I Don't Care

Kevin Stevenson
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The challenges healthcare executives and administrators face are constantly changing. Host Kevin Stevenson talks with the heroes behind the heroes that are enabling hospitals, urgent care centers and telemedicine operators to spend their time tending to patients, while they handle the logistics.

  1. 8 MIN AGO

    From the C-Suite to the Classroom: A Healthcare Leader’s Bet on the Next Generation

    Healthcare isn’t short on strategy right now—it’s short on people, access, and experienced leadership where it matters most. In Texas alone, more rural hospitals have closed than in any other state over the past decade, leaving entire communities with limited access to care. At the same time, many health systems are realizing they haven’t built strong pipelines for the next generation of leaders—making the transfer of real-world experience more critical than ever. So what happens when seasoned executives step away from operational leadership and into academia—and can that shift help solve healthcare’s talent and access challenges? The latest episode of I Don’t Care focuses on what happens when decades of healthcare leadership experience meets the classroom. Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Dr. Michael Wiggins, Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, to explore his transition from hospital CEO to educator. The conversation spans leadership development, rural health innovation, academic medicine, and the evolving role of technology in care delivery. What you’ll learn… Why healthcare leaders need both practical experience and academic grounding to handle modern system complexity.How rural health challenges are reshaping leadership priorities, from access and infrastructure to community-centered care models.What emerging forces—AI, industry consolidation, and financial pressure—mean for the future of healthcare delivery and how leaders must adapt.Dr. Michael Wiggins, DBA, FACHE, is a seasoned healthcare executive with more than 30 years of leadership experience across academic medical centers, pediatric health systems, and community-based care. He has served as President and CEO of nationally recognized children’s hospitals, where he led strategic planning, operational excellence, physician partnerships, and philanthropy initiatives to improve care delivery and community health outcomes. Now an Assistant Professor at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, he focuses on developing future healthcare leaders, advancing research, and guiding organizations on strategy, leadership alignment, and performance improvement.

    32 min

  2. 4 DAYS AGO

    At the Center of Care: How Specialty Pharmacy Aligns Patients, Providers, and Payers

    As healthcare costs continue to rise, more patients are finding themselves navigating not just illness, but the growing complexity of paying for treatment. Specialty pharmacy sits right at the center of that challenge—often out of sight, but increasingly essential to how modern care actually works. These high-cost, high-touch therapies now make up more than half of total U.S. drug spending, despite representing only a small share of prescriptions, a shift that’s reshaping how patients access and stay on treatment. Why has specialty pharmacy become the linchpin between access, affordability, and outcomes in modern healthcare? On this episode of I Don’t Care, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Grant Knowles, SVP of Clinical Services and Payer Strategy at Senderra Specialty Pharmacy, to unpack the evolving role of specialty pharmacy in improving patient outcomes. Together, they explore how clinical oversight, financial navigation, and emerging technologies are reshaping how patients access and adhere to life-changing therapies. Top insights from the talk… Specialty pharmacy goes beyond dispensing medication, serving as a central coordinator across fragmented healthcare stakeholders to manage complex therapies and patient needs.Financial toxicity remains one of the biggest barriers to adherence, with 23–25% of patients delaying or abandoning treatment due to cost pressures.Technology and AI are transforming patient engagement, shifting communication from phone calls to digital-first experiences while maintaining critical human touchpoints.Grant Knowles is a healthcare executive with over 15 years of experience across specialty pharmacy, managed care, and pharmaceutical operations, with expertise in business development, contracting, and supply chain strategy. He has held senior leadership roles, including SVP of Clinical Services and Payer Strategy at Senderra Specialty Pharmacy and executive positions at Ardon Health, where he led growth, operations, and industry partnerships. A managed care residency-trained pharmacist, Knowles is recognized for driving innovation, improving patient experience, and delivering sustainable growth in highly competitive healthcare markets.

    28 min

  3. 18 MAY

    The Healthcare Talent Fix: Build Pipelines Early, Use Data, and Get the Experience Right

    There’s a growing tension inside healthcare right now—between the people leaving the workforce and the patients still arriving every day. It’s a dynamic that leaders can no longer afford to ignore. The numbers make that clear: the Association of American Medical Colleges estimates that the U.S. could be short of as many as 86,000 physicians by 2036, fueled by an aging population and a wave of retirements. So, how do healthcare organizations compete for talent at a time when the workforce is shrinking, expectations are shifting, and technology is rapidly changing how care is delivered? On this episode of I Don’t Care, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with River Meisinger, Regional Vice President of MSP & Strategic Accounts at AMN Healthcare, to unpack the evolving landscape of healthcare recruitment. Together, they explore how systems can build sustainable pipelines for executives, physicians, and the next generation of leaders. Top insights from the talk… Workforce shortages are structural, not temporary, driven by burnout, aging clinicians, and insufficient talent pipelines.AI and data are reshaping workforce planning, but success depends on pairing technology with a human-centered strategy.Gen Z is redefining career expectations, forcing healthcare leaders to rethink mentorship, growth pathways, and workplace culture.River Meisinger is a senior healthcare executive at AMN Healthcare, specializing in enterprise workforce solutions, strategic partnerships, and talent optimization across physician, leadership, and clinical staffing. With more than eight years of experience, he has led large-scale efforts in executive search, interim leadership, and workforce planning to strengthen operations and support patient-centered care. He holds a Healthcare MBA from Simmons University and is recognized for his work in healthcare workforce innovation.

    35 min

  4. 14 MAY

    The Art of Recovery: Where Music and Medicine Meet in Patient Care

    Healthcare today can feel overwhelming—not just for patients, but for the teams caring for them. After a major illness or injury, recovery isn’t handled by one doctor alone; it often involves a whole network of specialists, from physical therapists to nurses to social workers, all trying to help someone regain their independence and quality of life. Even with all the advances in modern medicine, one question still lingers: how do you get everyone working together in a way that truly feels seamless? So what happens when a physician approaches medicine not just as a science, but as a performance? What can healthcare learn from the way musicians interpret, adapt, and lead in real time? Welcome to I Don’t Care. In the latest episode, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Dr. Kevin Estes, a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) physician whose career spans both the concert hall and the clinic. Together, they explore how Estes’ background in orchestral conducting and classical music informs his unique approach to patient care, team leadership, and medical decision-making. Key takeaways from the conversation… PM&R physicians as “conductors”: How these specialists lead and coordinate complex, multidisciplinary care teams—bringing together physical therapy, nursing, and medical specialists to deliver unified, patient-centered treatment across every stage of recovery.Creativity and flexibility in care: Why the ability to adapt, interpret, and think beyond rigid protocols is essential not only in music performance, but also in navigating unpredictable patient outcomes and personalized rehabilitation plans.An unconventional career path: The journey from Juilliard-trained musician to physician—and how that unique background shapes a more holistic, creative, and empathetic clinical perspective in modern medicine.Dr. Kevin Estes is a board-certified Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation physician specializing in post-acute care and traumatic brain injury rehabilitation. Before entering medicine in his early 40s, he built a successful career as a professional musician and conductor, earning a master’s degree from the prestigious Juilliard School. His work included serving as music director at a prominent New York City church and collaborating with elite musicians in one of the world’s most competitive artistic environments. Today, he brings that same discipline, creativity, and leadership into his medical practice, helping patients rebuild function and meaning after life-altering conditions.

    32 min

  5. 11 MAY

    A Physician Entrepreneur’s Playbook for Fixing America’s Specialty Care Gap

    The U.S. healthcare system is facing a quiet but accelerating crisis: a widening gap between where specialists are needed and where they actually practice. In urology alone, there are roughly 1,100 open positions but only about 400 new specialists trained each year—a mismatch that’s only getting worse. As physician burnout rises and more clinicians seek autonomy and flexibility, traditional care delivery models are being pushed to their limits. The stakes aren’t abstract—they show up in delayed diagnoses, long travel distances, and communities left without access to care. So how do you deliver specialty care differently in a system that no longer fits how physicians want to work? On this episode of I Don’t Care, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Dr. Joe Pazona, CEO of VirtuCare, to unpack a deeply personal and highly practical journey: from clinical frustration to entrepreneurial innovation. The conversation explores how one physician turned systemic gaps into scalable solutions—rethinking how specialty care can be delivered across underserved communities while improving physician quality of life. Top insights from the talk… The physician workforce shortage is no longer just a rural problem—it’s spreading into urban markets due to shifting lifestyle priorities and structural inefficiencies.“Top-of-license care” and team-based models are essential to scaling access without overburdening physicians.Entrepreneurship in medicine isn’t glamorous—it’s messy, risky, and full of failure—but it may be one of the most viable paths forward.Dr. Joe Pazona is a board-certified urologist and CEO of VirtuCare, where he develops scalable, team-based specialty care models that expand access and drive revenue for rural hospitals through hybrid care delivery. He has over a decade of clinical and leadership experience, including launching robotic surgery programs, building private practices, and pioneering telehealth-enabled service lines. As an entrepreneur, he specializes in healthcare innovation, physician workforce optimization, and aligning clinical operations with sustainable business models to address systemic gaps in specialty care.

    36 min

  6. 4 MAY

    The Best Healthcare Platforms Are Built on Clear Communication, AI-Human Collaboration, and a Deep Understanding of the “Why”

    Healthcare is being pushed to modernize faster than ever, as AI tools, virtual care, and digital patient experiences shift from innovation to expectation. Recent survey data from McKinsey & Company indicates that about half of U.S. healthcare leaders say their organizations have already put generative AI into practice, underscoring how quickly the technology is moving from experimentation to real-world use. But this acceleration comes with real tension: while AI makes it easier than ever to build software, healthcare still demands systems that are secure, scalable, and clinically reliable—raising the stakes for how these platforms are designed, developed, and deployed. So here’s the real question: In an era where AI can build healthcare platforms faster than ever, what actually separates a solution that works for the long haul from one that looks good at launch—but fails under real-world pressure? Welcome to I Don’t Care. In the latest episode, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Princy Dhupar, Director and Global Partnerships Head at Ditstek Innovations, for a conversation grounded in experience—not theory. Drawing on years of building healthcare platforms across global teams, Dhupar pushes back on the idea that speed and automation alone can deliver results. Instead, the discussion focuses on what actually drives success—clear communication, understanding the “why” behind a product, and combining AI with human expertise to build systems that can scale and last. What you’ll learn… How to use AI without over-relying on it: Why the strongest healthcare platforms combine AI speed with human oversight—and where AI alone falls short.Why defining the problem matters more than writing code: How getting clear on the “why” early can dramatically reduce rework and set the foundation for scalable systems.What actually makes offshore development work: The communication habits, transparency, and trust-building steps that separate successful partnerships from failed ones.Princy Dhupar is Director and Global Partnerships Head at Ditstek Innovations, with over a decade of experience in sales, business development, and strategic partnerships across healthcare and technology. She specializes in driving digital transformation through SaaS solutions, AI-driven automation, and legacy modernization, helping organizations scale efficiently while reducing operational costs. Her work spans startups and enterprises globally, where she has led high-growth initiatives, built long-term client partnerships, and delivered measurable outcomes across healthcare platforms and enterprise systems.

    33 min

  7. 4 MAY

    Policy, Patients, and the Future of Healthcare: How Texas Plans to Fix a Strained System

    The U.S. healthcare system is under real strain—and it’s something both patients and physicians are feeling in everyday care. In Texas, those pressures are even more visible, where rapid population growth, rural access challenges, and regulatory complexity are making it harder for patients to get timely care and for doctors to focus on medicine instead of administrative work. These challenges aren’t driven by a single issue, but by a combination of workforce gaps, growing bureaucracy, and structural inefficiencies that have been building for years. So what happens next? As policymakers, insurers, and healthcare systems compete to shape the future of care, one central question emerges: Can physicians reclaim control of patient care in an increasingly corporatized system? That’s the question at the heart of this episode of I Don’t Care. Host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Dr. Brad Holland, President of the Texas Medical Association, to unpack the organization’s top priorities for 2026. Their conversation spans workforce shortages, regulatory reform, insurance power, and the evolving role of physicians in modern medicine. What you’ll learn… How prior authorization and insurance barriers are getting worse, delaying patient care while placing an increasing administrative burden on physicians.Why physician shortages aren’t about lack of interest, but instead driven by systemic training bottlenecks that turn away qualified candidates each year.How healthcare consolidation and insurance dominance are reshaping care, pushing costs higher and weakening the core physician-patient relationship.Dr. Brad Holland is a board-certified otolaryngologist and head and neck surgeon with specialized expertise in voice and swallowing disorders, pediatric ENT, oncology, and facial reconstructive surgery. He currently serves as President-Elect of the Texas Medical Association and has held multiple leadership roles, including Speaker of the House for TMA and President of the Texas Association of Otolaryngology, reflecting deep influence in healthcare policy and physician advocacy. He also serves as clinical faculty at Baylor University and holds an Executive MBA, bringing both medical and leadership expertise to healthcare.

    33 min

  8. 27 APR

    Called to Lead: Joel Allison on Faith, Risk, and the Future of Healthcare Leadership

    Healthcare leadership is being redefined in real time. With the rise of AI, mounting financial pressures, and workforce burnout, executives today are operating in an environment of continuous disruption and uncertainty. In fact, industry leaders now rank workforce shortages and digital transformation among their top concerns—forcing a new kind of leadership that blends decisiveness with humility. So what does it actually take to lead through uncertainty, especially when you don’t have all the answers? On I Don’t Care, host Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Joel Allison, former CEO of Baylor Scott & White Health and current Chairman of the Baylor University Board of Regents, for a candid conversation about leadership, faith, and legacy. This episode explores the defining moments of Allison’s career, the risks that shaped one of the nation’s largest faith-based health systems, and the personal principles that guided him through decades at the top. The conversation delves into… The high-stakes decision to merge Baylor Health Care System with Scott & White—a bold, controversial move that initially alarmed board members and nearly derailed Allison’s career, yet ultimately became one of the most transformative and successful healthcare mergers in the country.How great leaders operate without certainty—why Allison believes you don’t need all the answers to lead effectively, and how mentorship, trusted advisors, and humility become far more valuable than projecting confidence in rapidly changing environments.The enduring role of faith, purpose, and personal values—how Allison’s sense of calling and belief system shaped his toughest decisions, grounded his leadership style, and helped him navigate decades of high-pressure challenges with clarity and conviction.Joel Allison is a veteran healthcare executive who served as President and CEO of Baylor Scott & White Health, leading its transformation into one of the largest nonprofit health systems in the United States. Over his decades-long career, he has been recognized for his commitment to quality care, leadership development, and faith-based service. Allison earned his degree from Baylor University and has remained deeply connected to the institution, currently serving as Chairman of its Board of Regents. Throughout his career, he has driven large-scale transformation, including system expansion, quality improvement initiatives, and the development of accountable care models focused on patient-centered outcomes.

    36 min
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About

The challenges healthcare executives and administrators face are constantly changing. Host Kevin Stevenson talks with the heroes behind the heroes that are enabling hospitals, urgent care centers and telemedicine operators to spend their time tending to patients, while they handle the logistics.

Information

  • Creator
    Kevin Stevenson
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    178
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright: I Don't Care with Kevin Stevenson
  • Show Website
    I Don't Care