As Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors at the UMCG and a member of exquAIro’s Board, as well as one of the key drivers behind digital transformation in healthcare, Prof. Dr. Stephanie Klein Nagelvoort-Schuit embodies exactly what exquAIro stands for: vision, innovation, and impact. In this interview, she shares her background, her first encounter with exquAIro, and her perspective on the national movement toward AI-driven healthcare improvement.
From ICU Physician to Executive with a Digital Mission
Stephanie’s career began in the United States, where she grew up and completed her high school education. Yet she consciously chose to return to the Netherlands to study medicine. “I came to the Netherlands because of the solidarity principle in our healthcare system,” she explains. “That was missing in the U.S.”
She specialized as an internist-intensivist and further developed expertise in acute medicine, digitalization, and data-driven healthcare. “I’ve always been a bit of a nerd,” she laughs. “My PhD research was in epidemiology and genetic biostatistics, basically programming all day.”
Through various roles in education, acute care, and digital transformation, she joined the UMCG Board of Directors in 2020, taking responsibility for patient care, quality and safety, IT, and digital transformation. Nationally, she also plays a crucial role, including in the development of the new nationwide healthcare data infrastructure.
A Strong Connection with exquAIro
Her first encounter with exquAIro was four years ago, through the then-Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Groningen, Marjan Joëls, and in particular Marnix Bügel, owner of Rewire and Gerard Koppelman, pediatric pulmonologist, professor at UMCG, both co-founder of exquAIro. “Marjan said: ‘You really have to meet Marnix. What he’s doing is incredible,’” Stephanie recalls.
There was an immediate intellectual connection, along with strong mutual commitment. “Marnix and Gerard combine vision with persistence and a genuine drive to make an impact in healthcare. You feel it immediately when you speak with them,” she says. “They have supported exquAIro from the very beginning and were willing to look beyond the boundaries of a single institution.”
When Marnix asked if someone from the Board could provide governance support to exquAIro, it was not an obvious step. “I honestly had my doubts because of the time investment I needed to make. As an executive we normally don’t fulfil a board role for that reason,” Stephanie admits. “But the trust in Marnix and Gerard, and the conviction that this initiative needed governance backing to grow, made the decision clear for me.”
She continues: “Even if I can’t always be physically present, what matters is that exquAIro has strong governance support within the UMCG. And I have never regretted that decision.”
AI as a Driver for Research, Education, and Care
Stephanie sees exquAIro as a crucial accelerator for all three core tasks of UMCs: research, education, and patient care. “The breakthroughs we see, such as Joost Groen’s work or the asthma studies with Gerard, show what happens when you combine data, creativity, and clinical questions.”
“AI knowledge must grow from both the top and the base,” she explains, describing a pyramid model in which each department has a top-class expert who brings others along in data-driven working. “We simply cannot do this without exquAIro’s top classes. They are absolutely essential.”
The next major chapter, she believes, is the impact on care itself. “With AI, we can not only improve research but also make care processes, management, and healthcare organization smarter.”
Collaboration Beyond Groningen
While exquAIro started as a Groningen initiative, it has now grown into a national movement. “You get further together: exquAIro is now a collaboration with the other Dutch UMCs. We really owe this to Marnix andGerard, from the start they were open to nationwide cooperation. ExquAIro is no longer a UMCG-only initiative, but a UMC-wide network.” With Radboudumc, LUMC, and now Erasmus MC joining, an “oil spill of expertise” is forming
AI Knowledge as a Powerful Career and Impact Accelerator
For physicians and researchers, Stephanie sees a growing need and added value. “Of course, it has an impact on careers,” she says. “But while career is interesting, impact is more important.” She also emphasizes that foundational skills like Python remain essential for top-level entry.
“These top classes elevate people to world-class expertise, but they start with individuals who already have a solid foundation.”
Impact Comes First
It is not the organizational structure but the impact that matters most to her. “I hope our impact on healthcare in five years is enormous, through research, education, and the way we organize care. The organization itself is just a vehicle. The impact is what counts.”
And that impact begins and ends with the people involved. “If Gerard hadn’t been the first to respond to Marnix’s initial call to all UMCs, exquAIro might not look like it does today. And let’s not forget Martin Smit, who continues to contribute even after retirement: it all depends on the people who carry the vision.”