A version of this article was originally published in Fast Company's Executive Board.

I recently attended a technology presentation and tour of one the nation’s leading health systems. I was impressed by how much innovation is happening in health care—but the opportunities available in this industry weren’t exactly what I expected.

One of my favorite speakers was the CTO of a large health system, which is now the largest employer in Michigan. They talked about how the most effective innovations are the ones that make people more productive and efficient, leading to more time spent on patient care and less time on administrative tasks like note-taking and charting.

To better illustrate this, I created a graphic for you to use as you think about innovation in healthcare.

Here’s what some of these innovations look like in the real world:

High impact on patient care and productivity

In the top right of the quadrant, we see the most transformational innovations: those with a high impact on patient care and significant productivity gains.

These are systems like voice-to-text documentation tools for providers, which use built-in microphones or smart phones and integrate with various electronic health record (EHR) systems. With these tools, a doctor can sit and meet with a patient and have a recording of their meeting transcribed in a HIPAA-compliant tool to review later. This saves the doctor hours of time each month by not having to type everything they are recommending to the patient for their chart.

Less well-known is how researchers used gene therapy to help five children born deaf to hear. The approach, developed by Harvard Medical School, addresses a genetic issue in the OTOF gene, which is crucial for hearing.

Six children (ages 1-7) were treated, and five showed hearing improvement over a 26-week trial, with four experiencing “robust” results. Improvements in speech perception were also noted in all five responsive cases.

What this means is that many people who are born deaf may be able to hear. Pretty amazing—especially since more than 5% of the world’s population, or 430 million people, require rehabilitation to address their disabling hearing loss (including 34 million children).

This gene therapy not only transforms lives by restoring hearing, but also represents a leap in healthcare productivity. By addressing the root cause of hearing loss with a single treatment, it reduces the long-term need for ongoing interventions, such as hearing aids, therapy, and frequent medical visits—allowing healthcare providers to focus their time and resources on other critical areas that can improve patient care.

Lower impact on patient care and high productivity gains

Automated and predictive scheduling tools are a newer feature that allow humans to focus on the most important work to serve patients. The software automatically helps confirm and reschedule appointments by streamlining the front office. It reduces no-shows and keeps the utilization higher for the providers.

A lesser well-known solution is the use of cameras by some groups in the hospital room to help improve the patient experience and monitor from miles away. Powerful cameras can read bar codes on prescription bottles across the room and help to determine when a nurse or doctor needs to be involved. Patients can also be monitored from more centralized locations, which reduces the need in an already understaffed industry.

I took a tour of a hospital cart manufacturer in Michigan. They assemble the carts with not only cameras, but also video monitors and security systems to prevent fraud. The system can determine when a prescription drug needs to be distributed to the patient and helps verify that what is put back in the bottle is actually the intended drug. This helps to ensure the right drugs and amounts are being used.

High impact on patient care and lower productivity gains

As of last year, approximately 6.7 million Americans aged 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s dementia. This number represents about 1 in 9 people (11.3%) in this age group.

The prevalence increases with age, affecting roughly 1 in 3 seniors aged 85 and older. Alzheimer’s is the most common form of dementia, accounting for about 60%-80% of dementia cases. The numbers are expected to rise sharply as the population ages.

By 2050, the number of Americans living with Alzheimer’s could reach 13 million if no medical breakthroughs are achieved.

BAMF health is now able to use an amyloid PET scan to detect amyloid plaque in the brain, which could be a sign of Alzheimer’s. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Kisunla (donanemab-azbt) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease in patients with mild cognitive impairment or mild dementia stage of disease, the population in which treatment was studied in the clinical trials.

Patients treated with Kisunla showed a significant improvement in slowing down the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease after 76 weeks compared to those who received a placebo. This was measured using several scales: a combined rating scale for Alzheimer’s (iADRS), where Kisunla reduced the decline in overall symptoms; a cognitive function test (ADAS-Cog13), where Kisunla improved thinking and memory; and a daily living activities test (ADCS-iADL), where Kisunla helped maintain day-to-day skills. Additionally, patients on Kisunla showed a noticeable improvement on another dementia rating scale (CDR-SB) compared to the placebo. All these results were statistically significant.

These advancements in Alzheimer’s detection and treatment highlight a critical area where innovation focuses on improving patient outcomes rather than directly boosting productivity. While tools like amyloid PET scans and medications such as Kisunla may not streamline healthcare operations, their ability to slow disease progression and maintain patients’ quality of life is transformative.

This underscores the importance of balancing productivity gains with the human-centered goal of enhancing patient care, even when those innovations primarily address long-term well-being rather than immediate efficiency.

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Overall, I’m excited about all of these innovations in healthcare. It seems like the most transformational solutions are still coming as advancements in the inputted data become higher in quality.