Deconstructing Comp

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In this episode, we get to know Patrick Robinson, VP of Government Affairs at ODG (an MCG Health Company). 

Patrick shares his interesting career path from an attorney in Shreveport, Louisiana to administrator and judge, WCRI, now with ODG, and some of the things he has learned along the way. He also chats about grandkids, his Latin connections, and a few things he did during the pandemic. 

Plus, we have a first, ladies and gents! Patrick reveals that he got his start in the workers' comp industry by way of the Canadian Football League in Shreveport, LA - via the Shreveport Pirates! Listen for more details on that little tidbit. How cool is that? 

Patrick does not disappoint. He also shares details about a trip to Chihuahua, Mexico, and a surprise twist! 

¡Vamanos pronto! Hablamos con señor Patrick...

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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In this episode we get to know Debra Livingston, President and CEO of ReEmployability based in Tampa, Florida. 

ReEmployability, founded in 2003, offers employers a proprietary return to work program, Transition2Work, a cost-effective solution to modified light duty assignments, and reduces workers’ compensation and non-occupational disability claim costs while giving the injured worker time to heal and benefiting the community. 

Get to know more about Debra and hear what she has to say about her time in the workers' compensation industry. Yvonne and Ralph share much in common with Debra having "grown up" in the industry by way of Tampa. 

Debra is full of surprises, including something you might not know about her....do we have any Godfather movie fans? 

And of course, we laugh. Bonus if you can tweet @DeconstructComp how many times Ralph says he "loves" Debra!

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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In this episode, we get to know John Ruser, President and CEO at Workers' Compensation Research Institute (WCRI). According to the WCRI website, WCRI was founded in 1983 and they are an independent not-for-profit research organization which strives to help those interested in making improvements to the workers' compensation system by providing highly-regarded, objective data and analysis.  

You are in for a special treat! Yvonne and Rafael kick off this episode speaking Spanish, because they discovered John was hanging out in San Juan, Puerto Rico when they recorded the episode. ¡Que rico!

Tune in and join us as we find out more about John, how he came to be in the workers' compensation industry and how the WCRI goes about identifying the issues and trends they explore through their research. 

A peak inside this episode: John shares how WCRI has studied the impact of Covid on workers' compensation claims including the disruption Covid caused, the Great Resignation and long-haul Covid claims. 

WCRI's 38th Annual Issues & Research Conference will take place in Boston March 16-17. Visit their website for more information https://www.wcrinet.org/

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Yvonne and Rafael catch up with Alex Swedlow, President of California Workers' Compensation Institute (CWCI).

According to their website, CWCI provides data, practical analyses and real-world expertise on issues and trends affecting California workers' compensation. Many look to CWCI's research as an indicator of important trends and issues in the workers' compensation space, as California is such a large, unique and significant state to consider.

Join Yvonne and Rafael as they explore Alex's background, how he arrived in the workers' comp space and perhaps a few fun facts you may not know.

¡Vamanos pronto!

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Join Yvonne and Rafael as they kick off Season 2 of Deconstructing Comp with none other than Joe Paduda, industry expert, speaker and blogger, author of the Managed Care Matters blog. 

Joe is one of the foremost experts in the workers' compensation industry. Yvonne and Rafael catch up with Joe as he discusses how he landed in our industry, what he's been up to lately, and what we should be looking at in terms of important issues on the horizon. 

If you don't know Joe, I'm not sure what rock you live under (just kidding!), but you can find his Managed Care Matters blog here - https://www.joepaduda.com/

So here we go! Are you ready for another fun season of getting to know the incredible people of our industry, learning how they got here, how they spend their time in the industry and what's important to them? Come on then! You might learn something new!

Grab your favorite beverage, pull up a chair and let's go talk to Joe! ...  ¡Vamanos! 

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Here we go! Listen to Yvonne and Rafael chat about kicking off their second season of Deconstructing Comp. They share how 2022 started with a bang and how excited they are to continue their podcasting journey getting to know the people in the workers’ compensation industry. ¡Vamanos! 

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Listen up as Yvonne and Rafael chat about the conclusion to Season 1 of Deconstructing Comp. They seized the opportunity to record a final episode while attending the first Workers' Compensation Institute conference in Orlando since 2019! 

This is a short episode chatting about lessons learned during the first season of recording a podcast together, thoughts about attending the WCI conference at the Orlando World Center Marriott for the first time in two years, thinking about featured guests and how they'll approach Season 2. 

Grab your headphones and get ready to share some laughs with Yvonne and Rafael. 

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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This episode is a fascinating conversation with Raji Chadarevian, Director of Medical Regulation and Informatics at National Council on Compensation Insurance (NCCI).  

If you are into math, data and numbers and all the different ways to break down data and numbers in insurance and workers' compensation, you in for a special treat! Meet Raji Chadarevian...learn how his career in insurance got started when he was working as a Christmas elf!

Raji shares how he landed his first job in the insurance industry when he was helping out his cousin in Los Angeles by delivering Christmas baskets...he was her Christmas elf!

The lesson learned from Raji's story? Never underestimate the value of connections. Even when you are doing a part-time job, or helping out a family member or friend by lending a helping hand, the power of connections is always in motion. Keep an open mind, ask questions and be ready to seize an opportunity when it comes your way. 

Grab your headphones, your favorite beverage and let's get to know Raji.

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Get to know Greg McKenna, National Practice Leader, Public Sector. 

Yvonne and Rafael chat with Greg about his educational background, why he chose to practice law, working in governmental affairs for Gallagher Bassett , his current role and more. 

Greg literally "grew up" in the industry with family ties to Gallagher Bassett. Hear what that was like for him as a kid and how he feels about coming full circle with his work at GB. 

Lean in and find out why Greg thinks storytelling is an essential part of what we do in the insurance and workers' compensation industry.  We take a deep dive into storytelling. It's a subject matter that is near and dear to all three of us.

Greg has been the host and emcee of WorkCompCentral's Comp Laude® People's Choice Awards for five years now. He masterfully weaves the various stories together each year and in doing so, teaches us why the art of storytelling matters. 

Grab your headphones and let's get to know Greg.

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp 

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Meet Licia Thompson! Licia retired in 2019 after 22 years with Macy's, an iconic American retail brand. Her role at that time was National Director, Workers' Compensation Return to Work, Managed Care & Vendor Management. 

After retirement, Licia decided to become an author, and recently launched her first book: "When Your Soul Whispers: Strategies for leaders to redefine values and move forward after life's transitions." She also is a coach and consultant and calls herself a "reinvention strategist."

Join Yvonne Guibert and Rafael Gonzalez for another fascinating conversation about careers in the workers' comp industry. This time with Licia, a career insurance and workers' compensation professional who spent 22 years working at one of the most iconic and largest retail brands in the world! One thing we discuss in this episode is how one approaches workers' compensation and RTW for a company with hundreds of stores and an extremely diverse labor workforce. 

¡Vamanos! Let's go talk to Licia Thompson!

¡Muchas Gracias! Thank you for listening. We would appreciate you sharing our podcast with your friends on social media. Find Yvonne and Rafael on Linked In or follow us on Twitter @deconstructcomp