The Pediatric Lounge, Where Pediatric Physicians Come to Share Their Stories and Success

Dr. George Rogu, MD, MBA and Dr. Herb Bravo
  • 4.8 (30)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into just what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between.

  1. 6d ago

    240 Embodiment: Why Human Connection is Pediatric Medicine's Superpower

    Embodiment and Trust: Why Human Connection Is Pediatrics’ Superpower In this Pediatric Lounge episode, hosts Herb and George welcome back Dr. Sean to discuss how, amid AI, misinformation, consolidation, and workforce shortages, the pediatrician–family relationship remains irreplaceable because pediatrics is “the embodiment business,” built on vulnerability, trust, and continuity over years. They explore how misinformation on social media drives parents to seek trusted voices, how limited visit time and EHR “mechanics” undermine relationship-building, and why adolescent care often requires more time. Sean contrasts relationship-based medical homes with transactional care, emphasizes team culture (staff introductions and continuity), and argues practices serve communities through leadership beyond the exam room. They discuss correcting misinformation through motivation, conversation, and shared decision-making, challenges around newborn vaccine consent and declining prenatal visits, burnout as broken relationships, gratitude as a leadership practice, and the need to invest in children and pediatrics for the country’s future. 00:00 Podcast Intro 00:50 Why Embodiment Matters 01:40 Misinformation And Trust 04:14 Vulnerability In Care 05:39 Time Versus Mechanics 10:16 Adolescents Need Time 11:30 Continuity Superpower 14:33 When Care Turns Transactional 15:51 Team Culture And Names 18:43 Pediatrics In The Community 21:27 MBAs And Practice Survival 24:47 Rebuilding Real Community 27:24 Relationships Beat Facts 28:58 Online Echo Chambers 30:56 Trust and Media Diet 31:44 Correcting Misinformation 33:37 Shared Decisions and HPV 35:21 Personalizing Guidelines 38:27 Vaccine Conversations That Work 40:37 Newborn Consent and Humanity 44:14 Prenatal Visits and Continuity 48:05 Burnout and Broken Bonds 49:18 Joyful Practice and Gratitude 55:33 Investing in Children 57:42 Closing Thanks and Signoff Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    59 min

  2. Jun 17

    239 Physician Autonomy: Why It Matters

    Dr. Steven on California’s New Laws Curbing Private Equity Control of Medical Practices In this episode of The Pediatric Lounge, the hosts welcome back Dr. Steven from California to discuss two new state laws addressing private equity and the corporate practice of medicine. Dr. Steven describes his key role as a witness supporting SB 351, which strengthens enforcement against MSOs and private equity interfering with clinical judgment, physician scheduling, work hours, medical record control, and certain restrictive covenants and NDAs tied to quality and ethical concerns. He shares his own experience of alleged MSO interference, including canceled COVID vaccine clinics and loss of control of his professional corporation, now part of a lawsuit. They also review AB 1415, requiring disclosure and greater oversight of healthcare transactions, and compare similar issues in dentistry and leveraged buyouts, arguing financial incentives can harm patient care and physician autonomy while weakening relationships and access in larger systems. 00:00 Podcast Intro 00:29 Catching Up in California 01:04 Surf and Wave Safety 02:20 How SB 351 Passed 03:17 Enforcing Corporate Practice 07:12 MSO Interference Examples 11:22 Noncompetes and NDAs 13:15 Deal Disclosure Law AB 1415 14:48 Dental PE and LBO Debt 17:51 Pediatrics Margins and Debt 19:44 Urgent Care and Midlevels 23:00 Who Pays the Debt 23:48 Wall Street Gambling Mindset 25:15 Money Over Patients 25:37 Recruit Then Replace 26:52 Leverage And Lending 28:40 Physician Exit Strategy 31:17 Independence Comeback 34:26 Access And Pricing Failures 36:04 Referral Barriers And Triage 40:17 Relationships Lost In Medicine 43:05 Teaching The Next Generation 44:08 Closing Thanks And Credits Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    45 min

  3. Jun 9

    238 Why and How Marketing is essential to your business - Cliff James

    Four Pillars of Advertising for Pediatric Practices: Newborn ROI, TikTok, Google Maps, and Internal Outreach Hosts discuss pediatric practice marketing with repeat guest Dr. Cliff James, focusing on ROI-driven patient acquisition and replacing attrition by targeting newborns while balancing capacity and scheduling efficiency. James argues marketing spend should be measured by cost per acquired patient (nationally ~$80–$100; his ~$32), not percent of revenue, and stresses tracking “how did you hear about us” to avoid misleading metrics like clicks. He outlines advertising pillars: (1) social media content, especially TikTok, to educate pregnant/new parents and generate both patients and platform revenue; (2) hyperlocal visibility via Google Maps/Google Business and consistent listings across many directories, with mobile-optimized, content-rich websites that AI search tools can scrape; (3) targeted paid ads such as geofencing OB offices and filtering by demographics; and (4) internal “advertising” using EHR outreach to drive well visits and chronic care follow-ups. He emphasizes outsourcing execution while physicians stay involved and recommends treating the website like a revenue-producing employee. 00:00 Podcast Intro and Guest 01:38 Why Market to Newborns 03:23 Attrition and Growth Math 05:43 Capacity and Scheduling Limits 13:47 Walk Ins and Workflow Hacks 16:33 Marketing Spend and CPA 18:48 Modern Referral Channels 20:51 Outsource vs Be the Star 23:22 Social Media Pillar TikTok 27:59 Tracking Leads and Targeting 29:32 High Income Ad Targeting 30:10 Geofencing OB Offices 31:16 60 Second Video Strategy 32:32 Choosing Social Channels 33:14 Avoiding Link Penalties 35:29 Google Maps Over SEO 36:29 AI Search Website Pages 39:50 Reviews And Internal Outreach 48:19 Quiz Funnels For Leads 52:06 Webinars Worth It 55:36 Delegate Marketing Work 01:00:16 Website As An Employee 01:02:23 Closing And Disclaimers Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    1h 3m

  4. May 26

    237 How DPC is Growing in Pediatrics

    DPC Is Growing in Pediatrics: Dr. Andrew Hertz on Zest’s Expansion, Survey Findings, and the Future of Care The Pediatric Lounge welcomes returning guest Dr. Andrew Hertz, co-founder and president of the Zest Pediatric Network, to discuss the growth of direct pediatric care (DPC) and results from Zest’s national survey. Hertz reports Zest’s expansion from three Cleveland-area practices to 10 sites opening by summer, with 13 physicians across Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida, and describes using annual surveys because pediatric DPC data was previously lacking and the movement is growing about 25% yearly. Survey findings include that pediatric DPC is largely women-led (about 90%), mid-career, mostly solo practices; most charge $100–$175 per child per month with panels under 250 patients; about 48% are AAP members; and many report improved satisfaction and less moral injury. They discuss DPC benefits such as reduced office, urgent care, and ED visits, challenges with insurance and Medicaid capitation without CPT codes, AI’s operational promise and societal risks, and employer value focused more on employee satisfaction than pediatric ROI. 00:00 Welcome Back Dr Hertz 01:30 Zest Network Growth 02:50 Why Survey DPC 03:49 Who Joins DPC 05:06 Boards and MOC Debate 09:31 AAP Membership Questions 13:54 Why DPC Is Rising 18:22 AI vs EHR Efficiency 22:03 Insurance and Capitation 25:14 Hybrid Models and Access 29:08 Costs and Who Can Afford 32:45 Medicaid Capitation Hurdles 35:06 Data Without CPT Codes 36:24 Data Without Red Tape 37:07 ICD-10 and Simple EMRs 38:23 Holistic Prevention Coaching 41:32 Defining DPC Success 42:43 Net Promoter Score Explained 46:10 NPS for Behavior Change 49:19 Storytelling to Drive Adoption 55:53 AI in Pediatrics Promise and Peril 01:03:21 Beyond DPC Payment Models 01:06:15 Employers and Care Navigators 01:09:24 Closing Thoughts and Growth 01:11:31 Podcast Outro Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    1h 12m

  5. May 19

    236 Fixing Primary Care Shortage

    Dr. Sherif Taraman on Fixing the Primary Care Shortage: Economics, Culture, Policy, and Technology In a Tuesday-morning discussion, repeat guest Dr. Sherif Taraman (dual board-certified child neurology and clinical informatics; CEO of Cognoa behind FDA-authorized Canvas DX for autism) joins Herb and George to examine the U.S. primary care shortage. They argue the core driver is broken health economics: low reimbursement, outdated CPT practice-expense assumptions, high overhead, time-strapped 10–15 minute visits, and EHR-driven administrative burden that pushes volume over prevention and fuels burnout, direct-care models, and consolidation or profit-driven ownership. They discuss loss of generalist skills, outdated training and regulation, medical debt discouraging primary care, and cultural preference for quick fixes over preventive care. Potential solutions include clinician-driven tech (e.g., ambient scribes), collaborative care scaffolding with reimbursable codes, more flexible retraining and licensing reciprocity, better education in health economics/population health, and restoring patient-physician relationships to rebuild trust (e.g., vaccines). 00:00 Welcome Back Sherif 01:43 Why Primary Care Matters 03:44 Reimbursement Drives Shortage 05:29 Generalist Skills Fading 07:58 Outdated Rules and Costs 11:11 Practice Models Shifting 13:14 Workforce and Policy Crunch 14:47 Tech Incentives and Burnout 17:54 Collaborative Care Scaffolding 19:03 Culture Debt and Training Reform 26:17 Reinventing Physician Careers 27:44 Credentialing Roadblocks 28:46 Regulation Versus Access 29:45 Modernizing Training Models 30:52 Paying Primary Care Right 32:55 Telehealth Licensing Mess 33:47 Learning Without Certificates 34:52 Screening Belongs Upstream 36:34 Workforce Fixes And Scope 39:48 Guidelines And Critical Thinking 42:44 Medicine As Art And Trust 48:49 EHRs Billing And Burnout 49:44 Closing Thoughts And Action Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    50 min

  6. May 5

    235 Communication is our Thing with Dr. Todd Wolynn

    Communication Is Our Thing: Dr. Todd Wolyn on Vaccine Misinformation, Online Attacks, and Training Trusted Messengers In this Pediatric Lounge episode, hosts interview nationally recognized pediatrician and vaccine advocate Dr. Todd Wolyn, co-founder and former CEO of Kids Plus Pediatrics in Pittsburgh, about communication in pediatric care. Wolyn shares why he chose pediatrics, how Kids Plus grew from a small practice to three offices with expanded services like a regional breastfeeding center and the free, community-based “New Moms Coffee” support groups. He recounts creating an HPV vaccine PSA in 2017 that drew a coordinated global anti-vaccine social media attack, leading to research, a clinician toolkit, and the not-for-profit Shots Heard Around the World. The discussion critiques reliance on talking points and limited communication training, explores why vaccine concerns vary along a continuum, and introduces Wolyn’s Trusted Messenger program, including free CME and a June launch of a train-the-trainer institute using the AIMS methodology. 00:00 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:55 Why Pediatrics 02:25 Meeting Seth and Thinking Bigger 04:42 Building Kids Plus Pediatrics 05:53 New Moms Coffee Community 07:56 Shots Heard Around World Origins 11:54 Online Attacks and COVID Echoes 15:11 HPV Uptake and Vaccine Baggage 21:50 Why Communication Training Fails 27:45 Curiosity With Resistant Families 30:14 Vaccine Concern Spectrum 32:52 Practice Policies and Trust 37:24 Natural vs Liberty Beliefs 40:03 Talking Points Backlash 46:50 Better Vaccine Messaging 49:28 Trusted Messenger Mission 51:54 Scaling Trust Locally 59:04 Training the Trainers 01:01:57 Wrap Up and Credits Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    1h 3m

  7. Apr 28

    234 Will AI Replace Pediatricians with Dr. Igor Trogan MD

    AI Won’t Replace Pediatricians—But Pediatricians Using AI Will In this Pediatric Lounge episode, hosts George and Herb talk with Dr. Igor Trogan about why AI is becoming essential for independent pediatric practices, emphasizing that ambient AI scribing restores eye-to-eye patient interaction, improves documentation, and enables more accurate CPT coding and billing. They discuss financial pressures from declining reimbursement and rising overhead, how EHRs were built largely for accounting and reporting, and the need to balance evidence-based pathways with clinical judgment. Dr. Igor Trogan describes using HIPAA-compliant Google Gemini agents to support coders, catch underbilling, generate rebuttals to payer downcoding, and improve care quality by finding care gaps and medication or dosing errors. He also shares using Base44 (non-HIPAA) to rapidly build custom operational apps (inventory, scheduling, command-center dashboards), plus website chatbots, insurance-card and immunization-record agents, AI-generated training materials and social media content. They conclude the best first step is adopting ambient AI. 00:00 Podcast Intro and Premise 01:24 Why AI Is Now Essential 01:50 Ambient AI Restores Connection 05:05 Billing Pressures and EHR Mandates 08:15 Care Pathways vs Clinical Judgment 13:05 Pediatrics Complexity and Art 17:17 AI for Coding and Billing Accuracy 24:15 Fighting Downcoding With AI 25:50 Quality Checks and Care Gaps 33:08 Clinical Safety and Error Catching 34:41 Custom Apps for Operations 37:03 Scheduling App Fix 39:06 Vibe Coding Explained 39:56 Practice Hub App 40:42 War Room Dashboard 42:57 Will EHRs Be Replaced 47:17 Website Chatbots Agents 49:53 Ambient AI Billing Boost 53:49 NotebookLM For Students 55:34 Care Gaps Holy Grail 01:00:50 Dashboards Outreach Agents 01:02:42 Marketing Training With AI 01:03:54 First Step Start Today 01:04:37 Closing Credits Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    1h 6m

  8. Apr 21

    233 The Brand Is Your Doctor Now

    The Brand Is Your Doctor Now: Provider-Agnostic Care and the Risk to Relationship-Based Pediatrics On The Pediatric Lounge, hosts discuss “provider-agnostic” or “physician-agnostic” care with pediatrician Dr. James Reilly, arguing corporate and private-equity models use protocols, EHR-driven algorithms, and lower-cost staffing to make clinicians interchangeable and reduce patient loyalty to individual physicians. They contrast efficient team-based support that preserves continuity with cost-cutting that sacrifices time, empathy, and physician satisfaction, and warn that “top-of-license” restructuring in psychiatry led to underfunding and a lasting mental health crisis. The conversation links critical pathways and Epic-style cognitive offloading to diminished clinical judgment, citing examples of inappropriate protocol orders, urgent-care misses, and MinuteClinic prescribing. They emphasize that longitudinal “thinking sciences” benefit from trust and wisdom that computers can’t replace, and predict worse outcomes, burnout, and access problems if relationships are replaced by brand-driven, algorithmic care. 00:00 Welcome to Pediatric Lounge 00:45 Meet Dr. James Reilly 01:53 Why Relationships Matter 03:12 What Is Provider Agnostic Care 04:40 Efficiency vs Assembly Line Care 07:28 Private Equity and Interchangeability 10:35 Top of License Mental Health Lesson 14:58 How Protocols and EHRs Started It 20:33 Algorithms vs Human Wisdom 26:38 Pediatrics Funding and Algorithm Upsides 31:00 Pediatrics Value Gap 31:36 Telemedicine Eye Miss 32:53 MinuteClinic Strep Mixup 35:27 Brand Versus Doctor 37:07 Thinking Sciences Model 43:09 Continuity Catches Problems 44:24 Lipoprotein A Wisdom 48:50 Medicine Art And Science 50:27 Interchangeable Doctors Burnout 53:46 Humans Not Algorithms 55:08 Wrap Up And Credits Support the show 🔴 Subscribe for more Doctor stories like this:  🎧Apple and give us a 5-star review. Read more on the TPL Website SOCIAL Media Pages ===============================  📝 - Substack 🎧 - PODCAST 👥 - FACEBOOK 🐦 - TWITTER 📸 - Instagram ➡️ - Linkedin The Pediatric Lounge - A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between. The conversations are not intended as medical advice, and the opinions expressed are solely those of the host and guest.

    57 min
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A Podcast taking you behind the door of the Physician's Lounge to get a deeper insight into just what docs are talking about today, from the clinically profound to the wonderfully routine...and everything in between.

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