In this op-ed, Osama Hashmi, MD, Dermatologist, Co-founder and CEO of Impiricus, discusses the hidden crisis in secondary care.
Secondary care, and in particular rehabilitation, is often the most fragile link in the healthcare continuum. Following acute treatment, patients enter a recovery phase that relies on consistent follow-up, coordinated care, and access to therapy, but these critical elements are often disrupted by fragmented systems, staff shortages, and administrative overload.
Hospitals and rehab centers face rising denial rates, declining workforce capacity, and operational challenges that delay discharge and increase readmission risk. Meanwhile, the demand for rehabilitation services is surging, projected to reach $292.4 billion by 2034, driven dominantly by aging populations, medically complex patients, and growing awareness.
Despite this growth, around 30% of healthcare providers (HCPs) in the United States remain “white-space” or digitally dark – digitally disconnected, unengaged by traditional channels, and cut off from critical resources that are essential to improving patient rehabilitative care.
Why These Gaps Matter
These digitally underserved physicians often operate in rural or resource-constrained settings. Without timely access to therapy updates, patient support programs, or clinical data, they struggle to maintain continuity of care and can lead to:
- Missed follow-ups,
- Poor therapy adherence,
- Delayed recovery,
- Higher readmission rates.
In rehabilitation, where every step matters, these operational gaps can be the deciding factor between a successful or derailed recovery journey for the patient.
Enter Agentic AI: A New Class of Support
Agentic AI, which empowers systems to make decisions and act independently for users, is proving to be a powerful tool and potent solution to these challenges. Unlike static digital tools, agentic AI can learn physician preferences, initiate relevant actions, and adapt in real time, allowing it to be an asset in coordinating care across fragmented systems with minimal friction.
In rehabilitation, agentic AI can serve as a virtual coordinator, helping physicians:
- Automate follow-up workflows,
- Surface personalized treatment resources,
- Access tools to monitor patient progress remotely,
- Reduce administrative burden.
Recent studies show that AI-driven tools in neurorehabilitation improve diagnosis accuracy, personalize therapy, and enhance long-term outcomes for conditions like stroke and Parkinson’s. AI support for HCPs can also provide resources that boost patient adherence through motivational content, reminders, and personalized engagement strategies.
What We’ve Learned: AI as a Catalyst for Smarter, More Inclusive Engagement
Through our work with healthcare providers and pharmaceutical partners, we’ve seen firsthand how our agentic AI solution, Impiricus Ascend, when thoughtfully applied, can help bridge long-standing gaps in secondary care. The benefits extend across the ecosystem: physicians gain more control and clarity, patients receive more timely support, and life sciences organizations can better align their resources with real clinical needs.
One key insight is that engagement improves when physicians control how, when, and how much they interact with life science companies. To support this, we developed AI agents that integrate securely into pharma ecosystems, using tokenized data pipelines to deliver personalized, context-aware resources. These agents don’t simply automate outreach; they curate relevant content, adjust frequency, and adapt to individual preferences.
In practice, this approach has helped reach digitally underserved providers, those who are often overlooked by traditional field teams. For example, a top pharmaceutical company used our platform to engage digitally naïve physicians who had never interacted with medical affairs teams, resulting in a measurable increase in therapy adoption and a more informed provider base. In another case, a biotech company with no field team was able to connect with thousands of high-priority providers within days, accelerating access to a newly launched therapy.
A Call to Action
- Invest in underserved HCPs: White-space physicians represent a massive opportunity to improve care equity;
- Use AI to coordinate care: Agentic AI can streamline workflows and reduce burnout;
- Prioritize personalization: One-size-fits-all outreach doesn’t work; AI can tailor support to each provider;
- Think beyond the visit: Rehabilitation is a journey; AI can maintain continuity between appointments.
Looking Ahead: Coordinated Systems for Better and More Equitable Recovery
The future of secondary care will depend on how effectively we support physicians in guiding patients through recovery. By partnering with agentic AI and intelligent engagement tools, such as Impiricus Ascend, we have the opportunity to close persistent gaps, extend support to underserved providers, and improve outcomes across the board.
What we’ve learned is that AI is more than a tool for efficiency; it’s a driver of equity, personalization, and clinical impact. When systems are designed to respect physician autonomy, reduce noise, and deliver relevant resources at the right time, they create a more responsive and intelligent healthcare environment that benefits providers, patients, and the broader care ecosystem.
