Where Matters: Healthcare’s Playbook for Location-Based Services 2.0 and AI

In ＂Where Matters,＂ this vision becomes reality through Care Traffic Control (CTC), a revolutionary framework that brings the precision and reliability of aviation traffic control to healthcare operations.

Ali Youssef

My fascination with wireless technology has been the driving force of my 25-year career in healthcare technology. As Director of Medical Device and Emerging Technology Security at Henry Ford Health, I’ve transformed my passion for wireless innovation into practical solutions that enhance patient care and operational efficiency.

My journey with wireless technology began with early Wi-Fi implementations in healthcare, where I discovered the transformative potential of indoor positioning and IoT connectivity. This revelation led me to explore location-based services (LBS) in healthcare operations, becoming an advocate for their adoption across the industry.

I’ve shared my expertise through co-authoring ＂Wi-Fi Enabled Healthcare＂ (2014) and contributing a chapter on medical device security in ＂The Rise of the Intelligent Health System＂ (2024). My work emphasizes practical applications of wireless technology while maintaining robust security measures.

As a HIMSS Fellow and Wireless Chair for the Intelligent Hospital Association since 2015, I continue to advocate for innovative uses of wireless technology in healthcare settings. My certifications (CISSP, CCSP, HCISPP, CISM, CPHIMS, CWNE) reflect my commitment to mastering both technical and healthcare-specific challenges.

Through my role on the AAMI Healthcare Technology Leadership Committee and Editorial Board, I help shape the future of healthcare technology, particularly in IoT and location-based services. I remain passionate about bridging the gap between emerging wireless technologies and their practical application in healthcare, always seeking new ways to improve patient care through technological innovation.

Paul E Zieske

With 34 years designing and building complex systems I have used emerging technologies in every phase of their maturity. I have worked at large organizations, like the FAA and Westinghouse, down to my own startup. I have worked in industries like aviation, automotive, banking, retail and healthcare. I have been in engineering, product management, project management, consulting and leadership. I have enjoyed the many experiences that helped me hone my skills and find where my passions lie. My journey has brought me to a place where I want to share what I have learned along the way.

My career journey started at Westinghouse in their Air Traffic Control radar division where I eventually left to join the FAA. In the FAA I moved from radar to creating a distributed system of weather cams that were viewable on the Internet in 1998 (https: //weathercams.faa.gov). That project revealed some of the potential for using the Internet as more than a marketing channel so I left the FAA to join an Internet consultancy. MarchFIRST was introducing some of the biggest brands on the Internet for the first time. It was an exciting time that was called the Internet boom.

Like all booms they are temporary, and I found in healthcare an opportunity to help an industry that was in great need. While working at Henry Ford in Detroit, I saw location services technologies that were maturing and worked with the Henry Ford Innovation Institute to create a new product. This product was designed to address the delays that were a source of constant frustration in hospitals. NavvTrack was tapping into my experience from Air Traffic Control and the new technologies that would enable an indoor traffic control system.

It was clear that the success of this type of product would be based on the success of the concept that provided the vision for it and that was Care Traffic Control. At the same time, it was clear that the concept would only take hold if people were aware of it. Why Where Matters (https: //whywherematters.com) was created to be a source of information and education on the concept of Care Traffic Control. This book provides a foundation for the subject matter that Why Where Matters provides.

In my personal life I am a multisport athlete, and have completed 7 Ironman’s, 5 Boston Marathons and many other endurance events. I love the challenge of preparing and completing events that test you in so many ways. My wife and I have grown children, and we have 3 Great Danes that we love and spend our time with.