From the Ground Up: Designing Digital Health That Starts With People 

Michael Levy is the co-founder and CEO of DHIT, the Digital Health Institute for Transformation. In this episode, Michael shares why he believes we need to flip the model and build healthcare systems that start with the needs of the people, not the structures already in place. From health innovation sprints to the “periodic table of health,” Michael unpacks what it takes to move from talk to transformation. 

In a system built for volume, not value, Michael Levy is working to reimagine the rules. As CEO of DHIT, he’s helping healthcare leaders and organizations rethink digital transformation not as a one-time strategy, but as a continuous, people-first process. 

In this episode, Michael walks us through the principles behind DHIT’s Health Innovation Sprints – hyperlocal, human-centered programs that start with listening to communities, then build from there. He challenges the top-down RFP model, arguing that access and equity demand co-creation from the ground up. 

He also discusses the cultural shift required to move from “sick care” to “experience care,” and what it means for health systems to operate more like responsive ecosystems than static institutions. For anyone trying to marry digital tools with deeper impact, Michael’s approach offers a powerful roadmap. 

Find DHIT’s new Periodic Table of Health here! 

Michael spends his time and energy leading the Digital Health Institute for Transformation (DHIT) a 501(C-3) that supports communities through the process of digital transformation.  

Michael is an experienced healthcare executive turned entrepreneur, with a purpose-driven mindset. He is on a path to unite culture, process, people, and technology to create a new healthcare operating system for the 21st century. 

Michael has held leadership roles as Vice Chair of Administration for the Department of Medicine at the University of Miami Health System, Director of Clinical Operations for UNC Health Care’s specialty ambulatory clinics, as well as several other leadership roles at UCLA Health within various clinical departments. Michael has also served as the first Entrepreneur-in-Residence for the Center for Health Innovation at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he designed and developed their Digital Health Program in support of UNC’s Digital Transformation strategy. 

As an entrepreneur, Michael was COO of Digital Therapy, a cognitive computing platform powered by IBM Watson in the behavioral health space. He is Co-founder of Bluedoor Group, a digital health growth and innovation agency.  

Michael earned his BS in Neuroscience from Tulane University and his MBA from Elon University.