What Food, Cannabis, and AI Reveal About the Future of Healthcare with Dara Huang

The Death of the Average Patient: Venture Capital, Quantum Computing & the Future of Healthcare

What happens when venture capital stops funding “digital band-aids” and starts investing in technologies that could fundamentally rewrite the future of healthcare? In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, Rani Khetarpal sits down with Abhi Mukherjee, Partner at CIVC, for a bold conversation about innovation, prevention, quantum computing, and why the healthcare industry can no longer rely on the myth of the “average patient.”  Abhi shares his journey from technology leadership and entrepreneurship into venture capital, explaining how his firm is focused on backing companies that don’t just improve broken systems, but eliminate fragmentation entirely. Together, Rani and Abhi unpack the shift from reactive “sick care” to predictive, personalized healthcare powered by AI, quantum technologies, and purpose-driven innovation.  From the future of preventative medicine to what investors are really looking for in founders, this conversation challenges conventional thinking around healthcare, funding, and the technologies shaping the next decade. In This Episode:  * Why Abhi believes “the average patient” no longer exists  * The shift from sick care to predictive, preventative healthcare  * How quantum computing could transform medicine and diagnostics  * Why healthcare investors are moving beyond “AI-first” companies  * The problem with “digital band-aids” in healthcare innovation  * How technology should enable outcomes, not drive them  * Why purpose matters more than passion when pitching investors  * The importance of commercialization and real-world adoption  * How healthcare founders can better communicate their “why”  * What the future of venture capital in healthcare may look like  About the Guest:  Abhi Mukherjee is a Partner at CIVC, where he focuses on healthcare innovation, deep tech, AI, and emerging frontier technologies. With more than 25 years of experience in technology leadership, innovation strategy, and venture capital, Abhi is known for identifying transformative technologies that bridge the gap between breakthrough science and real-world healthcare impact. Abhi was a founding member of the UST Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) team and previously founded the Enterprise AI startup, Nirveda Cognition, leading it to a successful acquisition in 2021. Abhi serves as an Advisor to the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council, as well as the Strategic Leadership Council for New Mexico LEEP which facilitates strategic commercialization partnerships between Los Alamos and Sandia National Laboratories. Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ [https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/]

What Food, Cannabis, and AI Reveal About the Future of Healthcare with Dara Huang

In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, host Rani Khetarpal sits down with Dr. Dara Huang, physician-entrepreneur and Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of PerkyPet AI, to explore the connections between food, chronic disease, behavioral health, and emerging technology. From her clinical background in nephrology and internal medicine to her work in culinary medicine and cannabinoid-based therapies, Dara shares how her personal experiences and patient care journey shaped a more holistic view of health. She breaks down why prevention often starts outside the healthcare system—and how small, everyday behaviors play a much bigger role than we think. Rani and Dara also dive into innovation in healthcare, the challenges of stigma, and how Dara is now applying her experience to build an AI-powered platform focused on improving health and longevity for pets. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: * How Dara’s personal experiences shaped her path in medicine and innovation * Why prevention often starts outside traditional healthcare settings * The role of food and nutrition in chronic disease and long-term health * How culinary medicine translates into real patient care * Dara’s approach to cannabinoid-based therapies and overcoming stigma * Why healthcare innovation requires thinking beyond traditional systems * How PerkyPet is using AI to support preventive care for pets * The connection between human health, behavior, and pet wellness * Dara’s perspective on where healthcare is headed in the next 12 months Connect with Dara Huang LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dara-huang-md-mmsc-04a47710b/ Website: https://daramd.com/ PerkyPet: https://perkypet.org/ Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ [https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/]

Why Mental Health Is the Missing Piece in Cancer Care with Kyle Lavin

In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, host Rani Khetarpal sits down with Dr. Kyle Lavin, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Cerula Care, to talk about the role of mental health support in cancer care and why it should be more accessible to patients from the start of their journey. Kyle shares his personal and professional path into psychiatry, palliative care, and oncology, including the life experiences that shaped his work and led him to focus on improving access to behavioral health for people living with cancer. He also explains what palliative care psychiatry is, why palliative care is often misunderstood, and how these services can better support patients and families facing serious illness. Rani and Kyle also discuss the collaborative care model, the gaps in the current mental health system, and how Cerula Care is working to scale an evidence-based approach that helps cancer patients get the support they need. Meet the Guest: Kyle Lavin Kyle Lavin is the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Cerula Care, an integrated behavioral health company focused on people living with cancer. He is one of fewer than 100 palliative care psychiatrists in the country and is deeply passionate about improving access to mental health support for patients facing serious illness. Kyle also serves as an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: * How Kyle’s personal journey led him into psychiatry and palliative care * What palliative care psychiatry is and why it matters * Why palliative care should begin earlier in the care journey * How palliative care has evolved over time * Why mental health support remains difficult for cancer patients to access * What the collaborative care model looks like in practice * How Cerula Care is integrating behavioral health into oncology care * What it takes to launch a healthcare startup and secure an early provider partner * Where Kyle believes healthcare may be headed in the next 12 months Connect with Kyle Lavin & Cerula Care 🔗 LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-lavin-857a4222 [http://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-lavin-857a4222]🌐 Website: https://cerulacare.com/ [https://cerulacare.com/] Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ [https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/]

Beth Raboin on Virtual Staffing, Practice Efficiency & Scaling GMVA

In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, host Rani Khetarpal sits down with Beth Raboin, CEO and Founder of Global Medical Virtual Assistants (GMVA), to talk about how virtual staffing is helping medical practices address workforce shortages and improve operational efficiency. Beth shares her journey from being a Division I gymnast on full scholarship at the University of Florida to spending more than 22 years across surgical device, pharmaceutical, and specialty pharmacy industries. Along the way, she gained deep insight into how medical practices operate—and where administrative burden slows care delivery. That experience ultimately led her to launch GMVA and scale it from one client to a high-growth organization supporting healthcare teams nationwide. Rani and Beth also discuss the realities of entrepreneurship in healthcare, including long adoption cycles, early misjudgments, building the right team, knowing when to say no to clients, and balancing leadership with motherhood. Meet the Guest: Beth Raboin Beth Raboin is the CEO and Founder of Global Medical Virtual Assistants (GMVA). With more than 22 years of experience across surgical device, pharmaceutical, and specialty pharmacy industries, she blends strategic leadership with hands-on operational expertise. A former Division I gymnast on full scholarship at the University of Florida, Beth holds a Bachelor of Science in Health Sciences. Under her leadership, GMVA achieved 1,085.9% revenue growth over three years, ranking #368 on the Inc. 5000 list and #1 fastest-growing private company in Connecticut. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: * How Beth transitioned from Division I athletics to healthcare entrepreneurship * Why virtual staffing has become a cost-effective solution for medical practices * What GMVA does and how it supports front desk, authorizations, and revenue cycle workflows * Why adoption in healthcare takes time—even when solutions are clearly needed * Lessons from Beth’s first year as a founder and landing early clients * The growing pains of scaling fast and building the right internal team * Why saying no to the wrong clients protects long-term success * Beth’s perspective on leadership, motherhood, and redefining “balance” * Where she believes healthcare is headed in the next 12 months Connect with Beth Raboin & GMVA 🌐 Website: https://gmva.com [https://gmva.com]🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beth-lachance-950792365/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/beth-lachance-950792365/]📘 Facebook: https://facebook.com/globalmedicalva [https://facebook.com/globalmedicalva]📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/globalmedicalvas [https://instagram.com/globalmedicalvas]▶️ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@globalmedicalvirtualassistants [https://youtube.com/@globalmedicalvirtualassistants]🔗 LinkedIn (Company): https://linkedin.com/company/globalmedicalva [https://linkedin.com/company/globalmedicalva] Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ [https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/]

Deepti Pandita on AI Governance and Clinical Informatics in Healthcare

In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, host Rani Khetarpal sits down with Dr. Deepti Pandita, VP of Clinical Informatics and Chief Medical Information Officer at UC Irvine Health, to talk about what it really takes to implement technology in healthcare—especially as AI moves from buzzword to everyday tool. Deepti shares her journey from training in India with almost no computer access to becoming one of the early board-certified clinical informaticists in the U.S. She breaks down how clinical informatics has evolved from “EMR enablement” to a broader discipline at the intersection of people, process, and technology—and why governance, workflow fit, and user trust matter more than the tool itself. Rani and Deepti also discuss real-world examples of AI in action—from ambient AI scribing that helps clinicians get time back, to health-system-built LLMs supporting discharge planning—and how data and design decisions can either widen or close health equity gaps. Meet the Guest: Deepti Pandita, MD Deepti Pandita, MD is the VP of Informatics and Chief Medical Information Officer at University of California Irvine Health, and an Associate Professor of Medicine at UCI. She leads AI governance at UCI and has implemented solutions to improve clinician proficiency using AI. Her organization is a founding member of CHAI (Coalition for Health AI), and she serves as a Board Member of the American Medical Informatics Association, is the immediate past Chair of the Medical Informatics Committee for the American College of Physicians, and Chair for HIMSS Physician Informatics. She is also a Physician Advisory Board member for Epic. Dr. Pandita has published on bridging digital disparities and most recently coauthored the American College of Physicians position paper on AI in healthcare. She was named one of Becker’s “Top 50 CMIOs to Know” in 2025. In This Episode, You’ll Learn: * How Deepti went from “what is an icon?” to leading clinical informatics and AI governance * Why clinical informatics is really the intersection of people, process, and technology * What changed between early EMR rollout challenges and today’s AI implementation reality * How governance helps prioritize what to build, buy, train, or fix inside a health system * How ambient AI scribing is improving documentation burden and clinician wellness * How a health-system-built LLM can support discharge readiness and operational efficiency * Why equity work often starts with data—and the small details that make a big difference * Deepti’s take on agentic AI, AI oversight, and why AI should be normalized—not feared * Where she believes healthcare will be in 12 months: lower burnout metrics for clinicians Connect with Dr. Deepti Pandita 🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepti-pandita-b361ab117/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/deepti-pandita-b361ab117/] Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters: https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/ [https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/]