Sutter Health has partnered with Hyro to deploy AI agents across voice, chat, and SMS for scheduling, appointment management, billing queries, and prescription support, aiming to streamline access and improve the patient experience across the not-for-profit health system.

The company selected Hyro to simplify daily staff workflows and enhance inquiry resolution outcomes, access, speed, and accuracy.

Sutter Health chief consumer and brand officer Jennifer Bollinger said: “We focus on empowering patients and changing the experience around what is possible in healthcare.

“With the addition of an AI-powered voice and chat communications platform, Sutter will continue to transform touchpoints for our patients and our people, helping drive better patient engagement, streamline operations for our teams, and deliver data-driven insights that can help us better serve their needs now and in the future.”

The deployment will provide a cohesive experience with 24/7 self-service, allowing customer support teams to handle complex needs as they manage approximately 3.5 million people and 13 million annual visits.

Sutter Health evaluated production-ready AI agents built for routine caregiver workflows, prioritising interoperability with Epic electronic health records (EHR) and Genesys CCaaS, AI safeguards, and provider-grade automated workflows.

Hyro’s agentic routing identifies patient intent and directs them to the appropriate pathway, from end-to-end scheduling to switching from call to text for self-serve settings.

The company reported higher workflow automation by offloading administrative tasks, as well as an approximately 85% reduction in all abandonment.

Beyond call centres, the collaboration includes omnichannel analytics with real-time reporting on patient trends, operations, and agent performance.

Sutter Health also highlighted actionable insights from interactions to enhance how patients search for and access care.

The programme aligns with Sutter Health’s AI governance council requirements, including citations and strict data sources.