Biofeedback, AI, and Anxiety

Biofeedback, AI, and Anxiety

What if the most effective treatments for children looked nothing like traditional medicine? In this episode, three innovators share how games, biofeedback, and AI are being used to treat some of the most overlooked conditions in pediatric healthcare. Juliette Hawa, pediatric physical therapist and founder of PFRx, describes how a gamified biofeedback device is helping children with pelvic floor dysfunction (a condition affecting around 10 million kids) learn to control muscles that cause constipation, incontinence, and pain. Designed with Children's Hospital Colorado and built for home use, PFRx turns muscle training into a video game children can play from the couch. Dika Vilic, Senior Clinical Scientist in AI at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust in London, shares what it looks like to build AI from the inside of a health system, including why pediatric AI is uniquely challenging, why children's hospitals tend to produce more innovators than adult hospitals, and what happens when a drug calculator accidentally attracts 10,000 users and has to be taken offline for regulatory compliance. Raj Amin, CEO and co-founder of Arcade Therapeutics, explains how a game called StarStarter for Anxiety is using attention bias modification (a subconscious, neuroscience-backed form of cognitive behavioral therapy) to reduce anxiety symptoms in children and adults. A published clinical study showed a 68% reduction in symptoms within 30 days. And a depression version is now in clinical trials, funded by an NIMH grant. Episode Resources: Children's Hospital Colorado [https://www.childrenscolorado.org/] StarStarter for Anxiety, App by Arcade Therapeutics [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.arcadetherapeutics.starstarterwellness&hl=en_US] Attention Bias Modification (ABM) [https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5513441/] Connect with Juliette Hawa: Juliette Hawa LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliette-hawa-pt-dpt-38863471/] Connect with Dika Vilic: Dika Vilic LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/dikavilic/] Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust Website [https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/] Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/guys-and-st-thomas-nhs-foundation-trust/] Connect with Raj Amin: Raj Amin LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rajamin/] Arcade Therapeutics Website [https://arcadetherapeutics.com/] Arcade Therapeutics LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/arcade-therapeutics/] Arcade Therapeutics Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/arcadetherapeutics/] Dr. Tracy Dennis-Tiwary [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tracydennistiwary/] Connect with us: KidsX Website [https://www.kidsx.health/] KidsX LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidsx/] Children's Hospital L.A. Website [https://www.chla.org/] Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/childrensla/] Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/childrensla/]

Standout Insights From the First 30 Episodes

Thirty episodes in, and this is a special one. Over the first 30 episodes of A Dose of Optimism, host Omkar Kulkarni has sat down with physicians, founders, researchers, and change makers working at the edges of what's possible in pediatric healthcare. In this episode, he revisits some of the moments that stayed with him the longest, ideas that challenged conventional thinking, insights that sparked optimism, and reflections that encouraged deeper thinking about the future of children's health. Featuring standout moments from: Dr. Bimal Desai on  how digital check-ins are supporting medically complex children at home. Dr. Solfrid Raknes on how children in conflict zones describe a digital mental health game as "a school break, a break from the war." Andrew Post on the measurable impact of school-based health services: up to 11 fewer days of absenteeism, and nearly $2,800 in reduced annual healthcare costs per child served. Dr. Sucheta Joshi on the coming era of gene therapy for epilepsy, and the shift from treating symptoms to treating disease at the cellular level. John Brownstein on where AI is heading in healthcare: beyond documentation and into patient-facing equity, access, and a future where physicians can't imagine going back. Carla Small on why AI tutoring may be the most important application of AI for children, and why 98% of kids who need high-dose reading support aren't getting it. Dr. Jonathan Santoro on preventive neurology: using genetics and family risk scores to stop neurological disease before it starts. David Feinberg on why he is, by his own admission, wildly optimistic about the future of healthcare, and why that might just be a character flaw. Episode Resources: From Minecraft to Remote Monitoring: Innovating the Patient Experience [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-minecraft-to-remote-monitoring-innovating-the/id1844628552?i=1000739252167] Trauma, Grief and Resilience [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/trauma-grief-and-resilience/id1844628552?i=1000745863745] Schools: A Hub for Children's Healthcare [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/schools-a-hub-for-childrens-healthcare/id1844628552?i=1000731760425] Pediatrics, Everywhere: Telehealth for Rural Kids and the Future of Epilepsy Care [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pediatrics-everywhere-telehealth-for-rural-kids-and/id1844628552?i=1000762533505] Public Health: Policy, Trust, and Emerging Technology [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/public-health-policy-trust-and-emerging-technology/id1844628552?i=1000746821486] Season 2 Premiere: Return of the Parentrepreneurs! [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/season-2-premiere-return-of-the-parentrepreneurs/id1844628552?i=1000743941391] Closing the Gap in Pediatric Care [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/closing-the-gap-in-pediatric-care/id1844628552?i=1000759988082] Oracle Health: David Feinberg, MD [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/oracle-health-david-feinberg-md/id1844628552?i=1000736234321] → For more episode resources, please check out our blog [https://kidsx.health/podcast/] Connect with us: KidsX Website [https://www.kidsx.health/] KidsX LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidsx/] Children's Hospital L.A. Website [https://www.chla.org/] Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/childrensla/] Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/childrensla/]

From Pregnancy to Pain: Closing Gaps for Kids

What happens when the people who need care most are also the least likely to receive it? In this episode, two innovators share how they are building solutions for populations that healthcare has consistently underserved, BIPOC mothers navigating the perinatal period, and children living with pain from complex medical conditions. Priya Iyer, Founder & CEO of Our Roots, describes how her virtual peer coaching platform is working to prevent and address perinatal anxiety and depression in BIPOC and low-income communities, where mood disorders occur at twice the rate of the general population, and where access barriers, language gaps, and a shortage of culturally concordant care mean that too many mothers never receive the help they need. With a 65% reduction in depression and anxiety scores observed among participants, and a reimbursement pathway through Medicaid, Our Roots is pioneering what virtual peer coaching in maternal mental health can look like at scale. Francesca Wuttke, CEO and Founder of nen, shares how her company has gamified cognitive behavioral therapy to help children with complex medical conditions understand and manage their pain. Children with cancer and other serious illnesses are placed on waitlists for pain psychology support that can stretch 12 to 18 months. nen is designed to fill that gap, with virtual companions, game-based CBT modules, and a clinical trial now expanding to potentially reach 80 to 90% of all children with cancer in Mexico. Episode Resources: CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal) [https://calaim.dhcs.ca.gov/] Alameda Alliance for Health [https://alamedaalliance.org/] Dr Diana Ramos Surgeon General in California [https://osg.ca.gov/about/] Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) [https://www.fqhc.org/what-is-an-fqhc] Harper Cancer Research Institute - University of Notre Dame [https://harpercancer.nd.edu/] Una Nueva Esperanza A.B.P. [https://unanuevaesperanza.mx/] Secretaría de Salud | Gobierno de Mexico [https://www.gob.mx/salud/en] UNICEF España [https://www.unicef.es/] Connect with Priya Iyer: Priya Iyer LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/priya-iyer04/] Our Roots Website [https://www.ourroots.community/] Our Roots LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/ourrootscommunity/] Connect with Francesca Wuttke: Francesca Wuttke LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/francescadomenechwuttke-nen/] nen Website [https://nen.health/] nen LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/nen-evidence-based-solutions/] Connect with us: KidsX Website [https://www.kidsx.health/] KidsX LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidsx/] Children's Hospital L.A. Website [https://www.chla.org/] Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/childrensla/] Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/childrensla/]

Teens, Tech, and Belonging: What the Data Says About Youth Well-Being

Teenagers today are navigating something genuinely new, a world where the pressure to belong, the weight of social expectations, and the tools of social media and AI are all arriving at once, during the most identity-defining years of their lives. In this episode, two researchers and innovators share what the data actually shows about youth well-being, and what's being done to help. Dr. Kristine Gloria, founder of YoungFutures, describes how her organization is working to fund, connect, and amplify the community programs already helping young people build the resilience, life skills, and social connections they need, and why the narrative about technology and teens needs to make more room for solutions, not just problems. Dr. Sema Sgaier, founder of Surgo Health, shares how her team is building a behavioral intelligence layer for healthcare, and what their youth mental health research is revealing about how different groups of teens are using AI. The findings challenge the dominant narrative: AI use among youth is more a reflection of their lives and needs than a cause for alarm, and the role of parents and trusted adults turns out to be central to nearly everything. Episode Resources: Clinton Global Initiative [https://www.clintonfoundation.org/] Connect with Dr. Kristine Gloria: Dr. Kristine Gloria LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/gloriakt/] Young Futures Website [https://youngfutures.org/] Young Futures LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/young-futures-org/] Young Futures Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/youngfuturesorg/] Connect with Dr. Sema Sgaier: Dr. Sema Sgaier LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sema-sgaier/] Surgo Health Website [https://www.surgohealth.com/] Surgo Health LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/surgo-health/] Connect with us: KidsX Website [https://www.kidsx.health/] KidsX LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidsx/] Children's Hospital L.A. Website [https://www.chla.org/] Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/childrensla/] Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/childrensla/]

Closing Gaps for Moms and Teens

What does it take to reach a pregnant mother in rural Kenya, and a teenager in America who's been told not to trust vaccines? In this second episode recorded at the Clinton Global Initiative, two innovators share how they are working to close two very different but equally urgent gaps in children's health. Dr. Lorraine Muluka, obstetrician and founder of Malaika, describes how her maternal health platform is bringing comprehensive, end-to-end pregnancy care to women in Kenya, using WhatsApp as the front door, AI to fill the gaps between clinical visits, and community cohorts to address the loneliness of pregnancy that even trained gynecologists often fail to see. Malaika supports mothers from pregnancy through their baby's first six months, building care that is continuous rather than fragmented, and accessible rather than aspirational. Judy Klein, founder of Unity Consortium, shares how a personal loss to cervical cancer (a disease the HPV vaccine now prevents) drove her to spend a decade fighting vaccine misinformation. Her organization's latest initiative: a national program training 10,000 teen health ambassadors who can carry science-based, empathy-driven conversations about vaccines into their own communities, one trusted relationship at a time. Together, they make the case that the future of global health runs through trust, community, and meeting people where they already are. Episode Resources: Clinton Global Initiative [https://www.clintonfoundation.org/programs/leadership-public-service/clinton-global-initiative/] Connect with Dr. Lorraine Muluka: Dr. Lorraine Muluka LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorraine-muluka/] Malaica Website [https://malaica.com/] Malaica LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/malaica/] Malaica Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/malaica_official/] Connect with Judy Klein: Judy Klein LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/judy-klein-8b356b6/] Unity Consortium Website [https://www.unity4teenvax.org/] Unity Consortium LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/unity-consortium/] Unity Consortium Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/unityconsortium/] Connect with us: KidsX Website [https://www.kidsx.health/] KidsX LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidsx/] Children's Hospital L.A. Website [https://www.chla.org/] Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/childrensla/] Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/childrensla/]