Dr. Craig Joseph is a pediatrician, informaticist, and the Chief Medical Officer at Nordic Global. He’s also the author of Designing for Health and a former Epic employee, with decades of experience at the intersection of clinical care and health IT.

On this episode of How I Doctor, Dr. Graham Walker talks with Craig about what’s actually broken in American healthcare — and why blaming the EHR is often missing the point. They dive into the messy realities of health system design, the unintended consequences of bad tech workflows, and why true innovation in medicine will only come when doctors help lead it. Craig offers a behind-the-scenes look at how physicians can rethink technology, push for smarter design, and prepare for the coming wave of AI in healthcare.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why EHRs Aren’t the Real Problem – How poorly designed systems, not software alone, are burning doctors out.
• The Myth of the “Standard Workflow” – Healthcare isn’t one-size-fits-all and why software should reflect that.
• The Moment Doctors Stopped Calling the Shots – How the shift to employment models and admin control reshaped the physician experience.
• AI and the Future of Documentation – Craig’s prediction for 2030 and how recording clinical encounters could reshape care.
• Getting Rid of Stupid Stuff – What it really takes for hospitals to stop wasting doctors’ time on useless clicks and forms.
• Reclaim Your Career Without Leaving Medicine – Why it’s okay to want something different—and how clinical experience is still your superpower.

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📝 For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

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Michael Johnson is an attorney and the founder of Michael Johnson Legal, a firm that works exclusively with physicians and physician groups to review contracts, negotiate fair compensation, and protect career freedom.

In this episode of How I Doctor, Dr. Graham Walker sits down with Michael to unpack one of the most overlooked yet high-stakes parts of practicing medicine: the employment contract. Together, they explore why doctors receive little to no training in negotiation, how “standard” contract clauses can be career-ending, and why more physicians need to challenge the status quo at the start of their careers as well as well into practice.

Michael shares insights on everything from non-competes and clawbacks to how doctors can start renegotiating even years after signing their first deal.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The Hidden Dangers in Physician Contracts – Why even well-intentioned doctors sign deals that limit their freedom, income, and ability to leave.
• How to Negotiate Like a Pro (Even as a New Grad) – Tactics and talking points you can use right now to secure better terms.
• The Myth of the “Standard Contract” – How vague clauses around call, compensation, and termination hurt physicians—and how to spot them early.
• Renegotiating After Years in Practice – Why it’s never too late to re-open the conversation and how doing so helps the next generation.
• CRNAs, Hospital Takeovers, and Rural Practice Pressures – A real-world look at how physicians are fighting to stay independent in a shifting healthcare landscape.
• Why Data Is Power – How physician-level compensation data (like what we’re building at Offcall) changes the game in contract negotiations.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

📝 For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

🎧 Subscribe to receive new How I Doctor episodes directly in your feed here: https://episodes.fm/1767429315

👨‍⚕️Follow Dr. Graham Walker on

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/graham-walker-md/ 

IG https://www.instagram.com/ubergraham/ 

Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/drgrahamwalker.com 

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Last week’s interview with Mark Cuban generated a huge response — thank you to everyone who listened, commented on, or shared the episode. 

New guests will debut next week, but this week, we’ve rounded up some of the show’s most inspiring and thought-provoking moments to date to help all the new listeners get acquainted with How I Doctor and Offcall’s mission. The four physicians featured in this episodes are examples of MD leaders who are using their voices to improve the healthcare system. Their insights will push you to think about medicine differently:

• Dr. Will Flanary, an ophthalmologist and comedian who’s become better known by his online persona Dr. Glaucomflecken.
• Dr. Eric Bricker, an internal medicine physician-slash-entrepreneur who explains the finer points of healthcare finance in signature whiteboard videos.
• Dr. Elisabeth Potter, a reconstructive breast surgeon who went viral on social media for exposing how insurance companies bully doctors and compromise patient interests.
• Dr. Jim Dahle, an emergency medicine physician who founded the White Coat Investor to teach doctors about personal finance and money management.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

📝 For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

🎧 Subscribe to receive new How I Doctor episodes directly in your feed here: https://episodes.fm/1767429315

👨‍⚕️Follow Dr. Graham Walker on

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IG https://www.instagram.com/ubergraham/ 

Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/drgrahamwalker.com 

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Mark Cuban is a business mogul, the “Shark” every entrepreneur wants to make a deal with, the former owner of the Dallas Mavericks, and, most recently, an online pharmacy CEO. In 2022, Mark co-founded Cost Plus Drugs with the goal of lowering prescription drug prices. The direct-to-consumer company makes generic drugs affordable by cutting pharmacy benefit managers out of the distribution chain. But, once Mark starts talking about tackling the pharmaceutical market, you get the sense he has his sights set on an even bigger goal: reforming the healthcare system at large. 

Offcall co-founder Graham Walker recently got the chance to interview Mark on How I Doctor, a podcast that explores the lives and careers of physicians who are practicing medicine differently. Mark, of course, is not a physician. But, as Graham notes, “I'm talking to him because I think he actually gives a damn about healthcare, and more importantly, he's doing something about it.”

Mark pulls no punches in this episode, and frames American healthcare as a David- and Goliath-style fight between good and bad actors.

Physicians are on the good team: “I happen to be a fan of people who save lives and make other people feel better, you know? Call me crazy.”

Who’s on the bad team? Anyone trying to game the system and extract money from it for their own benefit — insurance companies, hospitals, private equity firms, and others. “In healthcare, that $4.9 trillion wherever anybody can arbitrage whatever they can out of the system, that's exactly what they are going to do.”

With clarity of conviction and a hard-charging spirit, Mark shares his vision for how to fix healthcare. 

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

In this episode, Graham and Mark discuss:

04:26 Expanding Medical School Enrollment

09:33 Insurance Plan Designs

16:27  Insurance Company Tactics

20:45 Negotiation Loopholes and Legal Tangles

28:04 Healthcare Spending 

34:53 Transparency and Trust Drive Growth

43:37 Unfair Broker Fees 

49:53 Profitability in Specialized Medical Services

55:08 Future of AI-Assisted Healthcare

Dr. Elisabeth Potter is a plastic surgeon and practice owner in Austin, Texas, who specializes in post-mastectomy breast reconstruction. In January, Elisabeth made waves on social media when she posted a video about UnitedHealthcare calling her during surgery, pulling her out of the OR to explain why her patient — who was already under anesthesia — needed to stay in the hospital overnight. 

In this episode of How I Doctor, Offcall co-founder Dr. Graham Walker talks with Elisabeth about dealing with absurd coverage requirements, calling out insurance companies for undermining patient care, and being the “face of medicine” in today’s climate. Elisabeth also discusses the most rewarding and difficult aspects of running her own practice, opens up about her viral video, and shares how she’s using social media to educate patients and push for policy changes.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

In this episode, Graham and Elisabeth discuss:

03:15 Why Insurance Companies Are Getting Away with Abusing Doctors

08:42 Going Viral After Speaking Out About Insurance Harassment

2:20 The Challenges of Running an Independent Practice

7:05 How Social Media Is Giving Doctors a Voice

23:40 Balancing Patient Care with Advocacy

28:55 Lessons Learned from Taking on UnitedHealthcare

• 32:15 The Power of Speaking Up and Inspiring Others to Advocate

Dr. Michael Jerkins is a meds-peds physician and the co-founder of Panacea Financial, a financial services company for doctors. After being rejected for multiple loans during residency, Michael realized that traditional banks were failing doctors as customers. So, he created a bank that understands the unique financial struggles and goals of the medical community. 

In this episode of How I Doctor, Offcall co-founder Dr. Graham Walker talks with Michael about why doctors need their own bank and how Panacea has evolved since its launch to meet the needs of physicians (and eventually other clinician groups). They also explore why more doctors are looking for ways to practice medicine on their own terms, and discuss numerous other aspects of doctors’ financial lives.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

In this episode, Graham and Michael discuss:

05:01 Peer Lending Solution for Loan Challenges

13:06 Medical Practice Financing Challenges

16:24 Financial Challenges for Med Students

19:55 Medicare's Evolving Role with Dentistry

24:19 Doctors' Dilemma: Medicine vs. Tech

Dr. Simon Chang is a hospitalist and the CEO and co-founder of eNavvi, an online pharmacy platform. Since finishing his residency in 2022, Simon has been a part-time physician, splitting his time between clinical care and entrepreneurship. 

On this episode of How I Doctor, Offcall co-founder Dr. Graham Walker talks with Simon about building a career in medicine and a pharma-tech company at the same time, interacting with other physicians as both angel investors and product users, and partnering with like-minded companies including Mark Cuban’s Cost Plus Drugs. Simon explains why he set his entrepreneurial sights on prescription drugs and how eNavvi helps remove pricing-transparency barriers created by PBMs (pharmacy benefit managers). He also makes a convincing case that physicians are especially well-equipped to solve the most complex and stubborn problems in healthcare.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

Dr. Emily Silverman is a practicing internist and the founder of The Nocturnists, a groundbreaking podcast that amplifies the raw, deeply human stories of healthcare workers. 

In this episode of How I Doctor, Dr. Graham Walker sits down with Dr. Silverman to discuss her personal experience with burnout, the systemic flaws in medicine that drive physician exhaustion, and how storytelling can serve as a powerful tool for healing and connection. She shares how her own journey — from back-to-back 20-hour shifts in residency leading to a devastating health crisis — sparked her passion for rethinking medical culture and supporting fellow physicians through creative expression.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The Reality of Physician Burnout – Emily recounts the moment she realized the system that trains doctors to heal was, ironically, making her sick.
• How Medical Training Stifles Creativity – Why doctors often feel they’ve “lost a piece of themselves” during training and how to reclaim personal expression.
• The Power of Storytelling in Medicine – How The Nocturnists became a movement for processing the emotional weight of medicine.
• Structural Issues in Healthcare – The impact of corporate consolidation, private equity, and systemic burnout on physician well-being.
• Supporting Women in Medicine – Dr. Silverman discusses maternity leave, childcare challenges, and the gender pay gap in healthcare.
• Career Advice for New Physicians – Why embracing diverse career paths can lead to greater fulfillment and impact.

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

Dr. Spencer Dorn, a gastroenterologist, informatics physician, and professor at UNC, is passionate about the intersection of technology and healthcare. Spencer, who frequently writes about AI for Forbes, is helping to shape the conversation around real-world applications of AI in medicine, and how AI can complement (rather than replace) physicians.

In this episode of How I Doctor, Offcall co-founder Dr. Graham Walker talks with Spencer — his longtime friend — about how AI is being used in medicine now, and where it has the most potential going forward. Artificial intelligence and machine learning tools have been part of healthcare for a while, from EKG analysis to clinical documentation. But what does the next chapter look like? And what are the biggest misconceptions about AI’s impact on doctors, patients, and the healthcare system? Their conversation also covers AI literacy standards for doctors and how to incorporate AI into medical training.

This episode is a crash course on AI in medicine — what’s already happening, where things are heading, and how physicians should feel about AI’s expanding role.

What you’ll learn about in this episode:

• The true purposes of AI in medicine
• How ambient scribes are changing note-taking
• How AI medical summarization can revolutionize patient care
• What AI literacy means for physicians
• How AI will affect medical training
• Ethical and regulatory challenges that will emerge with increased AI reliance

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🔗 Join the conversation at Offcall.com to connect with fellow physicians.

💡 Have a guest suggestion? Drop us a line at [email protected]!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

Dr. Kenneth Qiu is a family medicine physician and the founder of EuDoc, a direct primary care practice in Virginia. Kenneth brings a fresh perspective, having taken the bold step of starting his own practice right out of residency. 

On this episode of How I Doctor, Offcall co-founder Dr. Graham Walker talks with Kenneth about the state of primary care and why he believes a direct care model has advantages over insurance-based care. Kenneth also discusses launching and marketing his practice, the specific challenges of family medicine, and the importance of having humility as a physician. This short episode delivers a lot — from big ideas about systemic healthcare change to tactical tips for entrepreneurial doctors.         

🩺 Offcall is more than a platform — it’s a community. Join today!

For a full transcript of this episode click HERE

Find all episodes of How I Doctor at offcall.com/podcast or subscribe on your favorite podcast player at https://episodes.fm/1767429315.

In this episode, Graham and Kenneth discuss:

03:59 Exploring Direct Primary Care Experiences

09:07 Avoiding Lifestyle Creep

10:07 Balancing Treatment with Nature's Course