Beatrice Podtschaske

Professor Beatrice Podtschaske serves as Professor of Healthcare Management & eHealth at the Flensburg University of Applied Sciences, Faculty of Business and Economics. She also holds the important position of Vice President for Curriculum Development, Digitalization, Equality and Diversity at the university. Her work focuses on bridging healthcare management with digital innovation, particularly in developing human-centered approaches to healthcare technology and processes.

Dr. Podtschaske's research interests span multiple critical areas in modern healthcare: human-centered design of healthcare systems (Human Factors Engineering), user-centered innovation and implementation processes, and the integration of eHealth, robotics, and artificial intelligence in healthcare settings. Her work specifically addresses how technology can better serve patients and healthcare professionals through thoughtful design that considers the complex realities of medical environments.

Her recent publications demonstrate consistent focus on healthcare system optimization, particularly examining critical care information systems, patient safety, and the implementation of digital tools in medical settings. The research trends show increasing attention to artificial intelligence applications in healthcare, particularly in end-of-life care contexts through her CARE-AI project and FLAIR (Flensburg Artificial Intelligence Research) initiatives.

Dr. Podtschaske is currently leading efforts to build a new nursing degree program at the university to address workforce shortages in healthcare. She is also actively involved with the Institute for eHealth and Healthcare Management (IEMG), where she serves as a contact person for business administration, academic student advising, and internships with a focus on healthcare management.

Her career path includes significant international experience, having worked at Stanford University Hospital in patient safety and built a user research group at a medical technology company in Silicon Valley. This practical industry experience informs her academic work, giving her research strong real-world applicability and relevance.