The Heart of Healthcare | A Digital Health Podcast

The majority of bankruptcies in the US are due to medical debt. This only deepens inequity and the healthcare affordability crisis in our country. The stress and sigma that comes with medical debt forces people to avoid necessary care, only worsening outcomes.We need to shift the narrative about medical debt from personal failure to systems failure. In this episode we talk to the CEO of RIP Medical Debt, Allison Sesso. Her non-profit organization buys medical debt at a deep discount, and then wipes it out entirely for millions of Americans.Learn more about RIP Medical DebtSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

As you probably know by now, May is Mental Health Awareness Month. But what you might not know is that entrepreneurs are 50% more likely to report having a mental health condition, including being:2X more likely to suffer from depression2X more likely to have suicidal thoughts3X more likely to suffer from substance abuse6X more likely to have ADHD10X more likely to suffer from bi-polar disorderIn this episode, successful founder and angel investor Andy Dunn talks about living with Bipolar I disorder. Andy Dunn is an entrepreneur, author, investor, and father. Andy co-founded the menswear brand Bonobos, which sold for $310 million. Last year, he published a memoir called Burn Rate: Launching a Startup and Losing My Mind, which detailed his up-until-then private journey with bipolar disorder. Listen to this important episode as we normalize talking about mental health disorders in the startup community.Follow Andy Dunn on TwitterFollow host Halle Tecco on TwitterVisit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and transcriptSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

May is Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Heritage Month. Asian Americans represents only 6.8% of the US, yet make up a significant portion of the medical profession, comprising 22% of medical school graduates and 17% of active physicians. While Americans of Asian and Pacific Island descent have made many contributions to our healthcare system, they are facing increased discrimination at work and in their communities.In this episode, Dr. Esther Choo discusses the racism faced by AAPI healthcare workers, and what we can do about it.Follow Dr. Esther Choo on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 2008, disillusioned by the medical system, Dr. Lakshmin left her residency to join an extreme wellness commune that turned out to be a cult. She was seeking something outside of mainstream medicine that could help with the anguish she was feeling. She yearned for community, and for something outside of the hierarchical structure of medicine. But what she found was that the industrial wellness complex is just as flawed.Dr. Pooja Lakshmin is a board certified psychiatrist focusing on women’s mental health, a New York Times contributor, the founder of Gemma, and the author of the new book Real Self-Care: A Transformative Program for Redefining Wellness.Follow Dr. Pooja Lakshmin on InstagramFollow host Halle Tecco on InstagramVisit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A new study published in JAMA found that more Black doctors means better outcomes for Black patients. Yet the percentage of med students from underrepresented groups is increasing at a paltry rate… and has actually decreased for Black men since 1978.In this episode, LaShyra "Lash" Nolen talks about the future of medical education and care. Lash is a medical student, Fulbright scholar, science communicator, and the Founder of non-profit We Got Us. She currently serves as the first Black woman to become class president of the Harvard Medical School.Read the study in JAMA. Follow guest Lash Nolan on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

IVF has come a long way since the first IVF baby was born in 1978. Thirty years ago, your chances of bringing home a baby with each IVF try was 5%. Today, that number is around one third. While this is an impressive improvement, the fact is, the majority of patients will not go home with a baby after an invasive, emotional, and expensive round of IVF. There’s still much progress to be made.In this special episode, I share a piece I wrote for Fortune Magazine on what's wrong with fertility care, and what we need to do to fix it.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Women are the power users and the power brokers of healthcare. And as the de facto “Chief Medical Officers” of their families — making healthcare decisions for their partners, children, and parents — women control an estimated 80% of all U.S. healthcare dollars.Yet our healthcare system is failing women. The majority report experiencing gender discrimination from their providers, and feel that their concerns are taken less seriously because they’re women. It’s no surprise, then, that the healthcare system has a “loyalty crisis” with its most powerful customer, with over half of women reporting not trusting the U.S. healthcare system.In this episode, Tia Co-founder & CEO Carolyn Witte talks about trailblazing a new paradigm for women’s healthcare that treats women as whole people vs. parts or life stages.Follow guest Carolyn Witte on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The healthcare industry has made significant strides in the past 50 years… or has it? In this episode, we sit down with Adrian Aoun, CEO of Forward, an AI-based healthcare system, who is simply not impressed with the lethargic pace of progress. We discuss how artificial intelligence (AI) can help us achieve exponential improvements to human health and how ChatGPT is the worst of the new world.Follow guest Adrian Aoun on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

March is National Nutrition Month and in this episode, we delve into the inner workings of the Big Food industry with Pulitzer Prize-Winning investigative journalist Michael Moss. Michael shares his insights on how the industry uses science and marketing schemes to get us addicted to unhealthy food products, then turns around and sells us diet fads that don't work. With a background as an investigative journalist at the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times, as well as being the author of the groundbreaking books "Salt Sugar Fat" and "Hooked", Michael brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to the (dinner) table, uncovering the truth behind our food industry.Follow guest Michael Moss on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

March is National Nutrition Month and in this episode, Instacart’s CEO Fidji Simo shares her insights on scaling food as medicine programs, improving nutrition security, and making healthy choices more accessible.Nourishing the community is in Fidji's DNA. She comes from three generations of fishermen in the south of France. A first-generation high school graduate, she has become a prominent and well-respected leader in technology… and now in healthcare too. You are going to love this enlightening episode!Follow guest Fidji Simo on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode my friend Ryan Panchadsaram, co-author of Speed & Scale: An Action Plan for Solving our Climate Crisis, shares what we can do today to cut greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. And why our health depends on it.Follow guest Ryan Panchadsaram on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Like it or not, data brokers have probably monetized your health data. But how do they get it in the first place? And what measures can you take to safeguard your health data? In this enlightening episode, I talk to data privacy expert Lucia Savage to find out. Lucia was formerly Chief Privacy Officer at the US Department of Health and Human Services, and is currently Chief Privacy and Regulatory Officer at Omada Health. Follow guest Lucia Savage on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

After explosive growth in the first year of the pandemic, the amount of VC funding flowing into digital health in 2022 was about half of what it was in 2021. Meanwhile, exit opportunities have seemingly dried up.In this episode, I talk to two of my favorite digital health investors about what the heck is happening and what we can expect in 2023.Mo Makhzoumi is Managing General Partner of Healthcare at NEA and Deena Shakir is a General Partner at Lux. Listen to the end to find out the answer to the question, if digital health was a party, what kind of party would it be?Not to give it away, but Mo insisted that I put the definition of rave in this description for anyone who is too young to know: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RaveSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

More than 40% of Americans have obesity, a number that continues to rise. And despite being a multi-billion dollar business — the weight loss industry just isn’t helping people lose weight. Perhaps that’s why new GLP-1 medications, like Wegovy, are getting so much attention.To learn more, I spoke to Sarah Jones Simmer, CEO of Found. With over $130M in venture funding, Found is the largest medically-supported weight care clinic in the country.Join us as we delve into the history of the weight loss industry, and discuss how telehealth (and responsible prescribing) along with new medications, may just be an inflection point.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The number of Americans with a primary care physician is declining along with the number of medical school graduates wanting to go into primary care. A big reason for this is how, and how much, they are paid. Can replacing our fee-for-service model with value-based care save our healthcare system? In this episode, Dr. Farzad Mostashari, former National Coordinator for Health IT at HHS and current Co-Founder and CEO of Aledade, dives into the what, why, and how of value-based care solutions.Follow Dr. Farzad Mostashari on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Dr. Laurie Zephyrin, Heart of Healthcare Grant Challenge judge and SVP for Advancing Health Equity at the Commonwealth Fund, interviews Dr. Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha from Tuft’s Center for Black Maternal Health & Reproductive Justice, the winner of our $25,000 grant challenge. Learn about how CBMHRJ is taking a new approach to eliminating maternal health inequities and improving the Black birthing experience.Follow Dr. Laurie Zephyrin on TwitterFollow Dr. Ndidiamaka Amutah-Onukagha on TwitterLearn more about the Heart of Healthcare Grant Challenge.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Renée DiResta, researcher at the Stanford Internet Observatory, talks about the spread of malign narratives across social networks and how that impacts public health. Renée has advised Congress and the State Department, and has studied medical disinformation and the anti-vaccine movement. Renée regularly writes and speaks about the role that tech platforms play in the proliferation of disinformation and conspiracy theories, and has written and been covered in Wired, the New York Times, The Economist, Washington Post, and more.Follow Renée DiResta on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps and more!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Starting a company is hard, even in the best of times. But during a period of economic uncertainty, supply chain disruptions, political divisions, and a global pandemic -- it can feel impossible. In this episode, I talk to Sami Inkinen, a founder who has run companies in both bull and bear markets. Sami was the co-founder of Trulia (IPO) and now Virta Health (valued at $2B). We discuss:The benefits to starting a company in a downturnWhen to raise money, when to focus on top-line growth, and when to focus on unit economicsPractical tips for founder mental healthMaking hard decisions under pressureRowing from California to Hawaii, completely unassistedFollow Sami Inkinen on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal shares a treatment plan for our healthcare system. Elisabeth is an ER doctor turned reporter, and author of the New York Times bestselling book, An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take it Back. Her book reveals the dangerous, expensive, and dysfunctional American healthcare system, and tells us exactly what we can do to fix it. Dr. Rosenthal spent 22 years as a correspondent at the New York Times before joining Kaiser Health News as Editor-in-Chief about five years ago. Follow Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal.Follow host Halle Tecco.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Dr. Nzinga Harrison puts addiction and substance use disorder into context. She also explains how an evidence-based and compassionate harm-reduction approach can lead to better health outcomes. Dr. Harrison is the Co-Founder and CMO of Eleanor Health, which has raised $82M to help those affected by substance use disorders.Learn more about Eleanor Health.Follow Dr. Nzinga Harrison.Follow host Halle Tecco.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Host Halle Tecco talks with two of her favorite long-time colleagues in digital health: Chrissy Farr and Malay Gandhi.Chrissy started her career in this space as a digital health reporter for VentureBeat, FastCompany, and CNBC before becoming a venture capitalist at OMERS ventures.Malay started his career in management consulting before joining me at Rock Health where he served as Managing Director and CEO before going onto be an EIR at Greylock Partners, an executive at Eviction Health, and now Head of Strategy & Corporate Development at Benching.The episode transcript is available here at http://www.heartofhealthcarepodcast.com/episodes/chrissy-farr-malay-gandhiVisit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mark Cuban was horrified at how many Americans struggle to pay for their medications, which are 250% more expensive in the U.S. than in other OECD nations. In this episode, he shares the details of his online pharmacy for generic drugs that offers steep discounts. The Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company cuts out the middle-man, charging customers a transparent price that is equal to the manufacturers' price, plus a flat 15% markup.The episode transcript is available here at https://www.heartofhealthcarepodcast.com/episodes/mark-cuban-cost-plusVisit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In today's episode, you'll hear from the six incredible semi-finalists of the Heart of Healthcare Grant Challenge. Place your votes before the end of the month at https://www.heartofhealthcarepodcast.com/grantsThe episode transcript is available here at http://www.heartofhealthcarepodcast.com/episodes/grant-challenge-semi-finalistsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Long waits for appointments, short time with the provider, cookie-cutter treatment, and infrequent support don’t work well for people suffering from anxiety and depression. This week's guest, Brad Kittredge, believes in a world where everyone suffering from mental health can get personalized care, and he knows technology can get us there. Learn how his company, Brightside, is working with the system (not against it) for real change.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website for more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This episode was recorded with My Climate Journey to explore the intersection of climate change and human health. Dr. Darragh O'Carroll is a science communicator and emergency physician specializing in emergency, disaster, climate, and COVID-19 medicine. He's making a documentary series called "Infected planet" to illustrate how climate change is affecting global and public health, and highlight the solutions.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website.Visit the My Climate Journey website.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The number of online companies offering mail-order invisible aligners is booming. But this orthodontist says some are ruining people's teeth and harming their overall health. In this episode, orthodontist and entrepreneur Dr. Ingrid Murra, talks about the state of venture-backed dentistry. Dr. Murra is the Founder & CEO of Two Front, a digital health startup bringing next-generation orthodontics to the market.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s in our water, our food, and so many other products we use on a daily basis, from non-stick pans to popcorn bags. Exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as “forever chemicals”, have been linked to a variety of health conditions including cancer, infertility, birth defects, developmental delays, asthma, allergies, cardiovascular disease, obesity and more. In this episode, we talk to one of the world’s leading environmental health scientists and advocates Arlene Blum, who is the founder and executive director of the Green Science Policy Institute.Learn more about the Green Science Policy Institute.Visit the Heart of Healthcare website.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, I sit down with epidemiologist Jessica Malaty Rivera to discuss Monkeypox, Polio, COVID, and why pandemics are becoming more common.Jessica serves as the Science Communication Lead for The COVID Tracking Project at The Atlantic, a Research Fellow at Boston Children's Hospital Innovation & Digital Health Accelerator, an Infection Preventionist at Netflix, and a Senior Advisor to the Pandemic Prevention Institute at the Rockefeller Foundation. This episode was recorded at the Rock Health Virtual Summit.Follow Jessica Malaty River on Instagram.Follow Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for lots of goodies!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Caregiving is the work that makes all other work possible, but it doesn’t always get the respect it deserves -— whether it’s done by an employee or a family member. Ai Jen Poo believes that we should make care policies like family leave, child care, and child tax credits part of our public infrastructure. As investments in the future of the economy.Ai-Jen Poo is a next-generation labor leader, award-winning organizer, author, and a leading voice in the women’s movement. She is the President of the National Domestic Workers Alliance, Director of Caring Across Generations, Co-Founder of SuperMajority, and Trustee of the Ford Foundation. Ai-Jen is a nationally recognized expert on elder and family care, the future of work, and gender equality.Follow Ai-Jen Poo on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare to learn more about our $25,000 grant challenge.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

With a community of 2.8 million followers on TikTok, Dr. Jennifer Lincoln is using social media to educate and bust the (many) myths surrounding reproductive health and abortion. Dr. Lincoln is a board-certified OBGYN who is passionate about helping people understand their bodies and feel empowered to advocate for themselves. She is the author of Let's Talk About Down There: An OBGYN Answers All Your Burning Questions Without Making You Feel Embarrassed for Asking.Follow Dr. Lincoln on TikTok.Visit The Heart of Healthcare to learn more about our $25,000 grant challenge.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode [Episode 1 revisited], Catherine Coleman Flowers (the “Erin Brockovich of Sewage”) explains how crumbling infrastructure causes toxic sewage spills in the backyards of poor, rural communities. Flowers also talks about how she discovered an outbreak of an intestinal, blood-feeding parasite we thought had been eradicated in the United States. Catherine Coleman Flowers is a MacArthur 'Genius' grant winner, the founder of the Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice, and the author of Waste: One Woman’s Fight Against America’s Dirty Secret.Follow The Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice on Facebook.Visit The Heart of Healthcare to learn more about our $25,000 grant challenge.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ageism is the one ‘ism’ that affects all of us. We all age, if we're so lucky. So why are ageist messages in the media and workplace so pervasive? And what is the impact? In this episode, I talk with advocate Cindy Gallop who is helping build an aspirational culture around aging. After a successful career in advertising, she launched her company on the TED stage, with the goal to end ageism, increase happiness, and promote world peace. You’ll learn exactly what and how her company does in the interview.Follow Cindy Gallop on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website to learn more about our $25,000 grant challenge.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Anne Wojcicki started 23andMe in 2006 to empower consumers with access to their own genetic information. In this episode, she shares the highs and lows of this journey including getting an FDA warning letter, going public, and genotyping over 12 million customers. Plus, she shares why she thinks our healthcare system is a communist system, their role in the discussion of race, and how genetic relative surprises are remarkably common.Follow Anne Wojcicki on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

August is Breastfeeding Awareness Month. And this year it hits different. We have faced a severe shortage of infant formula, with an out-of-stock rate surging to 70%. While it's easy to say "just breastfeed!" — not everyone can breastfeed for a variety of reasons, and we don’t exactly make it easy for working mothers.In this episode, we talk to Dr. Leila Strickland, a biologist, and co-founder of Biomilq. Biomilq is a women-owned, Bill Gates-funded infant nutrition company producing cultured breastmilk in a lab.Visit the Biomilq website.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Nearly half of girls in the U.S. have lacked access to period products, and 1 in 5 have missed school because of it. With a tampon shortage and increasing costs, the problem is worsening and forcing girls to use unhygienic and unsafe alternatives. And it doesn’t help that most states tax period products like luxury goods. In this episode, we discuss the movement for menstrual equity with Lynette Medley, the Founder & CEO of No More Secrets Mind Body Spirituality.Follow No More Secrets on Instagram.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.Visit offscrip.com/shows for more podcasts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last week, the first-ever application to the FDA was submitted to turn Opill birth control from prescription to over-the-counter (OTC) status. Unintended pregnancies in the U.S. are at an all-time low, yet they still represent nearly half of all pregnancies, and each one costs taxpayers over $9,000. In this short episode, I advocate for OTC birth control and the reason we should make it free.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram and Twitter.OffScrip.com/ShowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Patrick Brown, founder of Impossible Foods, doesn’t care about food. He just wants to stop climate change. And he knows the best way to halt global warming is to ditch meat from animals. A former Stanford Professor, Patrick Brown started Impossible Foods at age 60 and has helped grow it to a multi-billion dollar company and household name. In this episode, we talk about his journey to save the planet and human health, and how food is just the vessel for that mission.Learn more about Impossible Foods on Instagram.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.https://offscrip.com/shows/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Quality, evidence-based sex education is more important than ever. In this episode [Ep 10 revisited], youth sex educator Nora Gelperin dives into sex education today and why abstinence-only education has been a failed experiment. She also touches upon contraceptive access for teens, and the #FreeThePill movement to make birth control available over the counter.Nora is the director of Sexuality Education and Training at Advocates for Youth. She is also a proponent of evidence-based sex education, supported by leading professional organizations, including the AMA, ACOG, APHA, and AAP.Follow Advocates for Youth on Instagram.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.offscrip.com/showsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The recent Supreme Court ruling represents a major blow to the fight for reproductive justice in the United States, creating reproductive healthcare restrictions across the country. It spans far beyond a woman’s right to bodily autonomy. In this episode, we discuss evidence-backed public health for reducing unplanned pregnancies, and what the repeal could mean for families needing fertility treatments.Donate to Resolve. Listen to our episode on Sex Ed. Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode [Episode 3 revisited], emergency room physician Dr. Megan Ranney explains how gun violence is a public health crisis, and shares her non-partisan approach to help end it. Dr. Ranney is a respected researcher, emergency physician, and advocate in the field of injury prevention and digital health. She is a Professor at Brown University, and the co-founder of AFFIRM, the American Foundation for Firearm Injury Reduction in Medicine.Follow Dr. Megan Ranney on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.SHOW NOTES: Check out "Is It Serious?" from OffScrip Health https://offscrip.com/shows/See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We love to hate on them, but right now teenagers need our help. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics declared the mental health crisis facing children and teens a national emergency.In this episode, Dr. Hina Talib discusses the challenges adolescents are facing today. Dr. Talib is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and an OBGYN at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She is a spokesperson with the American Academy of Pediatrics and serves on the executive board of the North American Society of Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology.Follow Dr. Hina Talib on Instagram at @TeenHealthDocFollow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.To find out more, visit offscrip.com/shows.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ten years ago, Dr. B found himself with low self-esteem, anxiety, and 50 extra pounds of weight. He turned to his favorite tool from med school -- medical research -- to transform his life through gut health. Dr. B saw mind-blowing results by combining cutting-edge microbiome science with a newfound love of plant-based foods. In this episode, Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, board-certified gastroenterologist and author of NYT best-seller, Fiber Fueled, shares his journey from helping himself to helping others.Follow Dr. B on Instagram at @TheGutHealthMD.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.To find out more, visit offscrip.com/shows.FOdakvkm1lwqgKUvWv3vSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Every day, we’re bombarded with pressure to be positive. From “good vibes only” and “life is good” memes, to “look on the bright side,” we’re constantly told that the key to happiness is silencing negativity. Even when faced with illness, infertility, and other challenges, there’s little space for talking about our real feelings—and processing them so that we can feel better and move forward.In this episode, Whitney Goodman, psychotherapist and author of the book Toxic Positivity, shares the latest research along with everyday examples and stories that reveal how damaging toxic positivity is to ourselves and our relationships.Check out Toxic Positivity on Bookshop.org.Follow Whitney Goodman on Instagram.Follow host Halle Tecco on Instagram.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

May is Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Heritage Month. 8.5% of healthcare workers are AAPI, compared to 6.8% of the U.S. population. While Americans of Asian and Pacific Island descent have made many contributions to our healthcare system, they are facing increased discrimination at work and in their communities.In this episode, Dr. Esther Choo discusses the racism faced by AAPI healthcare workers, and what we can do about it.Follow Dr. Esther Choo on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jake Eberts went viral from live-tweeting his experience participating in an 11-day clinical trial for a dysentery vaccine. He told the story incredibly humorous on Twitter, and I just needed to know more. In this episode, Jake shares all the details from drinking the "shigella smoothie" to his thoughts on clinical trial ethics.Learn more about the shigella vaccine clinical trial.Follow Jake Eberts on Twitter.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It’s National Nurses Week! As the most trusted profession for the last 20 years, nurses make up the highest percentage of the US healthcare workforce and serve as the primary providers of patient care. But we’re facing a nursing crisis and looming shortage.In this episode, McKinsey Partner and former nurse Gretchen Berlin shares the challenges the profession is facing, and what’s needed to turn things around (not a parade).Read the 2022 McKinsey Nursing Report.Follow host Halle Tecco on Twitter.Visit The Heart of Healthcare website for episode recaps.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Decades of public health efforts to curb teen smoking have unraveled since Juul and other e-cigarette brands came on the market in 2015. With sketchy ads targeting youth and flavor names like “gummy bear” and “cool cucumber”, vaping has skyrocketed amongst youth. In fact, 10%-24% of high school students are now addicted to nicotine. In this episode, Dr. Susan Walley, Chief of the Division of Hospital Medicine at Children's National Hospital, discusses her work developing effective healthcare and school-based interventions to reduce youth tobacco use.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Just because a computer isn’t running a Windows operating system doesn’t mean it’s broken, it’s just different. Same goes for people who are “neurodivergent”, a term used to describe any kind of divergence from dominant cultural norms of neurocognitive functioning. This can include people living with autism, ADHD, OCD, epilepsy, synesthesia, dyslexia, and more. In this episode, special guest host Marissa Pittard (who is neurodivergent herself, and the co-founder of Beaming Health) interviews actor Major Dodson about life on the spectrum. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

For decades, the U.S. has been forcibly sterilizing women of color, taking away their basic human right to become a parent. It’s happening in prisons and immigration detention centers, where doctors are performing unwarranted hysterectomies and bilateral tubal ligation without proper consent. Last year, California announced it would pay out millions of dollars to living survivors of the state’s forced sterilization efforts. Co-sponsor of the bill, Laura Jimenez, Executive Director of California Latinas for Reproductive Justice, explains the racist, classist, ableist history of forced sterilization and why it’s still happening today. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

LGBTQ+ people face worse health outcomes in our country due to a long history of oppression and discrimination. Dr. Mitchell Lunn is a physician and researcher of sexual and gender minority populations (SGM) at Stanford University. In this episode, he explains what health equity means for SGM people, and what we can do to be better allies. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.