Healthcare paperwork steals countless hours from doctors who could spend that time with patients. But amidst all the buzz about artificial intelligence, Chris Mashburn and his team have been quietly solving this problem for the past decade. With their AI taking care of the administrative burden, doctors can finally focus on what matters – looking patients in the eye and providing real care. It’s a solution that’s already spreading globally, but the story of how it came to be starts in an unexpected place: the presidential security detail.
Transitioning from Law Enforcement to Healthcare
“I joke when everybody asks about my background,” Chris says. “I was in law enforcement for the first part of my career and I transitioned into healthcare. I say, isn’t that an automatic way of how you would transition into healthcare – through law enforcement?”
After serving with the Texas State Police and on the presidential protection detail, Chris started a security business right as 9/11 changed everything. He ended up working on airport security, testing and approving many of the screening technologies we see in airports today. The pivot to healthcare came when a growing healthcare company needed help with compliance work. Chris’s security background made him a natural fit. One role led to another – from compliance officer to COO to interim CEO. “There’s a lot of similarities between healthcare and security because compliance is the key component,” he notes.
Leveraging AI to Simplify Healthcare
While everyone’s talking about AI now, Chris and his team at Jorie Healthcare Partners have been quietly working with it for the past decade. “We were doing AI before it was the big, sexy buzzword,” he says. “We were kind of ahead of everybody.” Their focus? Making healthcare less of a hassle for both doctors and patients. When doctors use their technology, they can actually look patients in the eye instead of being buried in paperwork. The AI handles the note-taking, letting doctors do what they do best – care for patients.
Chris’s time in law enforcement turned out to be perfect training for business. “My next book is going to be From the Law Enforcement Field to the Boardroom,” he shares. “When you learn in law enforcement, you have to think on your toes. You have to be able to respond without question.” These skills proved invaluable in business. “Even in the most crazy business dealings, it was second nature because I’d already been through a lot of that in law enforcement administration.”
Making Healthcare Better Globally
Today, Jorie Healthcare Partners’ reach extends far beyond Texas. They’re working on projects in Saudi Arabia, across Africa, South America, Egypt, and Turkey. But what gets Chris excited isn’t just the technology – it’s helping people work better. “We call it upskilling,” he explains. “We’re taking someone who historically has worked in a very manual process and teaching them a skill set that is the wave of the future. Regardless of how long they’re going to be working in their current location, if they learn our automation, they’ve got a whole new skill set.”
Despite running a growing company, Chris sticks to a strict morning routine. He starts with Bible study, followed by a run and weights – a habit from his days running with President Bush. When he’s in town, he always makes time for morning coffee with his wife before diving into work. “My greatest love in life is family,” he says. “I try to manage that very tightly and closely. I do love to work, but I also love my family. So I have two loves that I can actually work together and mold together.”
For anyone thinking about making a big career change like he did, Chris keeps it simple: “Make sure that passion is still there in whatever you do because that’s what will make you successful.”
To learn more about Chris’s work in healthcare technology or his upcoming book about AI myths in healthcare, visit his LinkedIn profile.
