The Pursuit of Health Podcast

A conversation with Dr Ellana Stinson

Money affects everything in American healthcare. And too often, it gets in the way.

Taking the bull by the horns is Dr. Ellana Stinson.

Having felt the frustration of cost-cutting on the frontline, she chose to do an MBA in finance - seeking to better understand how mysterious financial bodies - particularly private equity firms, are creating huge problems for our ability to provide quality care.

We spoke about why she did an MBA, her advocacy, private equity, the fact that doctors don't understand the finances of medicine, and why this matters for patients. 

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

Welcome to our third installment of our Case Studies From The Heart series.

In the episode, Dr. Fethke shines a light on the topic of immigrant healthcare, by sharing his own experience successfully treating a young child from Honduras with Turner’s syndrome.

Immigrant healthcare can be a controversial and heavily politicized topic, with arguments from both sides about the best approach to take.

Join us, as Dr. Fethke considers his own call to action - one that he believes reflects the roots of our American principles.

“We should celebrate, not suppress, the diversity of our people.”

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

Is it time to revamp medical education?

This week’s guest, Dr. Austin Chiang, certainly thinks so.

Leading an already distinguished career, Dr. Chiang is a top gastroenterologist, Chief Medical Officer of the Endoscopy division of Medtronics, Founding President of the Association for Healthcare Social Media (AHSM), and the author of recently published Gut: An Owner's Guide.

In addition, his TikTok account alone hosts more than 575,000 followers - which is just one of the social media channels he uses to communicate healthcare information, straight to the people who might need it.

He reflects on how COVID proved to be a turning point in the link between social media and public health outcomes, revealing how healthcare professionals can best use social platforms to create resources for patients, demonstrate the value of science-based practice, and fight misinformation.

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

70% of U.S. adults have accessed health information online in the past year.

A revealing statistic, highlighting the increasing reliance on digital resources for healthcare guidance.

As this week’s guest, Susannah Fox, illuminates, patient-led healthcare holds tremendous potential for transforming our health systems. With her extensive experience as a distinguished researcher and former Chief Technology Officer of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Susannah is at the forefront of this revolution.

In this episode, Susannah shares insights from her new book, "Rebel Health," an action-oriented and radically hopeful field guide to an underground, patient-led movement. She explores the roles of seekers, solvers, networkers, and champions within the ecosystem of patient-led healthcare, emphasizing the power of the internet as a place for community, collaboration, and connection.

Susannah discusses how re-imagining the patient-clinician dynamic can counteract misinformation and foster better health outcomes. She highlights the importance of including patients in the development of healthcare tools, warning against repeating past mistakes.

Her message is clear: technology, when used for good, can connect us in powerful ways. "You are not alone," Susannah assures. "There are people who would love to help you if only they knew how to find you."

Together, we can forge new links between innovators and those in power, learn from our past, and harness technology to build a more inclusive, supportive, and effective healthcare system.

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

This week's guest is in the business of maximizing outcomes.

A self-described "reformed investment banker", Daniel Etra is the co-founder and CEO of Rethink, a data-driven company changing the face of neurodivergent care.

He talks passionately about the vast social impact of their operations, teaching frontline clinicians, empowering caregivers, and helping neurodivergent individuals reach their potential.

With their library of educational videos, cutting-edge Al tools and enormous dataset, Rethink are a modern company with global aims - centering inclusion and empowerment at the core of their ethos.

Let's get started!

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

64% of U.S. adults have had adverse childhood experiences.

A stark statistic, and one that we are paying the cultural and economic cost of.

As this week’s guest Julika von Stackelberg tells us, these experiences in our youth have a direct impact on our life expectancy and wellbeing in our lives.

Through her work as a peaceful parenting advisor and educator with the Cornell Cooperative Extension, Julika is on a mission to empower young people and parents, nurture a community-led approach to raising our children, and help us all better self-regulate our feelings and actions.

She takes us through some key definitions, outlines some trauma-informed initiatives to assist young people, and centers her advocacy on the need to keep wellbeing, not profit, at the core of policymaking.

Together we can make change, build resilience, and implement measures for healing.

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

We have a problem with prescriptions. A major problem.

We take a step back from our recent policy-focused guests, to welcome licensed pharmacist, host of Men's Health Unscripted podcast, and founder of Your Tampa Healthcare Advocate, Patrick Alonso.

Patrick is on the front line with patients, and was empowered to change the tide of problematic prescriptions through first-hand family experience.

The issue is polypharmacy. Multiple doctors prescribing different medications, siloed from each other, resulting in patients being put at risk. 

This is where his role as advocate comes in, with Patrick supporting, informing and empowering patients to know their healthcare better than anyone, and treat themselves like gold.

In the face of deceptive advertising, lax food and drug policy and a dysfunctional system, Patrick provides patient-centred medicine. The medicine is a tool, but should not be a crutch!

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

It’s time to get to grips with sepsis.

The statistics are stark: sepsis is killing 250,000 people in our country every year - and yet we’re still only getting to grips with why it happens, how we can identify it, and how we ensure effective treatment.

On a mission to better our understanding is Dr. Robert Scoggins, a leading figure in pulmonary and critical care medicine who serves as Chief Medical Officer of Cytovale, a private company building cutting-edge technology to identify sepsis.

He takes us through its medical definition, the huge importance of catching it early, the SEP-1 protocol, and how Cytovale’s tech holds promise for the future.

Screening systems are in place for heart attack and stroke - it’s time we have the same for sepsis.

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

“In the United States we don’t ration medicine, we ration people.”

We are honored this week to welcome an esteemed author, pediatrician, educator and co-founder of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, Dr. Don Berwick.

Dr. Berwick has dedicated his career to reigniting our healthcare system, to ensure it can meet the needs of disadvantaged people, and limit the excess profits being hoarded as wealth by the powers that be.

Formerly serving as the former Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services under Barack Obama, he knows the details of our system inside out - challenging misinformation and calling out partisan refusals to collaborate for the good of everyone, not just the stakeholders.

In our discussion, he shares his story, his experiences in government, common misconceptions about his philosophies, his worry at the corporatization of our system, and some seeds of hope amidst a climate of greed.

“Anybody that says we can't meet the needs of the American public isn't reading the information. What they mean is, we can't meet the needs of the American public and satisfy all the greed that we've unleashed in the current system.”

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4

Follow me on Instagram and Facebook @ericfethkemd and checkout my website at www.EricFethkeMD.com.

My brand new book, The Privilege of Caring, is out now on Amazon! https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CP6H6QN4