Most health systems fall versions behind Epic. An agile upgrade cadence closes the gap.
Epic ships quarterly upgrades and continuous Special Updates. Health systems that absorb them as infrequent big-bang events fall behind — leaving paid features dark, training stale, and IT teams in permanent crunch. Verdana Health Advisory builds the agile operating model that keeps you current.
Epic ships every quarter. Most hospital IT teams can't keep up.
Epic's release model has outpaced the waterfall delivery cycles most health systems still run. Quarterly upgrades plus continuous Special Updates arrive faster than big-bang change management can absorb — so features go dark, versions stack up, and the gap between what you're paying for and what you're using keeps growing.
Falling versions behind
Treating each Epic release as a major project means teams can only absorb one or two upgrades a year. The backlog of uninstalled versions — and the clinical value locked inside them — grows with each quarter you skip.
Un-activated features
Epic's quarterly upgrades include features your organization has already paid for. Without a repeatable adoption process, those features sit dark while clinicians find workarounds and leadership wonders what the license is delivering.
Training that decays
A single training push at go-live or upgrade time works for a static system. Epic is not static. Without a rolling curriculum tied to each release, end-user proficiency erodes quarter over quarter.
Change control as a queue
Change advisory boards built for rare, high-stakes events become a bottleneck when Epic's release cadence demands monthly decisions. The board can't keep pace — so optimization requests stall for months or years.
A sprint-based upgrade operating model built for Epic.
We don't drop a generic agile framework on your team. We adapt sprint-based delivery to Epic's specific release model, governance requirements, and the clinical safety bar a health system has to meet.
- 01
Release cadence design
Map Epic's quarterly and Special Update schedule onto a sprint calendar. Define the release train, testing windows, and governance checkpoints that let your team absorb each upgrade without a crisis.
- 02
Backlog & feature activation
Build a prioritized backlog of paid but unactivated Epic features, tied to clinical and operational outcomes. Sprint through it quarter by quarter instead of waiting for the next big-bang project.
- 03
Agile training for Epic teams
Teach analysts, build staff, and training teams to work in sprints — backlog grooming, sprint planning, retrospectives — calibrated to how Epic projects actually run.
- 04
Lightweight change governance
Redesign change control to be a regular sprint ceremony rather than a monthly gate. Risk-based decision rules keep safety intact while dramatically cutting approval lead time.
Stay current with Epic. Ship value every quarter.
Representative targets engagements work toward — replacing big-bang risk with a steady, predictable upgrade cadence:
- 0 versions behindQuarterly upgrades absorbed on cadence, not batched into annual crises
- ↑ Features activatedPaid but dark features turned on through sprint-based adoption programs
- ↑ Training coverageRolling, release-aligned curriculum that keeps end-user proficiency current
- ↓ Change-board lead timeDays from request to decision, not weeks — without cutting safety corners
Where Verdana helps.
Upgrade Release Train Setup
Design and stand up a release train that absorbs Epic quarterly upgrades and Special Updates on cadence — governance, environments, testing windows, and sprint calendar included.
Agile Upgrade Advisory & Coaching
Ongoing advisory for IT and informatics leaders building the internal capability to run agile upgrade programs. Includes maturity assessment, roadmap, and embedded coaching.
Agile Training for Epic Teams
Hands-on training in sprint-based delivery for analysts, build staff, and Epic training teams — backlog management, sprint ceremonies, and release planning calibrated to Epic's cadence.
Optimization Sprint Delivery
Focused sprint engagements to activate high-value, already-paid-for Epic features — working from a prioritized clinical and operational backlog.
Verdana Health Advisory
Verdana Health Advisory is an independent advisory practice with one focus: helping health systems stay current with Epic's release cadence using agile delivery methods. We bring sprint-based operating models to the specific constraints of hospital IT — clinical safety requirements, regulated change control, and the trust of the clinicians who depend on the system every shift.
Anne Baskakova
Principal
Anne Baskakova is the principal of Verdana Health Advisory. She partners with health-system IT and informatics leaders to replace big-bang upgrade cycles with a sprint-based cadence that keeps Epic current — without the crunch and risk of infrequent, high-stakes events.
Find out how far behind your upgrade cadence is — and what closing the gap looks like.
Tell us about your current Epic upgrade cycle. We'll share what a sprint-based release model could look like for your organization.
Email Verdana Health Advisory