The Healthy Wealthy & Smart podcast with Dr. Karen Litzy is the perfect blend of clinical skills and business skills to help healthcare and fitness professionals uplevel their careers.
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Luke Bongiorno, PT: A Pain Science Informed Approach for Healthcare Professionals
Episode 773
Thursday, September 3, 2026 • Duration 49:15
In this episode, Dr. Karen Litzy speaks with Luke Bongiorno, PT, Director of NOIGroup, about what it really looks like to bring pain science into the treatment room. Karen and Luke dig into how he blends manual therapy, breath work, movement, and even music into a pain-science-informed approach and why consent, communication, and simply being human with patients matter as much as any technique. They also talk about leading a global education company, protecting a "care at the forefront" culture as the business scales, and staying grounded as a clinician wearing a dozen different hats.
What we cover in this episode:
Luke's path from PT school in Australia to 30 years in private practice in New York
How manual therapy, breath work, movement, and music combine in a pain-science-informed session
DIMs and SIMs: an inside look at the Protectometer (danger-in-me / safety-in-me)
Consent, "no-go zones," and reading a patient's comfort in the moment
The shift from trigger-point/dry-needling training to a pain-science lens — and how hard that shift was
Balancing leading a patient with empowering them
The Resolve Trial and how changing beliefs about pain changes outcomes
Staying human and vulnerable as a clinician and business owner
Protecting a "care at the forefront" culture while leading a global team at Noi Group
Luke's HOPE (Hands-on Pain Education) course and upcoming NY and San Francisco dates
Timestamps:
00:31 Karen welcomes Luke Bongiorno, recording live from Gotham Production Studios
03:23 Luke's background: PT school in Australia, moving to the US, landing in New York
04:53 Discovering David Butler's work and the path to Noi Group
06:21 Blending manual therapy, breath work, movement, and music in a session
08:37 Bringing awareness back to a body part that's been "ignored" in pain
09:28 Karen's own experience with touch sensitivity and neck pain
10:59 Why communication and consent change everything in manual therapy
11:24 Moving away from trigger-point/dry-needling explanations toward pain science
12:33 How Luke decides which "tool" to use in the moment
13:03 Explaining DIMs and SIMs (the Protectometer)
15:05 Identifying "no-go zones" and respecting patient boundaries
16:36 Consent culture: teaching in Australia vs. the US, then and now
18:31 The tension between leading a patient and empowering them
19:44 Being a person first — an empowerment story from a workers' comp patient
22:14 Why Luke still sees patients after 30 years
22:54 The power of simply listening and validating pain
25:48 The Resolve Trial: how changing beliefs about pain improves outcomes
27:43 Karen's own "carrying a loaf of bread" story from working with David Butler
29:42 Staying human while running a business, teaching, and traveling
31:16 Small grounding practices you can use between patients
32:01 Advice for clinicians who feel too busy to take their own advice
33:34 Vulnerability in practice — and why clinicians aren't trained for it
36:58 Wearing every hat in a small practice, and learning to leave gaps in the schedule
38:09 Leading Noi Group remotely and learning to trust a team
39:12 Protecting a "care at the forefront" culture as a business scales
41:09 Key takeaways: value your human skills, reframe your role, use music when talking isn't working
44:31 Lightning round: book recommendations, favorite tool, best business advice, non-negotiable habits
47:37 Where to find Luke, his HOPE course, and NY/San Francisco course dates
More About Luke:
Luke Bongiorno is the Owner and Director of the pain education company, The Neuro Orthopaedic Institute, also known as Noigroup.
At the heart of Luke's work is a simple belief: good clinical care starts with listening, understanding, and helping people make sense of their pain and injury.
Luke's physiotherapy journey began with a degree from the University of Melbourne, Australia, followed by a move into clinical practice in New York. In NYC, Luke co-founded New York Sports Medicine, a company later acquired by United Healthcare.
Still one of New York City's most prominent physical therapists, Luke's extensive experience in managing acute and chronic pain and sports injuries means he travels frequently to work with professional and Olympic athletes, as well as members of touring performing arts and dance companies. He currently serves as a consultant to the NBA League and European professional soccer teams. Luke is also affiliated with the clinical education programs of Columbia University and Touro College.
Luke takes a hands-on approach to care, combining his advanced manual therapy skills with exercise and education. He genuinely cares about helping people understand their pain, build confidence in their bodies, and achieve the best possible recovery and performance. He strongly believes that education is fundamental to optimising patient recovery and performance.
Luke has taught advanced skills courses in Manual Therapy internationally since 2004 and has been part of the Noigroup faculty since 2015. His years of clinical experience, combined with his practical and thoughtful approach to patient care, make him a highly respected clinician and educator.
Visit the Noigroup course platform to explore courses with Luke Bongiorno.
Jennifer Burnham-Grubbs: How Healthy People Can Stop Subsidizing the Sickness System
Episode 772
Thursday, August 27, 2026 • Duration 44:33
Dr. Karen Litzy sits down with Jennifer Burnham Grubbs, founder of Ionava, to unpack why traditional health insurance often penalizes healthy people instead of rewarding them. Jennifer draws on 21 years in the insurance industry to explain what she saw, why she built a new financial category, and how Ionava is designed to reward health-conscious behavior with greater flexibility and less friction. We discuss why healthy people often get poor value from insurance, how Ionava differs from HSAs, FSAs, and health sharing ministries, and how its wallet-based model is meant to make health financial preparedness more practical.
Key topics
Jennifer explains why she built Ionava after two decades as an insurance broker and consultant, including seeing denied coverage, surprise billing, and confusing utilization patterns firsthand.
The episode explores the idea that healthy people often subsidize the system without getting a meaningful return, even when they follow preventive care recommendations.
Karen and Jennifer compare traditional insurance with a "good driver discount" model, highlighting how insurance rarely rewards healthier behavior.
Jennifer explains why Ionava is not health insurance or an HSA, but a new financial category built around health, financial preparedness, and wellness spending.
The conversation covers how Ionava's wallet works, including how users can spend on qualifying health and wellness expenses, from gym memberships to supplements and cosmetic wellness categories.
Jennifer contrasts Ionava with HSAs and FSAs, emphasizing that Ionava is funded through the subscription and is designed to roll over rather than expire.
They also discuss health sharing ministries and why Ionava was built to be secular and broadly accessible rather than tied to religious attestation.
Jennifer explains the health score quiz, how it helps price vaults, and why Ionava currently starts with the healthiest applicants to maintain actuarial discipline.
The episode dives into pre-existing conditions, how current health status affects eligibility, and why some people may be asked to wait as the pool expands.
Dr. Pedro Teixeira: Thoughtful AI: The Honest Conversation Healthcare Isn't Having
Episode 771
Thursday, August 20, 2026 • Duration 45:00
Dr. Karen Litzy is joined by Dr. Pedro Teixeira, Vice President of AI Engineering at Prompt Health and former co-founder and CEO of Prediction Health, for a practical conversation about how AI fits into healthcare workflows. Pedro breaks down the differences among automation, AI, and agentic systems and explains why the best tools support clinicians rather than replace their judgment. This episode focuses on what clinic owners and clinicians should look for when evaluating AI tools: workflow fit, safety, latency, cost, and whether the system improves over time. If you want a grounded, non-hype conversation about AI in healthcare, this is a useful one.
Key topics
· In this episode, Karen and Pedro compare thoughtful AI vs powerful AI and why workflow fit matters as much as model capability.
· Pedro explains latency in practical terms, including why perceived delay matters and how feedback like loading states can make AI feel faster.
· They unpack tokens, model size, and cost, including why input and output usage can change pricing so quickly.
· Pedro shares how AI can work in the background across notes, codes, compliance checks, and analytics for clinic owners.
· The conversation covers HIPAA, PHI, encryption, sandboxing, and limited tool access as essential safeguards for healthcare AI.
· Pedro distinguishes automation, AI, and agentic systems, with examples of when rules are enough and when messy data really does call for AI.
· They compare predictive vs generative models and explain why generating plausible text is not the same as forecasting a clinical outcome.
· Karen and Pedro discuss how some clinics are using AI as a decision support tool, while still keeping humans in control of final decisions.
· Pedro emphasizes that clinic owners should think in terms of systems, including what happens when AI works well and when it fails.
Hannah Kim: Front Office Bottlenecks in Physical Therapy Clinics
Episode 770
Thursday, August 13, 2026 • Duration 35:51
Dr. Karen Litzy speaks with Hannah Kim, CEO and co-founder of Pocket, about the hidden operational burden that happens before a patient ever reaches the clinic door. They break down why front office teams get stretched too thin, how insurance verification and scheduling create revenue leakage, and what it looks like when a clinic automates the full pre-arrival workflow without losing the human touch.
In this episode:
· Karen frames the episode around the pre-arrival patient journey and why it matters for physical therapy clinics.
· Hannah Kim explains Pocket's focus on automating intake, insurance verification, scheduling, and patient communications.
· The biggest front office inefficiency is overload: one team is often handling phone calls, insurance verification, scheduling, onboarding, and patient greetings.
· Insurance verification is more complex than checking a portal - clinics often need to call payers, confirm authorization requirements, and verify visit limits.
· Manual verification can take hours and includes documentation, EMR entry, calculating patient responsibility, and explaining benefits to patients.
· Growth exposes weak systems: workflows that work for one or two locations often break when a clinic scales.
· Slow or incomplete pre-arrival responses can cause patients to book elsewhere, creating missed visits and revenue leakage.
· Pocket aims to own the full process from start to finish, including extracting patient info from the EMR, verifying benefits, making calls when needed, creating documentation, and uploading it back into the EMR.
· Beyond insurance, Pocket also supports intake, onboarding, case creation, first-visit scheduling, and automated patient communications.
· Hannah shares that the best transformations free front office staff to spend more time with patients, reduce burnout, and support clinic growth without adding staff.
Dr. Tom Walters: Is the Physical Therapy Profession Broken or Brimming with Opportunity?
Episode 769
Thursday, August 6, 2026 • Duration 52:25
In this episode, Dr. Karen Litzy and Dr. Tom Walters explore the current state of the physical therapy profession, weighing the challenges with the bright opportunities ahead. If you're a PT student, new graduate, or seasoned professional, this discussion offers valuable insights on navigating growth, risk-taking, and innovation.
Key Topics Covered:
The contrasting narratives about PT career prospects—debunking myths and highlighting opportunities
Factors influencing PT career decisions, including debt, job satisfaction, and entrepreneurial ventures
Strategies for students and new grads to create diverse career pathways beyond traditional settings
How social media has transformed PT education, branding, and income streams over the past decade
The importance of trust, clarity, and confidence in communication for professional success and patient care
The influence of industry challenges such as insurance constraints and healthcare system limitations
Practical advice for building a cash-based practice while managing burnout
The potential for social media and content creation to elevate the entire PT field
The role of patient education, telehealth, and hybrid models in future PT delivery
Timestamps:
00:00 - Introduction: Is the PT profession broken or full of opportunity? 02:21 - Dr. Walters' take on whether PT is a broken system or ripe for growth 04:35 - How social media has changed career possibilities for PTs 05:42 - Advice to students and new grads about seeking opportunities and taking risks 06:47 - Personal stories of career leaps and the importance of thinking beyond traditional roles 08:48 - Building trust and clarity through communication for confidence and success 10:45 - Overcoming fears related to further education and career shifts 11:29 - Reflecting on the time investment of education and professional growth 13:00 - How teaching and social media experience have contributed to Dr. Walters' success 15:23 - The importance of consistency and long-term effort in building a following 16:52 - The evolution of social media content from early days to now 18:38 - Opportunities outside insurance-based clinics and how to leverage clinical experience 20:28 - Guiding students in career planning and the value of entrepreneurial thinking 22:28 - Strategies for transitioning from employment to ownership through small steps 24:13 - Can PT influencers replicate a successful model? Is it achievable for most? 26:26 - Social media's impact on professional visibility and community growth 27:55 - How content creation can elevate the PT profession as a whole 29:35 - The balance between hands-on care and digital/remote PT services 31:09 - The importance of rapport and human connection in healing 32:18 - Possibility of hybrid models combining in-person and remote PT 34:01 - The potential of technology to supplement, but not replace, hands-on care 36:35 - Addressing platform technical issues during the episode 38:36 - Final thoughts on building the future of PT and embracing new opportunities 39:31 - Advice for prospective DPT students on exploring career paths early 41:35 - The importance of financial literacy and budgeting education in PT programs 43:28 - Personal stories about student debt and managing educational costs 44:11 - Trust, clarity, and confidence as pillars for PT success and patient relationships 47:09 - How authenticity and communication foster trust within and outside the PT profession 50:22 - Review of what should be emphasized in PT curricula to prepare future practitioners 52:39 - The impact of viral content and strategic content creation on career trajectory 54:59 - Is the healthcare system broken or an opportunity? Dr. Walters' nuanced view 56:41 - Navigating personality types and finding the right work environment 56:55 - Practical tips for maintaining health, wealth, and intelligence in a PT career
Dr. Karen Litzy: Why Physical Therapists Are Bad at Marketing
Episode 768
Thursday, July 30, 2026 • Duration 14:57
In this solo episode, Dr. Karen Litzy breaks down five common myths about marketing in physical therapy and explains why visibility is essential for helping more people. She shares practical reframes around marketing, social media, niching, and word of mouth, all through the lens of educating patients and growing a practice with integrity.
Key Takeaways
Marketing is education at scale
You need systems, not more hours
Specific content builds trust
Niching improves results
Word of mouth is the foundation, but marketing is the amplifier
Timestamps
0:00— Welcome back + today's topic: why physical therapists are bad at marketing
1:57— Myth #1: Marketing feels sleazy
3:47— Myth #2: "I don't have time"
5:43— Reframe: you don't have a time problem, you have a systems problem
6:12— Myth #3: Social media doesn't bring in real patients
8:04— Myth #4: "I need to market to everyone"
9:28— Reframe: own a lane and become the go-to expert
9:57— Myth #5: If I'm good enough, word of mouth is enough
11:52— Reframe: your work speaks better with marketing support
12:21— Quick recap of all five myths
13:13 — Final takeaway: marketing is visibility
13:46— Closing + call to share, DM, or email Karen
If this episode resonated with you, share it with a colleague who needs to hear it.
Dr. Karen DeSimone: Burnout to Freedom, Building a Cash-Based Practice Without Losing Patients
Episode 767
Friday, July 24, 2026 • Duration 37:04
In this episode, Dr. Karen Litzy talks with Dr. Karen DeSimone, physical therapist and owner of KD360 Wellness and Physical Therapy, about building a hybrid practice that combines insurance-based care with cash-based wellness services. Karen shares how she shifted from treating visits to delivering outcomes, why that change helped her reduce burnout, and how other clinic owners can apply a similar model without adding staff, locations, or more marketing spend. Why it works: outcome-focused messaging makes the value feel concrete and emotionally compelling, which helps listeners see the episode as a practical solution to a problem they already feel.
Key topics covered:
· Why declining reimbursements pushed Karen to rethink her business model
· The difference between treating visits and treating outcomes
· How to introduce cash-based services without abandoning insurance
· Why fewer patients and fewer visits can lead to better results
· How to have confident, patient-centered conversations about pricing
· Why the model works for solopreneurs and small clinics
· The mindset shift needed to step off the insurance treadmill
Timestamps:
· 0:01 — Welcome to the Healthy, Wealthy, and Smart Podcast and the episode's focus on healthcare and business
· 0:29 — Karen DeSimone's background and the shift toward an outcome-based model
· 1:53 — What drove Karen to build a new model
· 2:54 — Why she stacked cash-based services on top of physical therapy
· 4:58 — How to talk to patients about cash-based care
· 6:43 — How those conversations happen in practice
Jared Maynard: From the ICU to the Platform: What Almost Dying Taught Me About Coaching Clinicians
Episode 766
Thursday, July 16, 2026 • Duration 42:19
From Life-Threatening Illness to Powerlifting Comeback: Jared Maynard's Journey of Resilience and Reinvention
In this inspiring episode of Healthy Wealthy & Smart, Jared Maynard shares his extraordinary journey from nearly losing his life to a rare blood disease to returning to the powerlifting platform with even greater purpose. His story underscores the importance of resilience, identity, and the ongoing process of rebuilding after profound adversity.
Main topics covered:
· Jared's experience with HLH and its impact on his physical and mental health
· The role of physical strength in identity and recovery
· Strategies for mental resilience and navigating uncertainty
· Managing self-worth and detaching from outcome-driven validation
· Building and scaling a coaching business amidst personal challenges
· Lessons on delegation, mindset, and embracing imperfection
Timestamps:
· (00:00) – Introduction and pandemic of adversity: Jared's journey begins
· (01:45) – Experiencing HLH: initial symptoms and misdiagnosis
· (06:39) – The physical and emotional toll during hospital stay
· (09:50) – Understanding HLH and its mortality rate
· (11:19) – Sedation, dreams, and memory blackouts during critical illness
· (15:10) – The role of muscle mass and physical strength as life insurance
· (18:11) – Emotional aftermath: grief, identity loss, and rebuilding
· (20:30) – Overcoming physical atrophy and mental challenges in recovery
Sturdy McKee: The Simple System Most Practice Owners Fail to Implement—And How It Frees You From the Routine
Episode 765
Thursday, July 9, 2026 • Duration 53:05
This episode explores practical strategies for practice owners who feel overwhelmed and are essential to their business. Host Dr. Karen Litzy interviews Sturdy McKee, a seasoned practice owner and coach, who shares actionable insights on creating self-sustaining clinics, effective delegation, and data-driven decision-making—so owners can step back with confidence in their operations.
Main insights include:
· Recognizing the cost of being the bottleneck—lost growth opportunities and burnout
· Building foundational systems like answering phones and hiring with clear criteria and standardization
· Using the Critical Seven Metrics as a dashboard to monitor business health
· Differentiating between leading and lagging indicators for proactive management
· Implementing culture and core values discovery to shape team behavior and diversity
· Effective delegation versus micromanagement: empowering staff with ownership and clarity
· The importance of non-clinical skills, like communication and process management, for clinical success
· How top teams customize strategies (like sports coaching) for optimal performance
· Practical steps for owners to identify and hire high-impact team members
· Overcoming perfectionism and control issues by recognizing the value of delegation and trust
Timestamps:
00:00 - The importance of stepping away from your practice
02:06 - When realizing being the bottleneck is holding you back
03:40 - What a typical bottleneck looks like in daily operations
05:55 - Transitioning to working on, not just in the business
Will Humphreys: Building Better Practices: Teamwork, Recruiting & Profitability
Episode 764
Thursday, July 2, 2026 • Duration 49:01
In this episode, Dr. Karen Litzy hosts Will Humphreys, a seasoned physical therapist-turned-entrepreneur, to explore practical strategies that healthcare clinicians can use to build thriving practices. From mastering recruitment to leveraging virtual assistants, Will shares actionable insights to elevate your business, improve profit margins, and strengthen team dynamics.
Main insights include:
· The significance of team building and how Knicks' teamwork mirrors successful business practices
· Differentiating purpose and profits for sustainable growth
· Creating an ideal hire profile and utilizing job scorecards for effective recruiting
· Leveraging relationships with PT schools and students to build a pipeline of future hires
· The importance of systems for lead generation and hiring consistency
· Navigating firing with integrity and fostering alignment within teams
· How virtual assistants can offload administrative burdens and boost profitability
· The critical role of ethical billing and a healthy relationship with money
· Reframing profit as a driver for mission fulfillment and industry impact
· Practical steps to start implementing change today
Timestamps:
00:00 - Welcome and the importance of teamwork in practice success 02:20 - Lessons from the Knicks: team energy as a business asset 03:44 - Connecting purpose, profits, and team fulfillment 05:33 - Reflecting on the struggles and breakthroughs of building a practice 09:08 - Strategies for turning around a failing business 11:45 - How to create an effective recruiting process for healthcare practices 13:09 - The importance of defining your ideal hire with a clear profile 15:13 - Utilizing job scorecards to measure candidate success early 16:40 - The difference between lead generation and hiring in practice growth 18:23 - Building relationships with PT schools and students for pipeline development 22:41 - Systematic recruiting leveraging university connections and mentorship 23:07 - Recognizing when it's time to let someone go and how to do it ethically 24:00 - How to handle firing with dignity and preserve reputation 26:25 - The mindset of stewardship and continuous alignment with team members 27:51 - Regularly evaluating if your team is a "hell yes" to stay 29:17 - Handling difficult conversations and letting go with compassion 33:00 - The role of virtual assistants in reducing administrative overload 34:44 - Offloading tasks to virtual assistants to enhance profitability and free time 36:34 - The link between ethical billing, profitability, and purpose 38:39 - Strategic reinvestment and industry impact through profitability 40:35 - The importance of aligning money, purpose, and team success 41:35 - The opportunities brought by technology and AI to practice growth 42:04 - Gratitude for physical therapists' contribution to industry and patient care 43:10 - The quickfire lightning round for practical tips
Karen and Jennifer unpack how Ionava avoids the network and contracted-rate limitations that shape traditional insurance, including why cash-based purchasing offers more flexibility across states and even internationally.
Timestamps
00:00 - Why healthy people feel punished by the insurance system 01:13 - Jennifer's 21 years inside insurance and what she saw 02:40 - Denials, surprise bills, and the pain points that shaped Ionava 03:30 - Why there is no "good driver discount" for health 05:01 - Why most people never get their money's worth from insurance 06:18 - Preventive care that still triggers hidden costs 07:16 - The problem with opaque medical pricing 08:38 - Why innovation often falls outside traditional coverage 09:27 - Why Jennifer first tried to fix insurance from the inside 11:43 - The limits of claims help and out-of-network gaps 13:42 - Why the private sector had to build a new answer 14:15 - What "health financial preparedness" means 15:39 - Health as physical, mental, and financial readiness 16:41 - Why people still buy insurance even when they hate it 17:12 - Ionava as an alternative or layered financial strategy 18:28 - How Ionava differs from HSAs 20:20 - Why Ionava is more like a funded debit wallet 21:46 - What counts as a qualified spend 22:10 - Why FSAs can feel like a use-it-or-lose-it trap 23:34 - Why Ionava rolls over and rewards healthy behavior 24:17 - How Ionava differs from health sharing ministries 26:36 - Why the health score exists 27:34 - How vault pricing works and why rates are locked for life 29:01 - Optional biometrics and earning more on your wallet balance 30:29 - How Ionava thinks about pre-existing conditions 31:57 - Why some applicants may be asked to come back later 33:11 - Beauty, fitness, and wellness spending inside the wallet 34:37 - The support system for new users 36:15 - Why Ionava is different from reimbursement-based models 37:37 - How insurance networks and contracted rates really work 41:04 - Why Ionava uses cash pricing worldwide 42:39 - Jennifer's weekly wellness spend: supplements 43:18 - The biggest myth healthy people believe about insurance 43:47 - Why she wants HSAs to fund Ionava vaults 44:18 - Books that shaped her thinking: The Go Giver and Give and Take 46:10 - Gardening, herbs, and staying grounded while building a company 47:18 - Where to learn more about Ionava and reserve a vault
More About Jennifer:
Jennifer (Azar) Burnham-Grubbs, is the Founder and CEO of Quantum Insurance Services and the Founder of ionava. She's spent 21 years inside the insurance industry as a fiduciary broker, managing over $100 million in insurance products for clients ranging from professional athletes and C-suite executives to everyday families. She's also the co-founder of Womxn of Wealth, a nonprofit dedicated to building women's financial acumen. After more than two decades inside the system, she launched ionava — a new financial category built for the healthy consumers the insurance system overcharges and underserves. She's a Princeton grad, based in Los Angeles
· He closes with a simple evaluation question for any AI pitch: How does this system get better over time?
Timestamps
00:00 - Introduction and why Pedro Teixeira is a grounded voice on AI in healthcare 01:24 - Why thoughtful AI matters more than powerful AI 03:57 - What latency means and why perceived speed changes the user experience 05:16 - How models work with transcripts, prompts, and tokens 07:24 - What tokens are and why AI bills can rise fast 09:13 - The real cost of large models, GPUs, and background processing 11:23 - How AI can quietly support clinic analytics and business coaching 13:13 - Why healthcare AI must stay closed loop and HIPAA safe 15:13 - Automation vs AI vs agentic systems 18:59 - Predictive vs generative models explained for clinic owners 21:45 - When AI can predict patterns from clinician notes and when it cannot 24:03 - How power user clinics are using AI tools in practice 25:56 - Why AI should do what clinicians decide, not decide for them 28:37 - Designing AI around systems, workflows, and failure states 30:22 - Using SOPs and training docs to think through AI implementation 31:57 - How clinic owners should evaluate whether to bring AI into the practice 35:53 - The one question to ask any AI vendor: how does it improve over time? 37:00 - Final takeaways and encouraging clinics to experiment 38:02 - Lightning round: overhyped AI tools in healthcare 39:20 - What clinicians should understand about how AI really works 40:50 - What Pedro would do if he were not building healthcare AI 41:41 - Real world learning, messy data, and why experience matters 42:59 - Pedro's health habits and the AI built tracker on his watch 44:15 - Where to find Pedro and Prompt Health
Notable quotes
"Thoughtful AI is really taking into account where are people using it, how does it fit into their day to day?"
"The best systems are the ones where you are deciding."
Pedro Teixeira, MD, PhD, is Vice President of AI Engineering at Prompt Health and previously served as Co-Founder and CEO of PredictionHealth, now a Prompt Health company. With nearly two decades of experience across AI and healthcare and PhD-level training in biomedical informatics from Harvard and Vanderbilt, Pedro is one of the most grounded voices on AI in healthcare. He believes healthcare's biggest challenges are systems problems, not technology problems, and that the real promise of AI is creating leverage so clinicians can spend more time on what matters most: their patients.
(00:01) Intro to the pre-arrival patient experience (00:52) Hannah Kim's background in healthcare and scaling Clipboard Health (02:10) Front office inefficiencies that show up again and again (03:20) Why insurance verification eats so much time (04:15) EMR documentation and the scheduling "Tetris" problem (05:53) The red flag that front office is quietly bleeding money (07:39) What front desk time could be used for instead (08:55) Why problems get worse as clinics scale (09:33) Why the pre-arrival journey affects first impressions and revenue (11:51) The biggest patient-loss window: weekends and after hours (14:08) Why insurance verification is still so manual (15:59) What a clearinghouse is and why it is not enough (17:11) The cost of sloppy or incomplete verification (18:20) How Pocket handles the full verification workflow (21:02) Expanding beyond insurance into the entire pre-arrival journey (23:48) What transformation looks like after automation (26:09) How clinics get comfortable letting go of manual processes (28:16) Why technology should reduce burnout, not replace people (29:47) Lightning round: front office assumptions, coordination of benefits, and advice from banking (34:30) Where to find Hannah Kim and Pocket
Key frameworks
· Pre-arrival journey: everything that happens before the first visit
· Full-process automation: not just clearinghouse checks, but calls, documentation, EMR updates, and patient communication
· Coordination of benefits: verifying primary, secondary, and tertiary coverage before problems show up later
Notable quotes
· "The pre-arrival journey is just so important. It's the first impression that patients have from your clinic."
· "Nobody wants to be drowning in admin stuff."
· "Technology implemented in the right way really helps a lot of clinics and really helps ease some of that burnout."
Hannah Kim is the CEO and Co-Founder of Pocket, an AI-powered pre-arrival platform that automates patient intake, insurance verification, scheduling, and patient communications for physical therapy clinics. She devoted her entire career to healthcare - began her career in healthcare investment banking at Centerview Partners before joining Clipboard Health, an "Uber for nurses" that built a marketplace connecting healthcare facilities with nurses for on-demand staffing. As Chief of Staff, Hannah helped scale Clipboard Health from Series A to Series C, supporting the company's growth into a billion dollar company.
The PT industry is both challenged and full of opportunity—proactive, strategic, and authentic efforts can help shape its future.
Embracing digital tools, building trust, and diversifying skills are keys to long-term success.
Continuous learning, honest communication, and openness to entrepreneurship are essential for growth in today's evolving landscape.
Thank you to Dr. Tom Walters for sharing his experience and insights. For more resources, courses, and his book, visit Rehab Science. Remember, your career trajectory depends on intentional choices, resilience, and innovative thinking—so take that leap!
More About Dr. Walters
Dr. Tom Walters is a board-certified orthopedic physical therapist who specializes in the treatment of pain and movement disorders. He is the founder of Rehab Science and has spent almost two decades teaching people about human movement, pain science, and how to effectively recover from injury.
In addition to running his own clinical practice, Tom served as a full-time undergraduate kinesiology professor for eight years, teaching human biomechanics, therapeutic exercise, and pain science. He received his Doctor of Physical Therapy degree from Chapman University and completed a residency in orthopedic manual physical therapy and a fellowship in lower quarter functional biomechanics.
Through his books, social media platforms, and the Rehab Science membership, Tom has helped millions of people better understand their bodies and take control of their recovery.
Find more of Tom's content on Instagram and YouTube @rehabscience
Karen DeSimone, PT, DPT, has practiced physical therapy for 26 years. She earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy from the MGH Institute of Health Professions, began her career at Massachusetts General Hospital, and in 2009 opened KD360 Wellness & Physical Therapy in South Yarmouth, Massachusetts, where she still practices today. A solo clinician running a hybrid cash and insurance model, she helps clients avoid surgery and heal faster using a structured, outcome-driven program.
After years inside the insurance-based model, Karen reached a hard conclusion: you can't build a successful system on a broken model. So she built her own: a defined clinical pathway with enrolled patients and predictable outcomes. That pathway became the Freedom From Back Pain Clinical Success System, the online implementation program she now teaches through her company, Clinical Architecture, helping other PT clinic owners deliver the same cash-based care inside their own practices, without adding new patients, staff, or marketing.
Her work centers on one principle: we're not treating visits, we're delivering outcomes.
Jared Maynard is a Physical Therapist, strength coach, powerlifter, ClinicalAthlete provider, business owner and speaker who believes that "you're not done yet."
In 2023, after nearly two decades of lifting and a decade of coaching, Jared was diagnosed with HLH—a rare, often fatal immune condition that landed him in the ICU on life support. His body broke down, the last treatment failed and the doctors prepared his family for the end. But his life was saved by two things: a miraculous recovery, and the muscle he built through the years spent in the gym.
He woke up in the ICU as skin and bones – 40 pounds lighter, and unable to walk, talk or breathe on his own. Just over 1 year later, he returned to powerlifting to deadlift a lifetime PR – then did it again three months later.
Now, despite being legally blind and navigating progressive vision loss, Jared's mission is clearer than ever: to give you the skills, support and hope to rebuild after everything falls apart.
Through his business, Unbreakable Strength, he's the coach who helps coaches and clinicians beat decision fatigue, get out of pain, and build strength & confidence. He speaks on podcasts and stages as living proof of what's possible when you believe that "you're not done yet."
Sturdy McKee spent over 20 years as a physical therapist and practice owner. He built San Francisco Sport and Spine Physical Therapy into six locations and 40-plus staff, then sold it. For the last decade he has coached private practice owners through his 6-Hour CEO approach, helping them stop being the bottleneck in their own business and become the leader who builds a practice that runs without them.
Will is a passionate entrepreneur, physical therapist, and dedicated family man. With over 26 years of experience, he has built multiple businesses, including Virtual Rockstar, which helps medical entrepreneurs thrive by outsourcing non-clinical tasks. Known for his humor, inspiring leadership, and drive to transform healthcare, Will focuses on empowering others to scale their impact while staying true to their purpose. Beyond business, he cherishes his wife and four sons, seeks adventure, and finds fulfillment in helping others succeed.
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