Interview

Shining a Light, Protecting Quality

Kim Tzoumakas

CEO of RAYUS Radiology

Recently the Center for Diagnostic Imaging (CDI) went through a rebrand and is now RAYUS Radiology. Please tell us about this.

CDI had a 40-year history as a leading provider of radiology services. Over those years, the company grew and evolved to be more than just a center—we became the national leader in radiology services. Thus, as we set our strategy for the next 40 years, it was clear we had a unique opportunity to not only do a refresh on our brand to reflect who we had become and who we will be for the future, but also to shine a light on radiology as an industry and to shine a light on our radiologists and our fantastic team members. It was important to recognize our team (us) and our national presence (US). Thus, the name RAYUS came alive.

How has your partnership with Wellspring Capital Management helped you become the national leader in providing radiology services?

Wellspring has been instrumental to our success. Wellspring brings not only strong financial backing, but also provides brilliant strategic analysis and a real partnership mentality to its portfolio companies. They are unique in the way they defer to company CEOs for leadership, providing autonomy, but also engaged, nimble, and able to move quickly and strategically when needed to get a deal done. They have been a great partner to the leadership team at RAYUS.

Radiology really is the unsung hero of health care.

You have a unique business model that allows radiology practices to remain independent, but benefit from your marketplace position through a variety of partnership options. What can you tell us about this?

We believe this is the key to our success. Radiologists, like most physicians, need autonomy in how they practice medicine. They also need a strong and supportive back office, to allow them to do what they love, as well as a partner when they want to be part of a larger strategy. By allowing radiologists to be part of our network under several different models, rather than saying “this is the only way we do it,” we attract a diverse radiology platform. We offer groups the ability to stay independent and be managed by us, or to become employed with the added option of having equity in the business when desired. This allows for greater alignment.

RAYUS Radiology processes over one million images every day. Can you please help us understand the scope and impact of your work?

We touch the lives of patients across the country. By processing more than one million images a day, we lead the way for our patients and their referring physicians to find the diagnosis and set their path to healing. We offer reassurance to referring doctors that their hunch was right and the confidence to patients when a course of treatment is required. We also offer the ability to say: “Don’t worry, all is okay,” in many cases, which is very fulfilling for our clinical teams. Radiology really is the unsung hero of health care.

What new kinds of new partnerships do you see emerging between physician specialties?

Health care continues to evolve. We continue to see new dynamics between different types of providers, providers and employers, and providers and payers. We see more partnerships emerging as resources are increasingly difficult to obtain, and payment continues to be a challenge. Looking forward, there will continue to be consolidation and partnerships to reduce cost and improve quality in patient care.

What kind of new partnerships do you see emerging between your organization and hospitals and health systems? 

As the move to outpatient radiology continues, we offer a proven model. As a leader in this space, there are many opportunities for us to add value to health systems and hospitals. Our expertise in efficient quality care in the outpatient space, combined with our network of subspecialized radiologists, makes us rare and an important partner for health systems in certain markets.

How do you see artificial intelligence (AI) becoming a bigger part of the RAYUS practice?

AI is an important component of quality patient care. While there is a lot of noise in the industry around AI that is largely untested and unproven, there are other AI inventions that today, and in the future, will allow us to be more efficient, streamline our processes and continue our journey as the leading quality provider of radiology services.

Prior to joining RAYUS, you were CEO of 21st Century Oncology (21CO), where several of the nearly 350 locations were in Latin America. What were some of the biggest differences in providing care in those countries compared to the United States?

Many things we take for granted in the United States are not available to providers and physicians in Latin America. For example, many of the physicians and staff in Latin America work very long, 18-hour, days for very low pay, and they do so with very old technology and challenging infrastructure. Most countries also have a government-run health-care systems. Patients often have long waits for appointments, sometimes resulting in more advanced diseases/conditions than they would have if they had seen a doctor sooner. We are fortunate in the United States to have up-to-date technology and access.

Is there anything that needs to be addressed by either state or federal legislation to help improve health care delivery?

Yes, the continuous efforts to cut rates for physicians and low-cost, quality outpatient providers ignore the rising cost of technology and the overall reduction in health-care spending when you have quality technology and staff. Providing patients with access to top-quality providers and equipment in outpatient centers should be a priority, rather than an area to cut. There is already a significant physician shortage in many areas, including radiology, and the ongoing battles around payment further that challenge. The focus should be on incentivizing low-cost care, access and early diagnosis with proven, quality metrics. These steps would lower the overall cost of health care.

What are some of the issues around social disparities in health care that need to be addressed in radiology?

Access and uncompensated care continue to be challenges. In addition, Medicaid patients often end up at locations with long waits or travel requirements, deterring early diagnosis and increasing the overall cost of health care. Access to imaging services is the key first step in most health-care diagnosis failures. To have radiology services available to all patients, regardless of economic status or location, should be a priority for all of us.

Why is it important to maintain the independent practice of medicine?

This is a fundamental component of protecting quality. Physicians dedicate many years of their lives learning the nuances of medicine and the importance of clinical judgment to ensure that individuals can achieve health and wellness. Physicians are the heroes and should have strong back-office support, with autonomy in all cases, to make the right clinical decision for the patient. We should tolerate nothing less to preserve the quality of patient care across specialties.

Kim Tzoumakas, CEO of RAYUS Radiology, has more than 20 years of health-care leadership ranging from strategic planning and growth to building physician relationships and key partnerships.