Care Decoded – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome to the very first episode of Care Decoded, where we peel back the layers of healthcare innovation with people who are reshaping the industry from the inside. In this episode, Dr. Sunil Nihalani, Founder and CEO at Inferscience, dives into his unconventional journey from his childhood in India where his family was far from medicine to the creation of Inferscience, a company dedicated to making risk adjustment and clinical documentation more efficient for physicians and payers.

Sunil tackles some of the most pressing challenges in healthcare today, like navigating clunky electronic medical records (EMRs), the true pain points behind documentation, and how artificial intelligence is poised to actually help rather than just add to the hype. Sunil shares personal stories from his career, what inspired him to move from bedside care to tech entrepreneurship, and why he believes thoughtful technology can actually give doctors back the time and passion for patient care.

If you’re a physician bogged down by endless paperwork, a healthcare leader or a payer looking for real examples of AI making a difference, or just curious about how risk adjustment is impacting patient care and funding, this episode will inspire and maybe even challenge your views. Let’s get decoding!

Timestamps:

00:00 Improving Patient Care with EMRs

06:09 Unexpected Breakthrough in Risk Adjustment

09:37 Importance of Accurate Medical Documentation

11:21 AI Scribes Improve Clinical Efficiency

16:21 Physician Data Review Challenges

18:27 Physician-Led Healthcare AI Innovation

22:18 Medical Imaging & Prior Authorization Rules

25:10 Global Tool for Physician Data Summarization

26:58 Balancing Gratification and Business Challenges

Podcast's Website - https://caredecoded.com/

Dr. Sunil Nihalani - CEO and Founder at Inferscience - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-nihalani-a6983a5/

Inferscience - https://www.inferscience.com/

Podcast Powered by TopHealth - https://tophealth.care/

Care Decoded is the go-to podcast for clinicians, health plan leaders, and quality champions navigating the evolving world of risk adjustment, value-based care, and smarter documentation. Hosted by Inferscience, this show takes you inside the workflows, decisions, and technologies that turn clinical complexity into clarity. From demystifying HCCs and RAF scores to decoding CMS changes and exploring the impact of AI, we help you understand the data behind every diagnosis.

This show isn't about theory. It's about impact. Not about compliance. But confidence. Not about more clicks. But clarity at the point of care.

If you're building the future of care – one chart, one visit, one code at a time – Care Decoded is your ultimate guide.

Podcast's Website - https://caredecoded.com/

Dr. Sunil Nihalani - CEO and Founder at Inferscience - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-nihalani-a6983a5/

Inferscience - https://www.inferscience.com/

Podcast Powered by TopHealth - https://tophealth.care/

Welcome to another episode of Care Decoded, the show where we break down the complexities of risk adjustment, documentation, and AI to power better healthcare. In today’s episode, host Dr. Sunil Nihalani is joined by Subbu Ramalingam — a seasoned former health plan executive and expert at the intersection of star ratings, risk adjustment, and healthcare quality.

Together, Sunil and Subbu dig into why star ratings aren’t just about checking boxes, but about truly improving patient care and experience. They discuss how health plans and providers can bridge the often-siloed worlds of risk adjustment and quality improvement and why accurate data and collaboration are key to better — and more meaningful — outcomes.

You’ll hear real-world examples illustrating how documentation and coding impact patient care, the latest updates on CMS risk adjustment data validation (RADV) audits, and why aligning risk and quality programs matters more than ever. Plus, Subbu shares actionable advice for healthcare leaders looking to turn mountains of data into engines for quality while keeping the patient at the center of it all.

If you’re a healthcare leader, clinician, or just passionate about making sense of the care ecosystem, this episode is packed with the insights you need to help decode the path toward better care. Let’s dive in!

Timestamps:

00:00 Data's Role in Meaningful Care

04:01 Optimizing Patient Care Experience

09:37 Risk Adjustment and Eligibility Alignment

14:00 Coordinating Care for Diabetic Members

17:48 CMS Launches Overdue RAD Audits

20:29 Enhancing Health Plan Audit Processes

22:35 Healthcare Industry Shift Forecast

27:16 Health Plan Overdocumentation Issues

31:02 Healthcare System Risk Score Management

33:38 Aligning Health KPIs and Outcomes

35:56 Chronic Care Spending Concerns

40:19 Healthcare Data Interoperability Challenges

43:18 Integrating Home Data in Care

Subbu Ramalingham - https://www.linkedin.com/in/subburamalingam/

ATTAC Consulting Group (ACG) - https://www.attacconsulting.com/

Podcast's Website - https://caredecoded.com/

Dr. Sunil Nihalani - CEO and Founder at Inferscience - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-nihalani-a6983a5/

Inferscience - https://www.inferscience.com/

Podcast Powered by TopHealth - https://tophealth.care/

Welcome back to Care Decoded, the show where we break down the complexities of risk adjustment, documentation, and the evolving role of AI in healthcare. In today’s episode, host Lucy Medina sits down with Dr. Sunil Nihalani, CEO of Inferscience and practicing physician, to tackle a topic that hits close to home for every clinician: documentation burnout. Together, they pull back the curtain on how clunky EHR systems, endless documentation demands, and poorly designed workflows are taking a toll not just on clinicians’ efficiency but also on their emotional well-being, patient relationships, and even financial outcomes.

From the frustrations of lost patient moments to the hidden costs of delayed or inadequate documentation, Lucy and Dr. Nihalani explore the very real burdens today’s healthcare professionals face. But it's not all doom and gloom; they’ll also shed light on how AI-powered tools and smarter EHR integrations are starting to transform the landscape, offering hope for a future where technology truly works in service of both providers and patients.

If you’re a clinician who’s ever felt buried under paperwork or a health system leader looking for real solutions, this conversation is for you. Let’s decode the path from burden to benefit together.

Timestamps:

00:00 Disruptive Documentation in Healthcare

04:16 Physician Documentation Overload

07:05 EHR Challenges Impacting Patient Care

10:52 "Ambient Scribe: AI in Practice"

16:10 Dual Life: Doctor and Entrepreneur

17:51 Improved Data Flow in Healthcare

Podcast's Website - https://caredecoded.com/

Dr. Sunil Nihalani - CEO and Founder at Inferscience - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-nihalani-a6983a5/

Inferscience - https://www.inferscience.com/

Podcast Powered by TopHealth - https://tophealth.care/

Welcome back to Care Decoded, the podcast where we make sense of the evolving world of healthcare documentation, coding, and clinical AI. In today’s episode, hosts Dr. Sunil Nihalani and Biodun Kajopaiye, Risk Adjustment and Stars Manager at CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, dive into the seismic changes brought about by version 28 of the CMS HCC risk adjustment model. Whether you’re a seasoned pro or new to the world of risk adjustment, this episode will break down exactly what V28 is, how it’s shaking up provider and health plan workflows, and why specificity in documentation is more crucial than ever. From the altered landscape of risk score coefficients for common conditions like diabetes and obesity, to the growing role of pharmacy data and the challenges these shifts bring to providers, Dr. Nihalani and Biodun Kajopaiye share real-world insights, actionable advice, and strategies to help you lead with confidence through this moment of major change. If you want to understand how policy updates connect with patient care on the ground, you’re in the right place: let’s get decoding!

Timestamps:

00:00 Healthcare Advocate and Risk Adjustment Expert

06:29 "Improving Diagnosis Documentation and Risk Management"

10:25 RADV Impact on Health Providers

12:04 Risk Adjustment Incentives Explained

15:20 Health Care's Shift to Value-Based Contracts

18:28 Reducing Stress in Healthcare Providers

24:03 Towards Focused Healthcare Management

25:51 Optimizing Risk Adjustment Strategies

29:40 "Prioritize Clinical Perspective First"

Podcast's Website - https://caredecoded.com/

Dr. Sunil Nihalani - CEO and Founder at Inferscience - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunil-nihalani-a6983a5/

Inferscience - https://www.inferscience.com/

Podcast Powered by TopHealth - https://tophealth.care/