Kelly oversees all operations of the healthcare division of SONIFI Solutions, Inc.
Kelly has been with SONIFI for nearly 30 years—covering roles in operations, engineering, product development, and finance—and has been a key contributor to the growth of SONIFI Health since its formation in 2004.
Kelly holds an MBA and a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management. She is also a Project Management Professional and has taught university courses in accounting, economics, and business.
How would you describe your role at SONIFI Health?
We have an amazing team here at SONIFI.
At the simplest level, my role is to ensure every person on the team has the tools and training to do their job.
This amounts to listening to the team, our customers, and our partners to identify gaps and close them.
How have technology demands in healthcare changed over the years?
The goals and demands of hospitals aren’t fundamentally changing; technology is simply evolving to provide better support to meet these demands.
Whether it is advancements in medical equipment, implementation of AI, or tech-driven automation, the goal is still better care and better outcomes.
We’re just seeing technology being applied in more and better ways.
I think this is driven, at least in part, by more effective partnerships between healthcare organizations and technology companies to drive those advances.
What makes you passionate about your job?
Although I’ve been a patient myself—we’re all consumers of healthcare services—the challenges in healthcare and the needs of patients and their families became clearer to me when I became a caregiver for my aging parents and my children.
I’ve been in hospital rooms and clinics helplessly watching someone I care about battle chronic and acute conditions.
You become very aware of your own limitations when it’s your parent or child.
I know firsthand how comforting it is to have access to education and information that’s created for me (a consumer), aligned with the hospital’s staff, and available when I’m mentally ready to engage.
Having access to education and information at any time has eased my fears and prepared me to be the caregiver I need to be for the people in my life.
Being part of delivering the smart room technologies that help caregivers and patients stay engaged and activated is very personal to me.
I’m very fortunate that I love what I do. I love the people at SONIFI and the clients I get to work with directly. Our clients are great at sharing stories with us about the impact our solutions have made on their patients and caregivers.
You don’t get this same feeling of purpose and meaning in every industry or job. It’s a gift, and I’m grateful to have found my way here.
What common questions do you hear from healthcare organizations?
Healthcare organizations are hyper-focused on taking care of their patients and staff. Most of the questions we field center around ensuring the deployment and operation of the technologies aren’t disruptive to either group.
The value of our system comes from improving the experience of these two stakeholders without creating new challenges.
Healthcare organizations want to make sure they are investing in smart room technologies that advance their goals without detracting in other ways.
Across all industries and markets, SONIFI’s goal is to simplify the application and operation of technologies so our clients can be successful and best serve their customers.
What challenges in healthcare do you see technology helping solve for?
Healthcare organizations continue to battle high costs and staffing shortages while trying to create positive experiences and environments for patients and staff alike.
Smart room technologies were created and continue to evolve as a direct response to the challenges in healthcare.
While these technologies certainly enhance the patient experience, help with anxiety and pain management, and increase patient and caregiver confidence, the ROI is really tied to automating the delivery of information and education to patients so clinicians can focus on patient care.
With the ongoing staffing shortages, technology that enables patients to find reliable and consistent answers to their questions on demand is even more valuable. Improving health literacy and activation level of all patients is a key factor to sustainable progress toward our collective goals.
Providers, payers, and technology partners must continue to work together to get and keep the right education and information in front of patients and their caregivers.
Smart rooms and connected devices are being used to that end—delivering information and education to the patient and caregiver at the right time and in ways that are proven to maximize retention and comprehension.
And we know that better informed, educated, and activated patients have better outcomes.