Working Healthcare

Physicians need support, not another initiative. Their staff needs fewer obstacles, not another workaround. Listen to learn how leaders can cut administrative sludge.

In this episode of Working Healthcare, guest Ken Segel, co-founder of Value Capture, examines healthcare’s administrative sludge: prior authorization battles, conflicting payer rules and workflows that send physicians home with unfinished charts.

Ken shares a telling example: A practice employs someone to fight denials for tests that ultimately win approval 97% of the time. That is not a staffing solution. That is a process demanding scrutiny.

We discuss how healthcare leaders can reduce administrative burden, address physician burnout and improve operations without adding another committee or buying another platform.

Ken explains why lasting improvement requires more than a project launch. Teams need real-time support, room to test better workflows and a routine for solving problems rather than repeatedly working around them.

We also tackle leadership resistance, succession planning and why CEOs should spend less time reviewing presentations and more time observing frontline care.

The question for leaders: Are you removing friction or asking your team to absorb it?

Join us for a candid conversation about healthcare leadership, operational improvement and the work leaders cannot delegate: making it easier for their teams to succeed.

Contact Ken:
Website: valuecapturellc.com
Instagram: @wpadad
LinkedIn: @ken-segel
YouTube: @@ValueCapture

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

A policy changes. A software system decides who keeps coverage. Listen to explore what happens when Medicaid rules become code.

In this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Rob Miller to unpack Medicaid work requirements, eligibility verification and the technology that helps determine who keeps coverage.

Meredith and Rob examine how confusing notices, disconnected records and difficult reporting portals can put coverage at risk—even when someone meets the requirements. Rob explains why states should check reliable data before asking members to prove information the government already holds.

For physicians and healthcare executives, this is more than a policy debate. It is a conversation about administrative burden, operational efficiency and who takes responsibility when software gets a decision wrong.

They also discuss where AI can help identify exemptions, flag conflicting records and reduce manual review. The goal: remove complexity rather than hand it to the next person.

Accountability cannot disappear behind an automated decision.\
Press play for a direct conversation about Medicaid, responsible automation and the leadership required to make healthcare technology work.

Contact Rob:
LinkedIn: @robmillersftn

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Tune in to learn why a serious diagnosis can turn a patient or family caregiver into an unpaid care coordinator, insurance expert and bill auditor. Board-certified patient advocate Emily Egley joins Meredith Hirsh to explain how people can navigate denied claims, confusing medical bills and disconnected care without losing sight of the doctor-patient relationship.

Emily draws on her experience managing her own care and supporting her husband, Jarrod, through seven years of colorectal cancer treatment. She shares practical ways to prepare for a doctor’s appointment, organize medications and test results, compare a medical bill with an explanation of benefits and speak with an insurer when care or payment hits a roadblock.

Their conversation asks a larger question for physicians and health care leaders: Why does the system place so much administrative work on people who are sick or caring for someone they love? Emily makes the case for clearer communication, stronger patient advocacy and health care that patients can actually navigate.

Share this episode with a caregiver, physician or practice leader who can help take that burden off patients.

Contact Emily:
Website: healthcareuncomplicated.com
Instagram: @healthcareuncomplicated
Facebook: HealthcareUncomplicated
LinkedIn: @emily-egley

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Listen now to hear fertility specialist Dr. Carolina Sueldo explain how she built an independent fertility practice around IVF transparency, physician autonomy and patient-centered care. In this Working Healthcare episode, Dr. Sueldo and Meredith Hirsh confront infertility, IVF costs, fertility preservation, egg freezing and the private equity pressures reshaping fertility clinics.

Dr. Sueldo, founder and CEO of Ceibo Fertility Center, shares why she left high-volume, investor-driven medicine to create a doctor-led practice where patients can ask questions, understand treatment options and navigate the emotional weight of infertility with more support. She also offers practical insight for patients who compare fertility clinics, consider IVF or ask when to seek help from a reproductive endocrinologist.

For physicians and health care leaders, this conversation explores the business of medicine: private practice, transparent pricing, cash flow, team building, physician burnout and how to scale without sacrificing meaningful care. Dr. Sueldo also shares how she self-funded her practice, recovered startup costs in her first year and built a four-day workweek while growing her fertility center.

Follow Working Healthcare and share this episode with a physician who seeks more autonomy, a health care leader rethinking fertility care or someone navigating infertility and IVF.

Contact Dr. Sueldo:
Instagram: @ceibofertility
Facebook: Ceibo Fertility Center
LinkedIn: @DrCarolinaSueldo
YouTube: @DrCarolinaSueldo

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Learn how your wardrobe can shape your confidence, communicate your authority and strengthen the way you show up at work, on camera and in everyday life.

In this vibrant episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Paola Arencibia, personal stylist and founder of Serious Style Inc., for a candid conversation about clothing, self-esteem and executive presence. Paola explains why style reaches far beyond fashion trends: every outfit sends a message to the world, but it first speaks to the person wearing it.

Paola shares how she moved from teaching literature and creative writing to reading closets as emotional archives. Behind unworn dresses, tight jeans and inherited pieces, she often finds stories about identity, body image, ambition and major life changes. Her approach helps clients clear the visual noise and choose clothing that supports who they are now—not who they once were or who they think they should become.

The episode explores style archetypes, personal branding, confidence and the subtle power of color, proportion and posture. Paola also addresses an important challenge for women in healthcare: how to project credibility and authority without shrinking, camouflaging or apologizing for success. From white lab coats to Zoom meetings, she explains how intentional clothing can help professionals feel grounded, visible and ready to lead.

Paola closes with a simple closet audit: remove clothing that criticizes your body, try on pieces that still carry price tags and decide whether gifted items truly serve you.

Listen in for an empowering conversation about dressing with intention, claiming your presence and becoming the CEO of your wardrobe.

Contact Paola:
Website: serious-style.com
Instagram: @seriousstyle_mia
LinkedIn: @paola-arencibia

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Discover why breast cancer screening still falls behind busy schedules and how one physician is bringing 3D mammography directly to the women who need it.

In this Breast Cancer Awareness Month episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh speaks with Dr. Ryan Polselli, Navy veteran, fellowship-trained breast radiologist and founder of Mammolink. Dr. Polselli challenges the assumption that awareness alone drives screening. He argues that access creates the real barrier when women must navigate referrals, insurance questions, time away from work and multiple appointments before they can get a mammogram.

Dr. Polselli shares how Mammolink brings mobile 3D mammography to workplaces, schools and communities across Florida. His model aims to make screening faster, more convenient and more personal: women can schedule from their phones, step onto a mobile unit near work and receive results directly on their devices.

The conversation also explores dense breast tissue, follow-up imaging, patient communication, employer-supported screening and the role AI can play in reducing delays. Dr. Polselli explains why breast imaging needs more than new technology—it needs a patient-centered system that removes friction, shares information quickly and helps women stay on track year after year.

His message is clear: women should not have to fight the healthcare system to access a lifesaving screening.

Pull up a chair to hear how Mammolink is reimagining breast cancer screening and why easier access could save lives.

Contact Dr. Polselli:
Website: mammolink.com
Instagram: @ryanpolselli
Facebook: 3DMobileMammography
LinkedIn: @ryanpolselli
YouTube: @RyanPolselli

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Listen now to uncover how Medicare Advantage plans can create costly barriers through restrictive networks, prior authorization, drug formularies and opaque coverage rules — and learn how your practice can protect patient access before, during and after the sale.

In this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh speaks with healthcare compliance and reimbursement expert Stephanie Allard of Stephanie Allard Consulting about Medicare Advantage, Original Medicare, Medigap, claim denials and the rules that shape access to care.

Stephanie explains why low premiums and attractive extras like dental, vision, gym memberships or grocery benefits should not be the only factors driving a coverage decision. Listeners will learn what to review before enrolling, including provider networks, specialist access, prescription drug formularies, prior-authorization requirements, coverage limitations and appeal options.

The conversation also explores the challenges medical practices face when working with payers. Stephanie draws on her experience in coding, billing, audits and payer investigations to discuss downcoding, bundled services, changing payer policies, payment clawbacks and denial patterns. She shares practical insight on protecting practice revenue while maintaining compliance.

Press play for practical guidance on evaluating Medicare coverage, asking smarter questions and advocating for the care you or your loved one needs before accepting a plan’s promises—or a payer’s denial.

Contact Stephanie:
Website: stephanieallardconsulting.com
Facebook: Stephanie Allard Consulting, LLC
LinkedIn: @stephanie-allard-cpc-cema-rhit
YouTube: @stephanieallardconsultingllc

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Listen to a doctor’s passionate case for protecting the physician-patient relationship and keeping care centered on people—not metrics, corporate targets or insurance barriers.

On this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh speaks with Dr. Kayvan Amini—an independent cardiologist, physician advocate and leader in organized medicine—about the forces reshaping American healthcare and what is at stake when physicians lose autonomy.

Kayvan shares why independent medicine matters and why doctors need a meaningful voice in healthcare leadership. He discusses the pressures facing private practices, including physician burnout, workforce shortages, administrative demands and the growing movement toward employed care models.

The conversation also explores how healthcare organizations can better support and retain women physicians through more flexible workplace structures, creative practice models, and leadership opportunities that recognize the realities of rigorous training and family responsibilities.

Kayvan’s commitment to service and resilience is rooted in his personal story. After political exile disrupted his family’s life, he rebuilt from the ground up—an experience that strengthened his belief in independence, public service and building a medical practice around patients’ individual needs.

Press play for an honest conversation about compassionate care, physician leadership and the changes needed to preserve the human connection at the heart of medicine.

Contact Dr. Amini:
LinkedIn: @Kayvan Amini, DO, FACC

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Shelly Starks knows the raw isolation that comes when healthcare leaves a patient with life-altering questions and no clear path forward. A breast cancer diagnosis in her 20s. More than 30 surgeries. Surgical menopause with little guidance and even less support.

Today, she sits on the other side of the system, helping employers, carriers and brokers shape benefit strategies that influence access, premiums and patient choices.

On this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Shelly for a candid, high-energy conversation about the hidden structure behind employer-sponsored health insurance. Shelly breaks down the maze of carriers, third-party administrators, managing general agencies, brokers and benefit plans that stands between an employee and care.

She explains why employers often select from limited options, why brokers may not know every available product and why rising premiums place intense pressure on both businesses and families. Shelly also translates Section 125 plans into plain English and explores how pre-tax benefits can help employees stretch healthcare dollars.

Then the conversation turns personal. Shelly shares the struggle to find menopause support after a radical hysterectomy, the frustration of being told she would simply “be fine” and the fierce drive that pushed her to search for better answers.

The healthcare system does not need another Band-Aid. It needs leaders who ask harder questions, demand better options and refuse to accept confusion as the cost of care.

Press play if you lead a business, manage benefits, work in healthcare or want to understand who makes the decisions behind your health insurance card.

Contact Shelly:
Website: inlineconsultingservices.com
Instagram: @shellystarks
Facebook: ShellyStarksICS
LinkedIn: @shelly-starks

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare

Ann Monis knows how to build under pressure. She worked her way through college, tested out of courses to save tuition and carried that grit into healthcare. Today, she leads a growing behavioral health organization while raising two young sons and navigating life as a clinician, entrepreneur and CEO.

In this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Ann for a candid conversation about leadership, motherhood, mental health and the business realities behind patient care. Ann shares why no MBA or leadership book can prepare someone for a missed payroll, a home-backed line of credit or the lonely decisions that come with leading a healthcare organization.

Together, Meredith and Ann explore the pressure behind scaling behavioral healthcare, where rapid growth can threaten quality and insurance reimbursement fails to keep pace with inflation, labor costs and patient needs. They also tackle the double standard for powerful women, the sacrifice behind career ambition and the importance of building teams around skill rather than ego.

Ann makes one point crystal clear: doctors need the freedom to be doctors again. When reimbursement shrinks, debt rises and administrative burden grows, clinicians struggle and patients pay the price.

Listen in for a bold conversation about grit, leadership and protecting patient care in a strained healthcare system.

Contact Ann:
Website: drann.com
Instagram: @drann____
Facebook: Dr-Ann-Monis
LinkedIn: @ann-monis-mba-psyd

Contact Meredith:
Website: meredithhirsh.com
Instagram: @workinghealthcare
Facebook: WorkingHealthcare
LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh
YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare