Patients are being cut off from medications they need, doctors are afraid to prescribe, and the reason traces back to political donations most Americans never see. Richard A. Lawhern, health care educator and patient advocate, joins us to explain how lobbying money shapes health care legislation and what patients can do about it. This episode is based on his article "Health care lobbying is destroying the U.S. system [https://kevinmd.com/2026/04/health-care-lobbying-is-destroying-the-u-s-system.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear why $4.5 billion was spent influencing the 2024 election, how undisclosed donors block reforms like single payer, and why nearly a quarter of every health care dollar goes to administrative costs that do nothing for patients. Richard explains how the National Campaign to Protect People in Pain trains advocates to reach committee staffers and shift the political calculus. Press play to hear how the system actually works and where ordinary advocates can apply pressure.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Dark money is writing your health care laws

Most doctors were never taught how to sit with a patient's grief, anger, or fear without absorbing it. Eva Minkoff, a health care executive coach, and Kim Downey, a physical therapist and physician advocate, join Kevin to discuss their KevinMD article "How regulating clinical empathy prevents physician burnout [https://kevinmd.com/2026/04/how-regulating-clinical-empathy-prevents-physician-burnout.html]." You'll hear why physicians who lean too far into patient emotion burnout, why those who shut down lose trust and treatment adherence, and why both paths end in the same exhaustion. Eva walks through her three-step framework (recognize the feeling, distinguish it from the story, address the emotion first) and explains why naming a patient's anger or grief in five seconds builds the connection that protects both the doctor and the care. Kim brings the patient view, sharing how doctors who stay present without drowning create the kind of relationship she calls sacred. If you're a clinician asking how to keep caring without burning out, listen for the five-second practice Eva walks through.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Why doctors burn out connecting with patients, and how to fix it

Most of the people deciding where billions of health care dollars get invested have never treated a patient. Harsha Moole, a physician scientist and health care venture capital founder, joins Kevin to discuss his KevinMD article "The crash cart that taught me physician-led investing [https://kevinmd.com/2026/05/the-crash-cart-that-taught-me-physician-led-investing.html]." You'll hear how a single overlooked workflow problem on a hospital crash cart became a multi-hospital company, why physician-led groups screen every deal through three gates of clinical, regulatory, and reimbursement diligence, and how doctors can get involved without leaving their day job by advising startups, advising venture funds, or co-investing through a physician network. Harsha also breaks down why angel investing requires a long timeline, the discipline to diversify across 4 to 10 companies, and money you can afford to lose. If you've ever looked at a health care product and thought you could have told them it wouldn't work, this conversation makes the case for using that clinical instinct beyond the bedside.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Why the people funding health care startups have never treated a patient

Medical students who skip writing their own reflections are not lazy, they are surviving an irrational system. Kathleen Muldoon, a coach and professor, returns to discuss what student AI use in medical education actually reveals about the curriculum, the hidden incentives behind it, and why she calls students in instead of catching them. This episode is based on her article "Driving medical education reform through intellectual honesty [https://kevinmd.com/2026/04/driving-medical-education-reform-through-intellectual-honesty.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear why pass-fail courses inside graded curricula push students to put their energy elsewhere, why the hidden curriculum speaks louder than the syllabus, and what students disclosed when she asked them what was going on. You will learn what her workshops are designed to do that AI cannot, why she believes AI cannot teach empathy, and what a more humane medical education would actually require. Press play to find out why she thinks the next generation of clinicians is not the problem, and what the systems training them must change to produce humane physicians.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

What's actually behind medical students using AI

Most patients on antidepressants are told they can't take methylene blue, even for brain fog. Steven E. Warren, a physician and longevity medicine clinician, joins Kevin to discuss his KevinMD article "51 cases that reframe methylene blue serotonin syndrome [https://kevinmd.com/2026/04/51-cases-that-reframe-methylene-blue-serotonin-syndrome.html]." You'll hear why 50 of the 51 published serotonin-syndrome cases involved high-dose IV methylene blue given under anesthesia, mostly during parathyroid surgery, rather than the low oral doses used in outpatient longevity practice. Steven walks through the Goldilocks dosing posture he uses for patients with brain fog, why he screens every patient's full medication list for interactions before starting, and why he tells every patient there are no randomized trials behind methylene blue. He also describes the broader longevity practice he sees daily: patients stacking peptides from the gym, megadosing vitamin D from podcasts, and ordering supplements off Amazon without quality control. If you're a clinician fielding methylene blue questions or a patient considering it, listen for the questions Steven thinks should be asked before starting any unstudied supplement.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Why most methylene blue cases came from anesthesia, not pills

Up to 40 percent of infertility cases involve combined male and female factors, but the male partner is often skipped. Erica Bove, a reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist, returns to discuss why that gap exists and what can be done about it. This episode is based on her article "What is often overlooked about male factor infertility [https://kevinmd.com/2026/03/what-is-often-overlooked-about-male-factor-infertility.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear how prescribed testosterone for low energy and low sex drive can wipe out sperm production, sometimes irreversibly, and why men taking it for low T frequently have no idea their fertility is at stake. You will learn what a basic semen analysis screens for and what a full male evaluation adds, including hormonal testing and a reproductive urologist exam. You will hear how varicocele surgery alone can resolve a couple's infertility, why marijuana and tobacco are unusually bad for sperm, and why every change shows up three months later. Press play to find out which male factor causes are most often missed, and which are most often reversible.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Low T treatment is silently destroying sperm counts

Your ER doctor has about 25 minutes to figure out your medical history and decide what to do next. Hamed Husaini, an emergency physician and physician executive, explains why so much of that data never reaches the bedside and what AI can do about it. This episode is based on his article "AI in health care data management: Curing the EHR overload [https://kevinmd.com/2026/02/ai-in-health-care-data-management-curing-the-ehr-overload.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear why records from skilled nursing facilities, primary care, and home health rarely get read in time, why duplicate medications and missed end-of-life directives slip through, and how a one-page AI synopsis pushed into the native EHR before you walk into the room changes what the next 25 minutes look like. Hamed argues the bottleneck is not data volume; it is the pull model that asks busy clinicians to fetch records they never have time to read. If the system already feels like it should know your records and still doesn't, this episode names why and what changes when the data starts flowing the other direction.

True team-based care starts with you. At ChenMed, we believe the best way to care for patients is to change the way we practice medicine.

When you join our team, you are empowered to lead. We've moved beyond the traditional volume-heavy model to focus on true value-based care. Our model gives you the time and resources to manage complex cases and make a lasting impact on your community.

Whether you are applying for a primary care physician, nurse practitioner, or medical director position, you will feel supported by a physician-led culture that understands your challenges. Your dedication doesn't go unnoticed here. You'll be rewarded with a career that offers both professional fulfillment and a better quality of life. Visit ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD] to learn more.

VISIT SPONSOR → https://ChenMed.com/physicians-KevinMD [http://chenmed.com/physicians-KevinMD]

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Why your ER doctor doesn't know your medical history

The same instinct that makes you a careful clinician may be the one sabotaging your financial future. Cardiologist and fiduciary financial planner Stanley Liu joins this episode to explain why physicians' deeply trained aversion to risk becomes maladaptive once it leaves the hospital. This episode is based on his article "Physician financial risk: Balancing capacity and tolerance [https://kevinmd.com/2026/03/physician-financial-risk-balancing-capacity-and-tolerance.html]," published on KevinMD.

You will learn why risk capacity and risk tolerance are two different variables, and why mistaking one for the other quietly drives bad financial decisions. You will hear why the physicians most at financial risk are those with low capacity and high tolerance, and why high-earning doctors with no debt sometimes stay stuck in toxic jobs they have the financial freedom to leave. You will also learn what questions a planner asks to surface the money scripts shaping your choices.

Listen if you have ever wondered whether your discomfort with financial risk is protecting you or holding you back.

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Why the risk aversion that makes you a good doctor wrecks your finances

What if the cure for physician burnout has been making it worse the whole time? Lisa Rubiano, an internal medicine physician and physician coach, spent over a decade as a hospitalist before burning out in 2021 and stepping back to figure out what really went wrong. This episode is based on her article "Why resilience is not the cure for physician burnout [https://kevinmd.com/2026/03/why-resilience-is-not-the-cure-for-physician-burnout.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear why the resilience narrative quietly shifts blame onto individual physicians while letting toxic systems off the hook, how the Quadruple Aim turned clinician well-being into a vague self-care mandate, and what it actually takes to unlearn the belief that you should be able to push through anything. Lisa breaks down why setting boundaries feels so hard, why systems have no real incentive to change, and where physicians are quietly building their own way out. Listen for the moment that makes the self-blame stop.

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

Physician burnout is not your fault, and here's why blaming yourself keeps you stuck

Patients know when you are not really present with them, and trust is built or broken in the first few minutes. Jess Bunin, an intensivist, and George Mount, a rheumatologist, co-founders of All Levels Leadership, argue that trust in clinical teams is a practiced skill built from three concrete components: empathy, logic, and authenticity. This episode is based on their article "The secret sauce of leadership trust in health care teams [https://kevinmd.com/2026/03/the-secret-sauce-of-leadership-trust-in-health-care-teams.html]," published on KevinMD. You will hear why a critical care fellow was required to say "I don't know" once on rounds even when he knew, what a three-time cancer survivor noticed about the physicians she actually trusted, and how to communicate through genuine uncertainty without losing your team. You will also learn why George Mount spends the first few minutes of a patient encounter on trust before he asks about the chief complaint. Listen for a grounded framework for repairing trust when it wobbles.

Partner with me on the KevinMD platform [https://kevinmd.com/kevinmd-influencer-opportunities]. With over three million monthly readers and half a million social media followers, I give you direct access to the doctors and patients who matter most. Whether you need a sponsored article, email campaign, video interview, or a spot right here on the podcast, I offer the trusted space your brand deserves to be heard. Let's work together to tell your story.

PARTNER WITH KEVINMD → https://kevinmd.com/influencer

SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST → https://www.kevinmd.com/podcast

RECOMMENDED BY KEVINMD → https://www.kevinmd.com/recommended

How to lead a team through uncertainty without breaking trust

Social media's leading physician voice, Kevin Pho, MD, shares the stories of the
many who intersect with our health care system but are rarely heard from. 15
minutes a day. 7 days a week. Welcome to The Podcast by KevinMD.

Kevin Pho

Shows