Working Healthcare

Ep. 104 - Reclaiming Joy When Medicine Loses Its Meaning with Dr. Alen Voskanian

What happens when the thing that broke you isn't the hard work but everything around it? On Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Dr. Alen Voskanian, physician, author and palliative care specialist, to explore what's really driving burnout in American medicine. Alen arrived in the U.S. at 19 as a refugee with no doctors in his family and no roadmap, just determination. He became a physician, found his calling in underserved communities and then nearly lost his joy to the relentless administrative friction he calls "pebbles in the shoe." His book, Reclaiming the Joy of Medicine, is a challenge to every clinician and healthcare leader: stop waiting for a once-in-a-century crisis to force change. The conversation is sharp, honest and deeply human, a reminder that care is literally in the word "healthcare." It just needs to be put back. Grab a listen and ask yourself: what pebbles are you carrying? Contact Alen: Instagram @alenvmd [https://www.instagram.com/alenvmd/] LinkedIn: /alenvoskanianmd [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alenvoskanianmd/] Purchase Reclaiming the Joy of Medicine on Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/Reclaiming-Joy-Medicine-Fulfillment-Happiness/dp/B0BF31GJRX/] Contact Meredith: Website: meredithhirsh.com [https://www.meredithhirsh.com/] Instagram: @workinghealthcare [https://www.instagram.com/workinghealthcare/] Facebook: WorkingHealthcare [https://www.facebook.com/workinghealthcarepodcast] LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithfhirsh/] YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare [https://www.youtube.com/@WorkingHealthcare]

Ep. 103 - Follow the Money: Inside America's Drug Pricing Black Box (ft. Tesh Khullar)

If we are insured and spending nearly half a trillion dollars a year on prescription drugs, why are patients still standing at the pharmacy counter being told no? This episode of Working Healthcare follows that money. Host Meredith Hirsh sits down with Tesh Khullar, founder and CEO of Prism TPO and co-founder of HouseRx who has spent his career inside drug distribution, oncology data and specialty pharmacy. He explains how PBMs, vertically integrated insurers, 340B arbitrage and opaque rebates pull value out of the system before it ever reaches patients or independent practices. If you want to understand why the system works the way it does and who really absorbs the cost, this is the conversation to start with. Tune in. Contact Tesh: Website: prismtpo.com [https://prismtpo.com/] LinkedIn:  /tesh-k-269669  [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tesh-k-269669/] Contact Meredith: Website: meredithhirsh.com [https://www.meredithhirsh.com/] Instagram: @workinghealthcare [https://www.instagram.com/workinghealthcare/] Facebook: WorkingHealthcare [https://www.facebook.com/workinghealthcarepodcast] LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithfhirsh/] YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare [https://www.youtube.com/@WorkingHealthcare]

Ep. 102 - Burnout, ‘Good Girls,’ and a System Never Built for Women with Sadie Wackett

What if the real problem isn’t that women “can’t handle it,” but that the system never considered them in the first place? On this episode of Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh sits down with leadership coach and former chief people officer Sadie Wackett. She spent decades as the only woman at the table in male-dominated industries. Drawing from her experience navigating IVF, international relocation and executive life in Palm Beach, Sadie explains how “good girl” conditioning, perfectionism and people-pleasing quietly burn women out, even as the workplace rewards them for shrinking into the role.  That pattern is costly. Together, Meredith and Sadie examine why so many high-achieving women feel numb, exhausted or as if they’re living someone else’s life. They also discuss what it takes to rewrite that script without blowing up a career. If nearly half of women report burnout, we need to stop treating it as a self-care problem and start recognizing it as a workforce and mental health crisis hiding in plain sight. Trying harder is not the answer. Press play to hear what can actually help high-achieving women in healthcare lead, thrive and stay in the work they care about. Contact Sadie: Website: sadiewackett.com [https://www.sadiewackett.com/] Facebook: @Sadie Wackett [https://www.facebook.com/sadie.wackett] Instagram: @sadiewackett [https://www.instagram.com/sadiewackett/] LinkedIn: /sadie-wackett [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sadie-wackett/] Contact Meredith: Website: meredithhirsh.com [https://www.meredithhirsh.com/] Instagram: @workinghealthcare [https://www.instagram.com/workinghealthcare/] Facebook: WorkingHealthcare [https://www.facebook.com/workinghealthcarepodcast] LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithfhirsh/] YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare [https://www.youtube.com/@WorkingHealthcare]

Ep. 101 - Virtual Physical Therapy Was Written Off as Impossible. Ashok Gupta Proves It’s Not.

What happens when two physical therapists sitting on their couch realize the entire delivery model for their profession is broken? On Working Healthcare, host Meredith Hirsh talks with Ashok Gupta, Doctor of Physical Therapy and founder of TheraNow, about building a virtual physical therapy platform that now serves major hospital systems across the country. Ashok traces the journey from a website launch that drew zero visitors to a pivotal moment treating a hospital CEO recovering from hip replacement surgery — and how that single patient relationship changed everything. They dig into the economics of PT reimbursement, the PTA staffing debate, rural access failures and what a CMS innovation initiative is finally doing to kill the clipboard. The real question Ashok raises isn't whether telehealth works — it's why a system with the tools to change keeps choosing not to. Contact Ashok Gupta: Website: theranow.com [https://www.theranow.com/] Facebook: @theranow [https://www.facebook.com/theranow] Instagram: @theranow101 [https://www.instagram.com/theranow101/?hl=en] X: @realtheranow [https://x.com/realtheranow] YouTube: @theranow-therapistondemand4024 [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkMyGNfVrzNix1D9jwjCRhQ] LinkedIn: /dr-ashok-gupta-dpt [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-ashok-gupta-dpt-2b5a7023/] Contact Meredith: Website: meredithhirsh.com [https://www.meredithhirsh.com/] Instagram: @workinghealthcare [https://www.instagram.com/workinghealthcare/] Facebook: WorkingHealthcare [https://www.facebook.com/workinghealthcarepodcast] LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithfhirsh/] YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare [https://www.youtube.com/@WorkingHealthcare]

Ep. 100 - Private Equity vs. Independent Medicine: When Wall Street Enters the Exam Room (ft. Anna Sobkiv)

Is private equity helping physician practices survive or quietly redefining the future of independent medicine? Host Meredith Hirsh sits down in her Delray Beach podcast studio with Anna Sobkiv, Executive Director, Healthcare Services, J.P. Morgan Commercial Banking, to examine one of the biggest forces reshaping healthcare today. Anna draws on her experience advising physicians and healthcare businesses on growth, acquisition and succession planning to explain why private equity keeps accelerating and why certain specialties attract so much investor interest. She also breaks down what these deals can mean for physician ownership, practice autonomy and the long-term sustainability of independent medicine. She reflects on building a career in healthcare finance and advising clients at the highest levels of banking in a field where women remain underrepresented. Listen now for a sharp conversation about private equity, physician practice ownership and the future of healthcare. Contact Anna Sobkiv at: Email: anna.sobkiv@jpmorgan.com [anna.sobkiv@jpmorgan.com]  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-sobkiv-mba-3697952a [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-sobkiv-mba-3697952a] Contact Meredith: Website: meredithhirsh.com [https://www.meredithhirsh.com/] Instagram: @workinghealthcare [https://www.instagram.com/workinghealthcare/] Facebook: WorkingHealthcare [https://www.facebook.com/workinghealthcarepodcast] LinkedIn: @meredithfhirsh [https://www.linkedin.com/in/meredithfhirsh/] YouTube: @WorkingHealthcare [https://www.youtube.com/@WorkingHealthcare]