TLDR: UChicago Medicine is revolutionizing patient access and experience by deploying AI agents to handle over 50% of routine patient inquiries, such as directions, prescription refills, and scheduling. This initiative, announced at Salesforce Dreamforce 2025, aims to free up human agents for more complex cases, extend service hours to 24/7, and significantly improve operational efficiency and patient satisfaction. The academic health system is partnering with Salesforce Agentforce for Health to implement this transformative digital labor platform.
UChicago Medicine is embarking on a significant transformation of its patient access and experience by integrating advanced AI agents into its operational framework. Announced at the Salesforce Dreamforce 2025 event, this strategic move aims to address the growing demands on healthcare systems by leveraging artificial intelligence to streamline patient interactions and optimize staff resources.
The academic health system currently manages over 3 million patient calls annually, supported by more than 200 agents serving approximately 1,500 physicians. A substantial portion of these calls, often exceeding 50%, involves routine inquiries such as requests for directions, prescription refills, appointment confirmations, cancellations, and basic scheduling adjustments. These high-volume, repetitive tasks frequently lead to inefficiencies, delays, and missed opportunities to enhance patient satisfaction.
To combat these challenges, UChicago Medicine is implementing a system that will route these routine interactions to AI agents, serving as the first line of response. This strategic deployment is designed to liberate human agents, allowing them to focus on more nuanced, empathetic, and complex patient needs that require a human touch. Tyler Bauer, Senior Vice President of System Ambulatory Operations at UChicago Medicine, articulated the vision, stating, “We’re on a mission to transform access and to transform the patient experience.”
The initial rollout of these AI bots will target low-risk intents, including general inquiries, providing clinic names and addresses, managing cancellations and confirmations, and facilitating simple primary care scheduling. This phased approach ensures a smooth transition and allows for continuous refinement of the AI’s capabilities.
Beyond efficiency gains, the integration of AI agents is set to dramatically expand service availability. Currently, UChicago Medicine’s access center operates from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. With the introduction of AI-powered bots, patients will benefit from round-the-clock coverage, ensuring responses are available any time of day, including nights and weekends. This 24/7 accessibility is a critical step towards a more patient-centered care model.
UChicago Medicine has partnered with Salesforce Agentforce for Health to power this initiative. This collaboration will enable the AI agents to handle a broader range of conversational tasks, such as prescription refills, comprehensive appointment scheduling, and wayfinding assistance. Andrew Chang, Chief Marketing Officer at UChicago Medicine, highlighted the broader impact: “As part of our broader efforts to enhance the patient experience and streamline access to information, we’re implementing new digital tools to support our teams and patients. These tools are expected to help automate routine inquiries so that staff can focus on more complex needs that benefit from personalized attention.”
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This move by UChicago Medicine underscores a growing trend in healthcare to embrace AI for operational efficiency and improved patient engagement, setting a precedent for how academic health systems can innovate to meet modern healthcare demands.
