Episodes

What happens when the agency veteran has healthcare land in her lap? How might a decades-long marketing and healthcare communications background inform perspective, self-advocacy, decision-making, and the digestion of medical and support-related communications? Well, the answer may surprise you. KayAnn Schoeneman is the President of Curley Company and a young adult survivor of colon cancer. Her advocacy focuses heavily on prevention, testing, and screenings before recommended age. Her agency's client work evocates her belief in giving back while digging deep into purpose-driven social justice causes. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

When the doctor says, "go home," that isn't the end of the story, especially when you're navigating your adolescence and young adulthood against the grain when all of your cohorts go off to live their lives. Emily Parks is the founder of POP!, a growing community of patients living with rare and/or chronic illnesses who also identify as living with Medical PTSD. She is a fiercely vocal rare disease advocate and a chronically ill young adult making waves with her highly vocal activism. Today, Emi...

Among the many cool things I love about my job interviewing amazing people is when I interview amazing people who also went to my alma mater, Binghamton University. Or what, as alumni of the 80s and 90s, will always refer to as SUNY Binghamton. (Sorry, not sorry.) Amy Gittelman fits both bills and happily took the hot seat to discuss why Pharma marketing sucks. what "digital media" meant back when AOL floppy disks were filling up our landfills, and, to get real for a moment, what it's like when your sister is diagnosed with Stage 2B Ovarian Cancer. Caregiving is an art form, and, in many cases, it can make all the difference in the quality of life experienced by a cancer patient. All the more reason for driving her purpose and passion while leading the first virtual patient acquisition platform leveraging the telehealth and virtual care industry. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jessica Spangler, aka eCommJess, is a clinical pharmacist and first responder by day and a human cheat sheet for managing finances in her spare time. Health literacy is financial literacy, and even after working grueling hours in the ER and managing burnout, Jess takes to TikTok to proffer tips, tricks, shortcuts, loopholes, and sometimes basic civics to her millions of followers. Did you know you have negotiating power over your bill if your hospital is a nonprofit? Did you know that your credit score can be affected by financial toxicity? Probably not. eCommJess is the expert you never knew you needed to untangle yourself when healthcare (or anything else) comes to mess up your life. For more about Jess, visit her website and follow her on TikTok, where she does a great job talking to herself. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Christina Merrill is the Founder & CEO of the Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to support patients, their families, and caregivers every step of the way during a cancer diagnosis or bone marrow transplant. She is also the creator of Cancer Buddy, a social support network mobile app for people facing cancer. She joined Matthew in-studio to discuss, among other things, the intrinsic need to end isolation, connect with a community that knows what yo...

Dr. Sudhir Gadh is a board-certified psychiatrist and Commander in the US Navy Reserve. He is also Medical Director for the Center for Recovery and Wellness, with a core focus on low-dose Lithium, as a comprehensive approach for patients to improve brain function. Joining Matthew live in-studio, they talk about our nation is failing to address the mental health crisis, empathy in medicine, physician burnout, ongoing stigma, and, most interestingly, the history of 7-Up. You heard that right. In his words, “Psychiatry is about understanding and adjusting your life story towards progress.” Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Marie Wilda is an American advocate and true champion for the independent pharmacist. While not one herself, her career experience in the sector, coupled with her unbridled passion in rallying for the voice of the independent pharmacist, has put her on the map as one of the more outspoken voices in the country. Her years of military experience with the US Navy provided her with the skills and discipline needed to advocate nationally for one of the most trusted professions in healthcare. But how can Americans support their local pharmacists? Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Stand-up comedian Ben Freeberg is a young adult survivor of testicular cancer. In 2022, he turned his pain into purpose, leveraging his career in finance, and launched create Oncology Ventures, an early-stage, cancer-focused venture fund investing in start-ups whose purpose is to fundamentally change the way cancer care is designed and delivered at scale. As Managing Partner, Ben oversees pretty much everything while working his way into the world of cancer advocacy, start-up culture, and the sometimes dark underbelly of the role non-profits play (or don't play) in the space. I know this is a first-of-its-kind venture, so time will tell if everyone else is as intelligent as Ben hopes they are. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bryan Cush and Brian Dragich are the co-founders of Tidal Health, an agency that focuses on healthcare and practice management. Their job is to help their practices better navigate the nonsense that patients face, like scheduling, wait times, EMR distractions, insurance nightmares, billing, overall satisfaction, and more. So, whether it's reputation management or showcasing medical expertise, their track record is fascinating, with some really interesting case studies showing how they are genuinely making healthcare suck less. For more information, visit https://www.tidalhealthgroup.com/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this solo episode, Matthew shares a heartfelt series of personal stories with listeners about his take on life, luck, love, fate, coincidence, probability, his best friend Sarah, and "A Guy Named Phil." — all thanks to Mel Brooks. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Self-proclaimed "noisy introvert" Paul Simms is the Chief Executive at Impatient Health, a platform on a Sisyphean mission to help the pharmaceutical industry be more ambitious and creative. While not only having one of the most outstanding British accents ever to grace this podcast, Paul is a true provocateur and a rabble-rouser. We want to think that everyone would appreciate the habitually conservative healthcare sector to be less risk-averse and recalcitrant and consider the possibility of making daring, experimental, creative, and ambitious changes. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

COVID-19 is the gift that keeps on giving to far too many people. While it's nice to think, "OK, we're done here," experts worldwide continue to struggle to make sense of the continuing mystery of Long COVID. On the show today, Dr. David Putrino, Director Of Rehabilitation Innovation at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, joins returning champion Mette Dyhrberg, Founder & CEO of MyMee, for a deep dive conversation to try and make sense of the madness. For example, why are only certain peopl...

Dr. Michelle May is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Arizona State University who turned her attention to helping people improve their relationship with food. As the owner of "Am I Hungry? Mindful Eating Programs and Training," she shares her struggle with food and body image with authenticity and passion with audiences worldwide. Michelle is also the author of the book series Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat, including Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat for Students. All that and a healthy dose of GenX Therapy are coming right up. Learn more about Michelle and the Am I Hungry platform at https://amihungry.com and https://michellemaymd.com. Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gabe Charbonneau is a rural health Family Physician, Co-Founder of Medicine Forward, and progenitor of the viral #FightBurnout movement sweeping the country. Among the many critical issues discussed, Gabe highlights the decline in quality care against the backdrop of unrealistic demands of payers and health systems, the everyday mental health decay facing HCPs, and the relentless chokehold healthcare has on the entire medical profession. Are you angry yet? Gabe believes it's time to reclaim the soul of medicine in America. Learn more about Gabe and his social justice efforts at FightBurnout.org. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On today's episode, Matthew welcomes Kristie Kuhl (Global Managing Director, Health and Wellness, Zeno Group) and Peter Pitts (Former FDA Associate Commissioner and President of the Center for Medicine in the Public Interest) to share highlights and recap their panel session at the 2022 STAT Summit in Boston, MA. The STAT Summit is a prestigious annual event that welcomes global leaders to discuss healthcare's most critical topics, and Matthew, Peter, and Kristi's panel, "We The Patients," did not disappoint. With a focus on consumerism in healthcare and how direct marketing has the potential to be the new "patient engagement," attendees learned the value of thinking consumer vs. thinking patient.  Put on your thinking hat and prepare for a rollicking and highly entertaining discussion. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Beverly A. Zavaleta, MD, is a board-certified family physician, cancer survivor, and long-time advocate of patient education. The author of "Braving Chemo: What to Expect, How to Prepare, and How to Get Through It," Beverly talks about the "good problem to have" of being a medical professional and a cancer patient simultaneously. An unapologetic straight-shooter, she and Matthew hit all the nerves, especially the GenX nostalgia factor. Learn more about Beverly, her book, and her work at https://www.beverlyzavaletamd.com. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jane Myles is the Vice President of Clinical Trial Innovation at Curebase, a platform at the forefront of "decentralized trials." What does that mean? Well, when a patient qualifies and—hopefully—enrolls in a trial, they usually have to take up residence in a different city and uproot their lives for a few weeks or months. The idea behind decentralizing them means all the medications and protocols come to a patient's local hospital so as not to cause such unnecessary upheaval. Jane is also a musician at heart, so there's a bunch of non-science geekery afoot. Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Visit https://fightcancer.org/pod and see how you can take an active role in influencing the government to do the right thing and help cancer patients around the country.

As a college senior, I was diagnosed with what doctors thought could be terminal brain cancer. That was 27 years ago TODAY: January 10th, 2023. No guests. Just me. Reflecting on what was, what is, and what may be. If life were easy, we'd all do it. How the hell am I still here? I have no idea. But I am still here. And I thank each and every one of you for supporting me, my work, this show, and the fundamental belief that advocacy matters. Enjoy the show. Oh, and I also relaunched my website, https://www.matthewzachary.com, to commemorate this special occasion. Happy New Year! See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Returning champion to Out of Patients, advocacy badass Carly Flumer flips the script on Matthew Zachary as she takes the reins for an AMA (Ask Matt Anything) reverse interview. Hilarity ensues as we take a trip down memory lane as to how the sausage was made, the very origins of Stupid Cancer and the young adult cancer movement, and how we've arrived at today's "better problems to have." Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Chaitenya Razdan "Chat" is the Founder and CEO at Care+Wear, an innovative healthwear fashion brand offering more medically appropriate clothing to cancer patients and medical professionals. Having first met Chat in 2015 at Stupid Cancer conference in Denver, his idea has gone international, reaching millions of patients on our mission to bridge fashion and function for a more human healthcare experience. Passion to purpose takes patience and Chat is a true innovator in the space. For more information, visit https://www.careandwear.com. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Charlie Coltman is the Founder and CEO of Cancerlife, an innovative free mobile app designed to improve quality-of-life for cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers. Cancerlife is first cancer app-validated Randomized control trial to raise QoL. A varsity soccer athlete and pre-internet digital healthcare entrepreneur, Charlie's world came crumbling down with the death of his best friend from cancer. His passion for helping others facing cancer is self-evident. He's been at this game for a long time, having, in 2013, implemented one of the first Remote Patient Monitoring Pilots in the oncology sector. He is a man on a mission. Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Jonah Comstock is the Editor in Chief of pharmaphorum, and a veteran healthcare journalist and reporter. He's been covering this topic even before this topic was a thing to be covered. Throughout his career, he has helped to shape significant narratives about the sector, what matters today, and where he sees progress in the future. Learning from his grandmother, who worked in the printing industry, Jonah's trajectory from copy editing Intern to today is an inspiring human time capsule into how the sausage is made. Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

An economist turned diagnostician, Mette Dhyrberg took matters into her own hands, hacked her own health, and soon began helping others do the same. Mette is the Founder and CEO of MyMee, a digital health platform that identifies the unique dietary and environmental factors that drive mild, moderate, or severe symptoms for people living with chronic conditions and rare disease. So without further ado, we present the tale of when the software engineer becomes the accidental patient advocate. Enjoy the show. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.