Expanding Access Podcast

AI-driven healthcare solutions can revolutionize behavioral health by optimizing schedules, improving patient matching, and enhancing operational efficiency.

In this episode, Plamen Petrov, CEO of Healee, shares how AI-driven solutions are addressing critical challenges in healthcare scheduling. He also discusses the importance of provider-patient matching and operational optimization through technology. Plamen discusses the importance of identifying gaps in provider schedules and leveraging data-driven strategies to enhance care delivery and accessibility.

Tune in to uncover how cutting-edge technology is breaking barriers in behavioral healthcare!

Psychedelics are transforming mental health care accessibility and treatment.

In this episode, Dr. Dana Lerman shares her journey from being an infectious disease consultant to founding Skylight Psychedelics after facing personal mental health struggles during the COVID pandemic. She discusses her transformative experiences with psychedelic-assisted therapy, including an ayahuasca retreat, and how these therapies catalyzed profound personal changes and a career shift. Dr. Lerman highlights the critical role of psychedelics in enhancing mental health care accessibility, illustrated by her work with insurance companies to provide ketamine-assisted therapy benefits. She emphasizes the potential of psychedelics, like ketamine, in treating conditions such as suicidality, advocating for the de-stigmatization and respectful use of these medicines.

Tune in to learn how innovative approaches in psychedelic therapy are reshaping the landscape of mental health care!

Innovative psychiatric care models are reshaping how we address behavioral health crises.

In this episode, Colin LeClair, CEO of Connections, discusses Connections' freestanding emergency psychiatric units that provide alternatives to traditional hospital settings, aiming to rapidly stabilize patients in crisis and reduce the burden on hospitals. Colin addresses significant barriers to behavioral health parity, particularly health plan engagement, and advocates for a shift towards value-based care models.

FDA-cleared digital mental health treatments are transforming behavioral healthcare by improving access, affordability, and clinical rigor.

In this episode, Dr. Jenna Carl, Chief Medical Officer at Big Health, discusses the transformative potential of FDA-cleared digital mental health treatments. She explains how these evidence-based, automated programs address critical challenges like accessibility and cost in behavioral healthcare.

The power of lived experiences has been harnessed to create a transformative platform for advancing mental health and expanding access for all.

Solome Tibebu, Founder and CEO of Behavioral Health Tech, shares her journey from personal struggles with anxiety and OCD to building the largest community focused on advancing mental health and substance use care through technology. She discusses the origins of Behavioral Health Tech during the pandemic, its rapid growth, and its commitment to promoting health equity and innovation.

Lived recovery experiences strengthen Sober Sidekick's support systems for individuals battling substance use disorders.

In this episode of the Expanding Access podcast, Christopher Thompson, Founder and CEO of Sober Sidekick, shares his personal recovery journey and the inspiration behind his app, which aims to create a supportive recovery community through peer support.

Incorporating lived recovery experiences improves Wayspring's programs for Medicaid recipients with substance use disorders.

In this FIRST episode of the Expanding Access podcast, we meet Ashley Potts, Vice President of Operations at Wayspring, during BHT2024. With 18 years of recovery from substance use, Ashley shares how her lived experience informs Wayspring's programs for Medicaid recipients with substance use disorders.