There’s a Better Way: Smart Talk on Healthcare and Technology

In this episode, Melanie sits down with Tina Grande, the Executive Vice President for Policy at the Healthcare Leadership Council. In her role, Tina helps to advocate for consumer-centered healthcare reform, emphasizing the value of private-sector innovation as well as public-private partnership. Tina has healthcare and policy in her blood: her father represented the Mayo Clinic on Capitol Hill, and she began her career as junior staffer in healthcare policy for Senator David Durenberger. In the early 2000s, she became an entrepreneur, creating a software that organized 44,000 pages of Medicare policy into a consumable format for policymakers and providers alike. During their discussion, Melanie and Tina dig deeper into Tina’s remarkable career at the intersection of healthcare, technology and national policy. Tina also shares her perspective on the mission and successes of the Council, what inspires her, and the key priorities she believes policymakers and healthcare leaders should keep front and center in the months and years ahead.

In this episode, Melanie sits down with Mariann Yeager, the Chief Executive Officer of The Sequoia Project, an independent advocate for nationwide health information exchange. Beginning her career in health IT in Nashville, Mariann eventually made her way to Washington, D.C., where she’s remained on the forefront of the digital healthcare transformation ever since. Melanie and Mariann discuss how in the not-too-distant past, healthcare was still largely being conducted on paper. However, we’ve made some incredible strides since then, and this episode dives into some of the most noteworthy discoveries, changes and evolutions in the healthcare industry in recent years. Mariann also shares her perspective on the complementary nature of private-public partnership on the journey to advance data sharing practices, how to use passion to keep yourself and others motivated, and much more.

TIME recently named Walgreens one of the 100 Most Influential Companies of 2022, noting that as of March 2022, the company had administered 60 million COVID-19 vaccines and 26 million tests. In this episode, host Melanie Marcus, Chief Marketing Officer of Surescripts, sits down with a guest who has had a truly noteworthy career, beginning as a cashier at the Walgreens across the street from her high school before rising through the ranks to become Vice President for Pharmacy Quality, Compliance and Patient Safety at the company. Today, Tasha Polster has overseen the national rollout of the COVID-19 vaccine in thousands of stores across the country. As a healthcare leader who is helping to reimagine how care can and should be delivered in this “new normal,” Tasha shares her inspiring story, and her perspective on the value of innovation, collaboration and partnership during challenging times. 

Welcome to "There's a Better Way: Smart Talk on Healthcare & Technology", a new podcast series by Surescripts. In each episode, host Melanie Marcus, Chief Marketing Officer of Surescripts, sits down with some of the most inspiring leaders in healthcare today for in-depth and personal conversations about the industry’s challenges and opportunities. Through this podcast, you’ll be exposed to new perspectives on stubborn healthcare challenges, how technology can be used to improve care and what the future might hold for an industry in the midst of rapid change. If you’re up for smart, energizing and story-driven conversations with some of the nation’s top leaders in healthcare and technology, tune into There’s a Better Way, premiering on all major podcast apps this summer. Learn more.