Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

In this episode, Leonardo Marchini, DDS, MSD, PhD, Professor and DEO of the Department of Preventive and Community Dentistry at the University of Iowa College of Dentistry, and Brendan Young, PhD, MBA, Associate Professor of Preventive and Community Dentistry, The University of Iowa, discuss their article "Beyond Hand Skills: A Case Analysis of Empathy and Critical Thinking Instruction", published in the Journal of the California Dental Association’s Blue Sky Thinking Collection. They explore behavioral science, patient-centered communication, self-reflection and innovative tools designed to prepare dental students for more thoughtful patient care.

In this episode, Karen Ignagni, CEO, EmblemHealth, discusses the evolving Medicaid landscape, healthcare affordability, interoperability, and how health plans can use technology, AI, care management, and value-based care to better support members. She also shares insights on her return to the CEO role and EmblemHealth's ongoing transformation.

In Part 1 of this two-part episode, Mark Clement, the former President and CEO of TriHealth, reflects on his decision to retire, the importance of succession planning and the leadership lessons he has learned from decades of marathon running. He also shares how staying active, rounding with frontline teams and finding inspiration in others have shaped his leadership approach.

In this episode, Scott Becker examines Medicare Advantage exits, physician cognitive testing, AI's impact on healthcare leadership, rising physician compensation, and the need to rethink the physician training pathway.

In this episode, Jake Ghannam, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Insightec, discusses how MR-guided focused ultrasound can expand access to neuroscience care, the strategic case for health systems, and how to build a successful program.

This episode is sponsored by Insightec.

Statistics and data referenced in this episode can be found at the following sources:

1.  Information and stats in this podcast were sourced from the following:Ney JP, Steinmetz JD, Anderson-Benge E, et al. US Burden of Disorders Affecting the Nervous System: From the Global Burden of Disease 2021 Study. JAMA Neurol. 2026;83(1):20-34. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2025.4470

2.  Kowal SL, Dall TM, Chakrabarti R, Storm MV, Jain A. The current and projected economic burden of Parkinson's disease in the United States. Mov Disord. 2013;28(3):311-318. doi:10.1002/mds.25292

3.  Marras, C., Beck, J.C., Bower, J.H. et al. Prevalence of Parkinson’s disease across North America. npj Parkinson's Disease 4, 21 (2018).

4.  https://essentialtremor.org/

5.  Pearson C, Hartzman A, Munevar D, et al. Care access and utilization among Medicare beneficiaries living with Parkinson's disease. npj Parkinson’s Dis. 2023;9(1):108.

6.  Dorsey ER, Sherer T, Okun MS, Bloem BR. The Emerging Evidence of the Parkinson Pandemic. J Parkinsons Dis. 2018;8(s1):S3-S8.

7.  Nicole A. Silva, Ariana Hernandez, Alok K. Dwivedi, Paul Mihas, Daniel A. Roque, Vibhor Krishna; Exploring the Patient Pathway to Focused Ultrasound Ablation for Essential Tremor: A Mixed-Method Approach. Stereotact Funct Neurosurg 2026; https://doi.org/10.1159/000551996

8.  https://health.usnews.com/best-hospitals/rankings/neurology-and-neurosurgery (July 2026)

9.  Surpassing DBS -Source: Carevoyance & Insightec Data on file

10. *Search: “Premarket Approval (PMA) Database” - https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfPMA/pma.cfm

o P150038: Essential Tremor Indication

o P1550038/S006: Tremor Dominant Parkinson’s Indication

o P150038/S014: Idiopathic Parkinson’s Disease (unilateral) Indication

o P150038/S037: Idiopathic Parkinson’s Disease (Staged, bilateral) Indication

o P150038/S015: Post-approval study (PAS) results from the 5-year follow-up