Well Beyond Medicine: The Nemours Children's Health Podcast

Childhood adversity can affect health for a lifetime, but it does not have to define a child’s future. Robert Sege, MD, PhD, FAAP, Director, HOPE (Healthy Outcomes From Positive Experiences) National Resource Center, explores how positive experiences and supportive relationships can help children heal and build resilience. From safe, stable environments to emotional growth and a strong sense of belonging, these protective factors can shape healthier outcomes and create the conditions for children to thrive.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:
Robert Sege, MD, PhD, FAAP, Director, HOPE National Resource Center

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

What if the goal of children’s health went beyond treating illness to creating the conditions where every child can thrive? We explore what it means to invest in Whole Child Health and why healthier children require more than what happens in a doctor’s office with guest David Keller, MD, Professor of Pediatrics and Vice Chair for Clinical Strategy and Transformation, Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children's Hospital Colorado, and Chair, Pediatric Policy Council. He discusses the role of families, schools and communities, and why the way we define, measure and pay for children’s health must evolve. Together, we explore how shifting from fixing problems to creating health can build a healthier future for children and their communities.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

David Keller, MD, Professor of Pediatrics and Vice Chair for Clinical Strategy and Transformation, Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine and Children's Hospital Colorado, and Chair, Pediatric Policy Council

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

What’s driving the alarming rise in suicide deaths among Black youth — and what can we do about it? In part two of our youth suicide prevention series, three experts examine findings from Pain in the Nation 2026 and explore how schools, health care systems, communities, and public policy can work together to create the conditions young people need to thrive.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE, President and CEO, Trust for America’s Health

Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH, Physician, Population Health Scientist, Author, Margaret C. Ryan Dean, Eugene S. and Constance Kahn Distinguished Professor in Public Health, WashU Bursky School of Public Health

Mallory Garnett, PhD, Clinical Psychologist, Nemours Children’s Health

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

What can we do to better understand and prevent suicide among young people? In part one of our two-part series, Christine Yu Moultier, MD, Chief Medical Officer, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, explores what science tells us about youth suicide risk, including the protective power of belonging, the impact of loneliness and social media, emerging concerns around AI chatbots, and how adults can start a potentially lifesaving conversation.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

Christine Yu Moultier, MD, Chief Medical Officer, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

What does it take for a child to fight cancer while holding on to the life they love? This Childhood Cancer Awareness Day, we team up with the Philadelphia Phillies to share Alivia Eder's inspiring journey alongside her oncologist, Nicholas Manini, MD, pediatric hematologist-oncologist, Nemours Children's Health. Hear Alivia share what cancer, treatment and finding her way back to everyday life have been like, then join Douglas J. Harrison, MD, MS, Division Chief of Hematology/Oncology/Transplant and Cellular Therapy, Inaugural Lisa Dean Moseley Foundation Presidential Endowed Chair, Nemours Children’s Health, for a look at decades of research and emerging innovations giving children with cancer brighter futures.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

Alivia Eder, student and cancer survivor

Nicholas Manini, MD, pediatric hematologist-oncologist, Nemours Children's Health

Douglas J. Harrison, MD, MS, Division Chief of Hematology/Oncology/Transplant and Cellular Therapy, Inaugural Lisa Dean Moseley Foundation Presidential Endowed Chair, Nemours Children’s Health

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

Trust is at the heart of health care, but misinformation and confusing health information can make it harder for people to know who and what to trust. Lisa Fitzpatrick, MD, MPH, MPA, Founder & CEO, Grapevine Health, explores how plain language, trusted sources and genuine human connection can make health information more accessible and use it to help rebuild trust. 

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Featuring:

Lisa Fitzpatrick, MD, MPH, MPA, Founder, Grapevine Health

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

Advances in prenatal diagnosis and fetal surgery are changing what's possible before a child is even born. Three specialists from the Institute for Maternal Fetal Health at Nemours Children’s Health discuss how breakthroughs in fetal care are improving outcomes for babies with complex conditions. They also share how a multidisciplinary team supports families through prenatal diagnoses, difficult decisions and every step of the journey – from pregnancy to delivery and beyond.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

Julie S. Moldenhauer, MD, PMH-C, FACOG, FACMGG, Executive Director, Institute for Maternal Fetal Health, Elizabeth W. Snyder Endowed Chair in Fetal Therapy and Innovation, Nemours Children’s Health
Eric Paul Bergh, MD, Director of Fetal Research and Informatics, Institute for Maternal Fetal Health, Nemours Children's Health
Christina (Nina) Paidas Teefey, MD, PMH-C, Director of Psychosocial Programs, Institute for Maternal Fetal Health, Nemours Children's Health

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

Fathers have a profound impact on their children's physical, mental and emotional well-being, yet they're often left out of pediatric research. John James "JJ" Parker, MD, Researcher, Attending Physician, Advanced General Pediatrics and Primary Care, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital, Chicago, explores what the science tells us about involved fathers, where critical research gaps remain, and how supporting dads can improve outcomes for children and families alike.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

John James "JJ" Parker, MD, Researcher, Attending Physician, Advanced General Pediatrics and Primary Care, Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital, Chicago

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

What if your child’s digital habits are informed with your own? Meredith Gansner, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Child & Adolescent Services, University of Rochester, explores the growing body of research examining how caregivers' digital behaviors — from excessive screen time and "sharenting" to online health misinformation — can shape children's mental health, development and long-term well-being.

The conversation examines how children model the digital behaviors they observe, why oversharing online can have lasting consequences, how social media algorithms influence parents' health decisions, and practical strategies families can use to build healthier relationships with technology.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

Meredith Gansner, MD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Child & Adolescent Services, University of Rochester

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.

Military-connected children and teens face unique behavioral health challenges, from frequent moves and disruptions in care to parental deployments, long wait times and navigating health care systems that don't always move with them.

In part two of this series, tied to the release of two policy papers from Nemours Children's Health and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, the conversation shifts to the clinicians and program leaders working to improve access to behavioral health care for military-connected youth. They explore the barriers families face when seeking mental health care for their children, the potential of telehealth and interstate licensure compacts to expand access, and why military-informed care, cross-sector collaboration and a whole-family approach are essential to improving outcomes.

Watch the episode on YouTube.

Featuring:

Monica Barreto, PhD, Clinical Director, Primary Care Integrated Behavioral Health, Nemours Children's Health

Jeanine Hoff, MSW, MAS, LCSW, Mental Health Provider, Pediatric Acute Telemental Health (PATH) Program, Nemours Children’s Health

Jennifer Crockett, PhD, Director of Telehealth, Director of Behavioral Health Services for Military Families, The Kennedy-Krieger Institute

Host/Producer: Carol Vassar

Resources Mentioned in This Series: 

• Serving Military-Connected Children: Access to Care (PDF)
• Serving Military-Connected Children: Mental Health and Well-Being (PDF)
• Free, online course: Caring for Children and Teens in Military Caregiving Families
• Initiatives at Nemours Children’s to support military-connected youth 
• Military Child and Family Collaboratory
• One Op
• Star Behavioral Health Providers
• Kennedy Krieger Behavioral Health Program for Military Families

Military-focused programs:

• FOCUS UCLA 
• Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness Penn State
• Military REACH Auburn University
• Hidden Helpers Coalition   
  • To inquire about joining the Hidden Helpers Coalition, email [email protected] 

Past Well Beyond Medicine episodes with related topics:

• Ep. 70: Hidden Helpers, Hidden No More (Part 1 of 2)  
• Ep. 71: Hidden Helpers Heard (Part 2 of 2)
• Ep. 90: Forum – Supporting Our Military Families and Hidden Helpers (Part 1 of 2)
• Ep. 91: Forum - Supporting Our Military Families and Hidden Helpers (Part 2 of 2)
• Ep. 167: Accessing Pediatric Mental Health Services (PATH) (Part 1 of 2)
• Ep. 168: Accessing Pediatric Mental Health Services (PATH) (Part 2 of 2)

General questions related to the content addressed during the podcast: [email protected] 

Views expressed by guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the host or management. 

Subscribe, review or let your voice be heard at NemoursWellBeyond.org.