Healthcare Plus Podcast

On this episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer is joined by Dr. Stephanie Montgomery, Partner, Build a Brain, Build a Life, Build A Community, Dr. Alexander Gumiroff, Chief Medical Officer, HCA Florida Palms West Hospital, and Jason Kimbrell, CEO, HCA Florida Palms West Hospital. 

Their conversation highlights the transformative “Build a Brain, Build a Life, Build a Community” initiative, which aims to enhance early childhood brain development, and showcases the implementation of the program at HCA Florida Palms West Hospital. 

Quint shares about the initial research conducted in Escambia County that led to the founding of the program and the difference it has made for parents, children, and communities across the country. 

Dr. Gumiroff and Jason Kimbrell also examine the program’s broader implications for addressing health inequities and encouraging community engagement through activities like book donations and the education of childcare workers. They underscore the importance of ongoing leadership and authentic community involvement in sustaining this initiative, ultimately aiming to improve future health outcomes and kindergarten readiness

About Alexander Gumiroff, MD, MBA, MHA, FACOG

Dr. Alex Gumiroff has been appointed Chief Medical Officer of HCA Florida Palms West Hospital, effective May 15, 2023. 

After finishing his residency training at New York Presbyterian/Cornell University Lower Manhattan Hospital, Dr. Gumiroff relocated to Florida and has been a practicing OB-GYN for a Federally Qualified Health Center in Fort Myers, caring for the underserved population. 

During that time, he also supervised the training of Medical, Physician Assistant and Nurse Practitioner students in both outpatient and inpatient settings.

About Jason Kimbrell

Jason Kimbrell was appointed chief executive officer of HCA Florida Palms West Hospital in June of 2021. 

Prior to Palms West, Kimbrell was the chief executive officer for Highlands Hospital and transitioned the newly acquired asset into the HCA healthcare portfolio. Kimbrell has been with HCA Healthcare since 2015. He is a graduate of HCA’s Executive Development Program and started his HCA career as the assistant administrator for HCA Florida West Hospital in Pensacola. 

Kimbrell is a veteran of the United States Air Force and began his career in healthcare in the public safety sector, serving as a firefighter, critical care flight paramedic and EMS Chief.  

About Stephanie Montgomery, Ed.D.

Stephanie is a native Georgian with over 24 years of experience in education and community partnerships. Stephanie has served Northwest Georgia as a School Improvement Specialist in literacy and academic achievement. She has worked as an ELA Specialist and liaison to help strengthen relationships between state and local school systems. Through this work, she has developed a unique lens for identifying issues related to readiness skills and achievement gaps. She is skilled at working with teams to bridge the gap between knowledge and research, helping put policy into practice. Stephanie has also served as a classroom teacher, district-level curriculum coordinator, and grant writer.

On this episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer welcomes Dr. Thom Mayer to discuss insights from his extensive career in emergency medicine and leadership, including his work with the NFL Players Union and in crisis situations on 9/11 and during war in Ukraine. 

In their conversation, Dr. Mayer discusses his new book, “Leadership is Worthless, but Leading is Priceless,” emphasizing the distinction between leadership as a noun and the act of leading as a verb. He challenges each individual to realize that they are a leader today no matter the role they serve in and to always ask the question, “How will I lead today?”. Dr. Mayer also highlights the importance of relationship-building, storytelling, and a curiosity-driven approach to innovation in healthcare. He says “there’s no solo practice of medicine anywhere. It’s a team sport.” 

Their conversation also explores the idea of clinical trials as a way for organizations to reconsider practices and processes and drive continuous improvement. On the topic of improving patient experience, Dr. Mayer discusses his recent article, “Criterion-Based Measurements of Patient Experience in Health Care: Eliminating Winners and Losers to Create a New Moral Ethos,” published by JAMA.  

Dr. Mayer and Quint inspire leaders to use failures as steppingstones on their mission to foster cultures of trust and gratitude. Plus, they offer actionable tips and resources to help you do so. 

About Dr. Thom Mayer

Dr. Thom Mayer is the Medical Director for the NFL Players Association, Executive Vice President of Leadership for LogixHealth, Founder of BestPractices, Inc., Speaker for Executive Speakers Bureau, and Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine at George Washington University and Senior Lecturing Fellow at Duke University. 

He is one of the most widely sought speakers on leading in times of crisis, leading innovative change, customer experience, hardwiring flow, trauma and emergency care, pediatric emergency care, EMS/disaster medicine, and sports medicine. In sports medicine, his work at the forefront of changing concussion diagnosis and management in the NFL has changed the way in which these athletes are diagnosed and treated. His work in each of these areas has resulted in changing the very fabric of patient care. 

In 2022, Dr. Mayer helped lead a mobile team to Ukraine, caring for more than 350 internally displaced persons during the current war and training over 1,700 Ukrainian doctors, nurses, and paramedics. On September 11, 2001, Dr. Mayer served as the Command Physician at the Pentagon Rescue Operation and has served on three Defense Science Board Task Forces, advising the Secretary of Defense. 

He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles, over 200 book chapters, and has edited or written 25 textbooks. His newest book, Leadership Is Worthless…But Leading is Priceless will be released on May 7, 2024 through Berrett-Koehler. He was won numerous awards, including the ACEP James D. Mills Outstanding Contribution to Emergency Medicine Award in 2018. He has also been named the ACEP Outstanding Speaker of The Year, ACHE James Hamilton Award (twice), and has been nominated to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. 

On this two-part episode series of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer hosts Dr. Gerald Hickson, Joseph C. Ross Chair of Medical Education and Administration, Professor of Pediatrics, Founding Director of the Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy (CPPA). 

Quint and Dr. Hickson’s conversation focuses on addressing professional behavior among healthcare providers. Dr. Hickson discusses research linking disrespectful behavior to poor patient outcomes and malpractice claims, emphasizing the importance of professionalism in the workplace. The conversation also extends to nursing, offering innovative leadership strategies for behavioral intervention. 

In Part 1, Dr. Hickson discusses the early career experiences that led him to explore professionalism and what he learned about the importance of respect in the practice of medicine. The conversation explores Vanderbilt’s latest research on the topic and shares how health system leaders can start pursuing a culture of safety and respect. 

In Part 2, Quint and Dr. Hickson discuss intervention techniques for both physicians and nurses, highlighting “cup of coffee” conversations as a way to make medicine kinder, safer, and more reliable. 

About Gerald B. Hickson, MD

Gerald B. Hickson, MD, Joseph C. Ross Chair of Medical Education and Administration, Professor of Pediatrics, Founding Director of the Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy (CPPA). 

Dr. Hickson serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). He also serves on the Board of Directors of Keck (USC) Health System, the RL Datix Customer Advisory Board and is a member of the International Regulatory Expert Advisory Group to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). Dr. Hickson previously served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF). Dr. Hickson received a BS from the University of Georgia and MD from Tulane University School of Medicine.

On this two-part episode series of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer hosts Dr. Gerald Hickson, Joseph C. Ross Chair of Medical Education and Administration, Professor of Pediatrics, Founding Director of the Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy (CPPA). 

Quint and Dr. Hickson’s conversation focuses on addressing professional behavior among healthcare providers. Dr. Hickson discusses research linking disrespectful behavior to poor patient outcomes and malpractice claims, emphasizing the importance of professionalism in the workplace. The conversation also extends to nursing, offering innovative leadership strategies for behavioral intervention. 

In Part 1, Dr. Hickson discusses the early career experiences that led him to explore professionalism and what he learned about the importance of respect in the practice of medicine. The conversation explores Vanderbilt’s latest research on the topic and shares how health system leaders can start pursuing a culture of safety and respect. 

In Part 2, Quint and Dr. Hickson discuss intervention techniques for both physicians and nurses, highlighting “cup of coffee” conversations as a way to make medicine kinder, safer, and more reliable. 

About Gerald B. Hickson, MD

Gerald B. Hickson, MD, Joseph C. Ross Chair of Medical Education and Administration, Professor of Pediatrics, Founding Director of the Center for Patient and Professional Advocacy (CPPA). 

Dr. Hickson serves as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI). He also serves on the Board of Directors of Keck (USC) Health System, the RL Datix Customer Advisory Board and is a member of the International Regulatory Expert Advisory Group to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). Dr. Hickson previously served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF). Dr. Hickson received a BS from the University of Georgia and MD from Tulane University School of Medicine.

On this episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Dan Collard is joined by Carla Yost and Dannette Staples from Hillcrest Medical Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma to discuss the work they’re doing in development with a specific focus on charge nurses and their Nurse Practice Council. Carla is the Chief Nursing Officer at Hillcrest.  With 15 years of senior leadership experience, she is passionate about developing leaders and giving them a voice. Dannette is the Director of Nursing for Workforce Development and Performance Improvement. She has over 24 years of healthcare experience and shares Carla’s passion for frontline leadership development. 

Carla discusses how she recognized that leaders were seeking development opportunities within the organization and why she proposed Precision Leadership Development™ as the solution through the Nurse Practice Council.  

Then, Dannette shares her experience leading the orthopedics unit during challenging times, including the staff shortages experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic. When she decided to invest in her charge nurses by mentoring them individually and involving them in the decision-making process, she began to see extraordinary results. 

Through this investment in leadership development, Dannette’s unit has seen:

-              Engagement scores increase from 77% in 2021 to 92% in 2023

-              Turnover reduced from 27% to 4% on the orthopedic unit

-              Net Promoter Scores improved from 39% to 75%

-              Length of stay reduced from 1.62 to 1.29

-              Falls rates reduced from 4.33 to 2.79

Dannette and Carla attribute all of these results to their focus on the mid-level, “boots-on-the-ground”, frontline leaders and emphasize the need for investment and development to drive positive change in healthcare organizations. 

About Carla Yost

Among Becker's 66 CNOs to know in 2022, Carla Yost, BSN, FACHE, CPHQ, is the Chief Nursing Officer of Hillcrest Medical Center, Ardent Health System. Here, she leads the nursing and patient care operations for the 656-bed facility, successfully fostering achievements like most recently, a top-ranking hospital in patient safety, awarded by the organization, Leapfrog. She also advocates for nurses, investing in their growth, and increasing staff retention.

Carla brings with her more than 15 years of knowledge and experience in senior executive leadership. Her previous roles include System Chief Nursing and Quality Officer for Ascension Kansas, Vice President of Nursing and Quality at HCA Healthcare in Overland Park, Kansas, and a Baldridge Examiner for the U.S. Department of Commerce. In 2018, Carla was named a Health Care Hero by the Wichita Business Journal. 

About Dannette Staples

Dannette Staples is a multidimensional nursing leader with more than 24 years of experience and a proven record of accomplishments built by the foundation of relationships that produce results that improve quality, efficiency, and growth. She is a dedicated nurse leader with a passion to mentor and develop new nurses by empowering and educating driven team members to become effective leaders. 

She has worked in various organizations across the country, starting with Vanderbilt University, HCA, Ardent, and Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria Oregon. She has worked in a variety of healthcare organizations ranging from large tertiary facilities to small outlying facilities, all of which have impacted her growth as a leader in healthcare. She has also created and facilitated customer service training and coached improvement skills to enhance teammate development and performance. 

On this episode of the Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer welcomes special guest Leonard Friedman, Ph.D., a Professor of Health Policy and Management and the director of the Executive Master of Health Administration degree at the George Washington University. Their discussion focuses on the evolving landscape of healthcare leadership, emphasizing the need for emotional and social intelligence in navigating complex systems. 

Leonard highlights key insights from his article, "Developing Leadership Competencies for an Uncertain Future," (published by the American College of Healthcare Executives) revealing that nearly half of healthcare leaders are relatively new to their roles. The conversation explores crucial leadership skills such as change management, self-awareness, and adaptability to complexity, underscoring the importance of fostering a culture of innovation and developing a workforce capable of navigating today’s and tomorrow’s changing environment. 

Quint and Leonard highlight the need for healthcare leaders to embrace open-mindedness, introspection, and collaborative approaches to break down departmental silos and improve patient outcomes. 

About Leonard H. Friedman, Ph.D., M.P.H., FACHE

Leonard Friedman is a Professor of Health Policy and Management and is director of the Executive Master of Health Administration degree at the George Washington University.  He earned his Ph.D. at the University of Southern California, School of Public Administration in 1991 where his dissertation examined technology acquisition in hospitals in Southern California.  Dr. Friedman’s scholarly work has concentrated on the mechanisms of organizational change and strategic decision-making in health service organizations. Dr. Friedman has been the chair of the Health Care Management Division of the Academy of Management and Association of University Programs in Health Administration. He is a Fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives and is a past-president of the National Capital Healthcare Executives Chapter of ACHE. In 2015, Dr. Friedman was inducted into the Studer Group Fire Starter Hall of Fame. Dr. Friedman is the editor of the Journal of Health Administration Education.

On this episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer welcomes special guest Brian Burnside, President and CEO of Carlinville Area Hospital & Clinics. Quint and Brian discuss the unique challenges faced by small rural and critical access hospitals and share key initiatives and strategies that have helped Carlinville achieve success. 

Listeners will walk away with actionable insights on:

• The importance of primary care development and forging strategic partnerships with specialists
• Why leadership development and collaborative community engagement are key pillars for sustained success in rural healthcare
• The indispensable role of rural hospitals in the broader healthcare ecosystem

Tune in as Quint and Brian navigate the complexities and bright future of rural healthcare, offering practical strategies and inspiring success stories from Carlinville Area Hospital & Clinics. 

About Brian Burnside

As President and CEO of Carlinville Area Hospital & Clinics, Brian Burnside leverages more than 20 years of hospital Chief Executive Officer experience.  He specializes in generating organizational momentum by recognizing the potential in every employee to provide the best possible care to the residents of the rural communities they serve. Applying innovative tactics related to culture, strategy, and growth/care advancement, Brian leads the Carlinville Area Hospital & Clinics team toward creating a model rural healthcare system of the future. By doing so, Brian has shown rural healthcare can not only survive — it can thrive with revolutionary thought leadership and an unwavering commitment to the organization’s team and its mission to advance a professional medical community and hospital to promote expert healthcare, close to home.

Healthcare facilities under his leadership have been consistently recognized for high patient and employee satisfaction by national industry publications such as Becker’s Hospital Review and Press Ganey. Accolades include the 2016 Pioneer Rural Healthcare Leadership Award by the Texas Hospital Association, the 2010 Young Executive Achievement Award by the Iowa Hospital Association, the 2009 Summit Award: Patient Satisfaction Excellence by Press Ganey, and “150 Great Places to Work in Healthcare” by Becker’s Hospital Review in 2015 and 2017.

On this episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, Quint Studer welcomes Kelvin Hanger and Maria Ashdown from Good Samaritan Hospital to discuss their approach to leadership, best practices for improving patient and employee experience, and the importance of finding joy and replenishment in your work. 

In his role as President and Chief Operating Officer of Good Samaritan Hospital, Kelvin focuses on providing the high-quality care patients have come to expect from TriHealth facilities. Maria Ashdown serves as Chief Nursing Officer of Good Samaritan and has responsibility for all six of their emergency departments. 

On this episode, Kelvin and Maria share several key performance improvement initiatives and offer best practices for healthcare leaders facing similar challenges, including:

• New leader onboarding, mentorship, and how to use peers as resources
• Service line ambassadors to assess challenges, barriers to success, and opportunities for process improvement
• Support for “floaters” to reduce anxiety and ensure every employee feels a sense of belonging
• Holding teams accountable to quality metrics and best practices for improving patient experience

About Kelvin Hanger

Kelvin Hanger is the President and Chief Operating Officer of Good Samaritan Hospital. He previously served in the same role for TriHealth Hospital Inc. He is responsible for the operations, management, strategic planning, quality, safety, and program development for the hospital. He is focused on ensuring Good Samaritan Hospital continues to provide the high-quality care patients have come to expect from TriHealth hospitals. Along with being a Hospital President, he is also the System Executive over Surgical Services.

Kelvin moved to Cincinnati, Ohio from Louisville, Kentucky where he received his degree from the University of Louisville in Business Administration. He has been in healthcare for 33 years beginning in 1984 working for Humana in the actuary department and multiple market offices within the company.

Kelvin is very active in the Evendale Community and has held multiple board positions within professional healthcare organizations throughout his career. He was commissioned a Kentucky Colonel from the Commonwealth of Kentucky by Governor Ernie Fletcher. Kelvin fosters strong physician relationships and empowers his team to deliver exceptional patient experiences.

About Maria Ashdown

Maria Ashdown, MSN, RN, NE-BC, VP, Chief Nursing Officer at Good Samaritan Hospital since 2022 and serves as System Director, Emergency Services at TriHealth, since 2018, with responsibility for all six emergency departments. She has been a part of TriHealth for more than 20 years, starting her career as a staff nurse on the orthopedic/trauma unit at Good Samaritan Hospital in 1991. She served in a number of progressive leadership roles over thirteen years in the Emergency Department at Bethesda North and has served as chair of the Nursing Operations Council and co-chair of the Stroke Committee. Maria maintains Nurse Executive Board Certification (NE-BC).

Chief Nursing Executive Jenny Skinner states, “Maria has been an integral part of our nursing leadership team, proven leader with a passion for leading teams to greatness. She has demonstrated success in building strong teams, pursuing excellence, and collaborating across operations.”

On this week’s episode of The Healthcare Plus Podcast, host Quint Studer is joined by special guest Dr. Riya Pulicharam, a pediatrician by training, certified clinical trials investigator, and co-founder of Caret Health. Over her 20+ year career, Dr. Pulicharam has led more than 500 studies and a number of initiatives focused on reducing total healthcare costs for chronic disease management programs. Dr. Pulicharam shares about her experiences in designing clinical care pathways, particularly for high-risk patients with complex chronic conditions, and emphasizes the need for user-friendly platforms and industry-wide innovation. 

Dr. Pulicharam also highlights the challenges faced in scaling population health programs to larger organizations and stresses the importance of a centralized approach, advocating for automated data reconciliation and task management. Her ultimate goal is to reduce hospitalizations and emergency room visits while improving patient satisfaction through informed clinical decision-making and by addressing social determinants of health. The discussion underscores the crucial role of data and technology in improving patient care. 

To learn more about Dr. Riya Pulicharam’s population health platform, visit www.CaretHealth.com.

About Dr. Riya Pulicharam

Dr. Riya Pulicharam is the co-founder of Caret Health, a clinical execution platform for value-based population health. For more than 20 years, Dr. Pulicharam has served as the National Medical Director for Population Health at Legacy Healthcare Partners (now Optum Care). 

A pediatrician by training, Dr. Pulicharam was a research fellow at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Harbor UCLA Medical Center, and later founded the Clinical Research, HEOR, and population health departments for the Legacy Healthcare Partners. Dr. Pulicharam has led more than 500 research studies and is widely recognized as a certified clinical trials investigator.

Dr. Pulicharam's primary focus lies in population health, where she addresses social determinants of health and designs clinical care pathways for high-risk patient populations managed within value-based organizations. Notably, her work has been instrumental in various quality improvement initiatives aimed at reducing total healthcare costs for chronic disease management programs, which have been prominently featured in several publications.

Driven by a commitment to improving healthcare outcomes, Dr. Pulicharam is currently dedicated to reducing hospitalizations and ER visits for high-risk patients. Her work emphasizes the integration of healthcare technology, automation, and machine learning. Notably, Dr. Pulicharam has invented and patented a groundbreaking population health platform (Caret Health), which achieved a remarkable 57% reduction in hospitalizations and ER visits for high-risk elderly patients with multiple comorbid conditions.