Definitively Speaking

Oncology is full of staggering statistics—1.9 million cancer diagnoses and 680,000 deaths each year in the U.S. alone—but some of the most alarming involve the financial impact of care: Cancer patients are over 2.5x more likely to declare bankruptcy than their demographic peers. Dr. Andrew Norden, chief medical officer at OncoHealth, joins Justin to discuss how we can reduce the physical, mental, and financial toll of cancer. Justin and Andrew discuss oncology’s “built-in perverse incentive” that drives some doctors to prescribe top-dollar drugs and lays out some options for bending the cost curve, including value-based payment models, stringent utilization management, and greater compensation for oncologists’ routine services.

Andrew and Justin also dig into the obstacles facing oncologists and their patients, including the often-unaddressed relationship between cancer and clinical depression, and why despite all the challenges in cancer treatment, Andrew is optimistic about his field in the long run.

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com.

Medical hardware companies are adopting consumer approaches to data sharing and visualization. Consumer product companies are implementing medical-grade technology. Are these two industries headed for a collision or a convergence? And who exactly is the “medical consumer” that will benefit from this convergence? Alan Foreman, CEO of B-Secur, joins Justin to talk about the value of wearables in preventive care, who medical-grade wearables are really for, and what it will take to deliver truly accessible, actionable medical diagnostics at home.

Justin and Alan explore some common concerns arising from this rapid convergence: Who’s ultimately accountable for acting on the data that wearables generate? Where’s the line between wellness monitoring and invasive surveillance? And can consumer companies stick the landing as they transition into healthcare?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

COVID-19 didn’t kick off the healthcare staffing crisis, but it sure didn’t help. Justin is joined by Anthony Gentile, managing partner at Katon Direct, to prognosticate the current state of clinical recruiting and prescribe some potential solutions for healthcare organizations looking to attract top talent. Anthony shares his ideas on how to address the dual-shortage of candidates and educators, why providers need to rethink employer branding, and what three items every healthcare organization should have on their staffing to-do list.

Anthony and Justin take a closer look at the big questions surrounding clinical recruiting: How can healthcare orgs fill the growing gap in rural care? What can staffing professionals expect as COVID shifts from pandemic to endemic? And how can employers change their working conditions to encourage providers to stay?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

Seeing your primary care doctor shouldn’t feel like speed dating—right? Justin and Todd are joined by Beth Holmes, head of network development at Hint Health, to discuss how direct primary care (DPC) aims to revitalize old-school doctor-patient relationships and fill the gaps left by the fee-for-service model. Beth discusses DPC’s success with smaller employers and underinsured regions, how DPC reduces reliance on emergency care, and why family doctors may be less likely to leave the field in a DPC model.

Beth, Justin, and Todd examine some tricky questions facing this emerging care model: Who are the right patients for DPC’? How do we accurately track outcomes for a care model that doesn’t deliver claims data? And why should an employer think about offering DPC as a benefit to its employees when it already offers health insurance?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

Justin, Todd, and special guest Robert Groebel, VP of global life science strategy at Definitive Healthcare, expand on last week’s chat with Pam Randhawa from Empiriko and unpack the challenges, benefits, and opportunities of collaboration in the biopharma market.

How can big pharma, small pharma, academia, and the government all work together? Robert and Todd have some big ideas. They look back at their careers to share professional insights and personal perspectives on the biopharma industry’s evolving playbook—and why they’re looking forward with a healthy dose of optimism.

Justin asks Todd and Robert to answer some big questions: What can biopharma orgs do to address healthcare equity? Is there an insurmountable divide between the industry’s profit motive and academia’s educational mission? And what has Robert feeling so optimistic about biopharma’s impact on patients and caregivers?

The life sciences industry is seeing the convergence of some revolutionary technology, but is it bringing the right people together? Pam Randhawa, CEO and founder of Empiriko, stops by to chat about the need for closer collaboration across the biopharma space—between big and small organizations, academic institutions and startups, and the public and private sectors. Pam and Justin discuss the mutual benefits of partnerships between new and established biopharma organizations, academia’s untapped potential in life sciences R&D, and why Massachusetts is the model for cross-sector collaboration and innovation.

Plus, Pam answers some of Justin’s most pressing questions: How are biological models shaping clinical care? What can biopharma entrepreneurs learn from a 20-year industry veteran? And what will it take to make the Commonwealth the world’s No. 1 life sciences innovator?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

Scott Seidelmann, Chief Commercial Officer at Omnicell, joins Justin and Todd to talk about the industrial components of pharmacy that no one ever thinks about but everyone really needs — logistics and administration. Do you take it for granted that the drugs you need will be available where and when you need them? Justin did, and Scott explains why that happens. Learn how Omnicell is reinventing and automating the medication management process — for everyone from the small town drugstore to the big city hospital. The result? Pharmacists practice at the top of their license, drug costs decline, and more people can access to treatment.

Also, Scott, Justin and Todd discuss the surprising similarities between airports and pharmacies, why 340B programs are critically important for getting drugs to people in rural and under-served communities and the unique challenges of specialty pharmacies. Plus, they go in-depth into why everyone should have a real, honest conversation with their pharmacist.

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

When a doctor recommends a lifestyle change, who’s holding you to it? Dr. Carolyn Jasik, chief medical officer at Omada Health, joins Justin for a discussion on addressing the barriers to behavioral change, and how her company is leveraging data to provide patients with personalized support as they work toward their health goals. Dr. Jasik explains how a virtual-first, hybrid care model provides value to patients, providers and payors, why misaligned incentives are derailing healthcare interoperability and what systemic changes are necessary to bend the care cost curve.

Justin and Dr. Jasik also take a look at the challenges facing effective remote patient monitoring, how smart data beats big data when it comes to cutting costs and improving outcomes, and why virtual care companies are uniquely positioned to support a value-based care model.

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

An estimated 10 million Americans live with debilitating tremors, but only about 40,000 are eligible or interested in the costly and invasive deep brain stimulation to treat it. Doug Biehn, chief commercial officer of Cala Health, talks with Justin about how his company is closing the treatment gap in this $20 billion market with accessible, patient-calibrated wearables. Doug explains what physicians are really looking for in new tech, how patient advocates are key to winning over providers and payors, and why healthcare startups need to be educators as well as innovators.

Justin and Doug also explore critical questions facing the medical device space: Is the “Medicare population” embracing self-serve chronic disease management? What’s driving doctors—and even drug companies—to invest in bioelectronics? And is the med device market destined to follow the consolidation patterns we see in biopharma?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com

Fifty percent of American adults live with musculoskeletal (MSK) pain. Jim Pursley, president of Hinge Health, joins Justin to talk about how digital technology and new medical devices are rapidly changing MSK treatment and improving pain management. Jim shares some big ideas on how digital MSK therapy can improve quality of life, reduce unnecessary and costly surgeries, and how digital MSK may even help kick America’s opioid addiction.

Justin and Jim also discuss some pressing questions about the United States’ changing care landscape. Why have MSK insurance claims doubled in 10 years despite patient populations staying flat? Who is responsible for quarterbacking a patient’s care plan when you have multiple providers and devices, all of whom straddle both physical and virtual therapies? And what’s the connection between chronic pain and depression, and what can we do about it?

To learn more about Definitive Healthcare, please visit us at definitivehc.com