Last week, Oracle held its 2025 Oracle Health and Life Sciences Summit where experts delved into the latest technological developments in healthcare. Optum Advisory's experts provide an in-depth analysis of the key takeaways.
Commitment to AI: Oracle's new EHR
By Jon Bergman, Carol Chouinard, and Ben Isenhour
As one of the most significant announcements of the summit, Oracle unveiled its rebuilt EHR platform, marking a significant shift from legacy architecture to an AI-native foundation. The new system consolidates Cerner's bolt-ons into a unified semantic database with an event-driven knowledge layer that links data through a knowledge graph and integrates with frontier AI models for advanced reasoning.
Designed around real-world hospital and clinic workflows, it enables context-aware data delivery and more informed decision-making. Unlike past systems, all data and features originate from the same semantic layer, allowing seamless integration across care delivery and revenue cycle. The user interface is being reimagined with adaptive, role-based views, immersive AI collaboration, and experience shaped by workflow rather than software constraints.
It was designed to enhance patient engagement, clinical workflows, administrative operations, and revenue cycle management. These configurable agents leverage ambient listening and generative AI to assist clinicians with documentation, prior authorizations, and decision support, while patients interact with OpenAI-powered tools to interpret health data and communicate with care teams. Additional agents automate intake, scheduling, and claims processing, reducing administrative burden and improving financial performance. Built natively on Oracle’s semantic database and cloud infrastructure, these agents deliver real-time, context-aware support across the entire care continuum.
In addition to Oracle's rebuilt, AI-first EHR platform, it also launched a new patient portal powered by OpenAI that interprets health data in plain language. In addition, Oracle unveiled an AI Center of Excellence to support responsible adoption, unveiled an autonomous reimbursement engine to streamline claims, and added AI-driven automation to supply chain and payer-provider collaboration tools.
Oracle also highlighted other key milestones: The Ambulatory EHR is now live on the AI platform, the Clinical AI Agent is in wide use, and Acute AI Agents and ambient nursing tools are on the horizon. Migration will involve dual posting to Millennium and the new EHR, with automatic learning and pre-population of client content — achieving functional parity by 2026.
In the interim, AI features will run as a sidecar overlay on Millennium, supporting phased rollouts. Oracle also previewed open interoperability for third-party apps and customer-built AI agents. Over the next year, the company plans to complete acute and specialty use cases, enable seamless upgrades, and reimagine patient engagement, administration, and reimbursement through AI-driven intelligence.
These innovations aim to reduce administrative burden, improve care coordination, and accelerate clinical decision making — all of which emphasize the company’s (and broader industry's) commitment to the advancement of AI in healthcare.
Advisory Board's ehr resources
- 4 questions to ask yourself before an EHR data conversion
- How to effectively prepare for (and implement) an EHR switch
- 6 pitfalls to avoid when planning an EHR implementation
- AI in healthcare: Evaluating promising use cases
- How to address physician burnout through EHR optimization
- 12 technologies to address your clinical workforce challenges
- Clinical workforce technology
AI's benefits for nursing
By Lori Dunivan
The introduction of Oracle Health's new EHR represents a major shift for nursing, offering the potential to transform daily routines and improve patient care. As healthcare becomes more technology-driven, nurses play a vital role in ensuring these changes lead to better safety, outcomes, and efficiency. Ambient dictation is already available for ambulatory providers and ambient nursing tools are coming soon to help with inpatient charting.
Oracle's new AI-assisted EHR features voice-first documentation, eliminating traditional tab and click data entry by capturing patient assessments through conversation and targeted verbal assessments — making real-time documentation a reality. Nurses and nursing support will no longer need to transcribe data into the EHR, eliminating delays in the capture of clinical information. The verbal cues naturally align with nursing practice. This means nurses can spend less time on data entry and more time with their patients while decision support tools help improve care quality.
For successful integration, it is essential to involve nurses at every stage — from planning and governance, to creating and updating policies, and hands-on testing and training. Nursing input should guide how new systems fit into existing workflows and support frontline needs. By involving nurses early and supporting them throughout this transition, organizations can ensure that new technology strengthens both nursing practice and patient care.
Using a pilot strategy that focuses on one or two key nursing workflows before advancing full deployment is recommended. For instance, using the new EHR for patient intake allows nurses to convert verbal communication directly into admission data, streamlining the workflow and delivering immediate value. This approach supports adoption while allowing organizations to evaluate workflow effectiveness and user experience.
This is an exciting time for nurses, a few direct benefits — all of which may combat workforce challenges — are clear:
- Reduced cognitive load
- Improved efficiency
- Increased time at the bedside
- Improved satisfaction
Ultimately, embracing innovative solutions like Oracle Health's AI-driven EHR empowers nurses to focus on the core of their profession: delivering compassionate, high-quality care. With thoughtful implementation, these advancements have the power not only to enhance workflows but also to reinvigorate the nursing profession — supporting both care teams and the patients they serve.
Don't miss out on the latest Advisory Board insights
Create your free account to access 1 resource, including the latest research and webinars.
Want access without creating an account?
You have 1 free members-only resource remaining this month.
1 free members-only resources remaining
1 free members-only resources remaining
You've reached your limit of free insights
Become a member to access all of Advisory Board's resources, events, and experts
Never miss out on the latest innovative health care content tailored to you.
Benefits include:
Unlimited access to research and resources
Member-only access to events and trainings
Expert-led consultation and facilitation
The latest content delivered to your inbox
You've reached your limit of free insights
Become a member to access all of Advisory Board's resources, events, and experts
Never miss out on the latest innovative health care content tailored to you.
Benefits include:
Unlimited access to research and resources
Member-only access to events and trainings
Expert-led consultation and facilitation
The latest content delivered to your inbox
This content is available through your Curated Research partnership with Advisory Board. Click on ‘view this resource’ to read the full piece
Email ask@advisory.com to learn more
Click on ‘Become a Member’ to learn about the benefits of a Full-Access partnership with Advisory Board
Never miss out on the latest innovative health care content tailored to you.
Benefits Include:
Unlimited access to research and resources
Member-only access to events and trainings
Expert-led consultation and facilitation
The latest content delivered to your inbox
This is for members only. Learn more.
Click on ‘Become a Member’ to learn about the benefits of a Full-Access partnership with Advisory Board
Never miss out on the latest innovative health care content tailored to you.
Benefits Include:
Unlimited access to research and resources
Member-only access to events and trainings
Expert-led consultation and facilitation
The latest content delivered to your inbox
