Advertise on podcast: Faisel and Friends: A Primary Care Podcast

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Physician as Patient: Navigating the Healthcare System in an Emergency. Faisel and Dan are talking with Dr. Lauren Hughes: Family Physician Executive and Health Policy Leader improving Primary Care and Rural Health. Our conversation explores how Dr. Hughes managed her patient experience after a car accident: the work required to navigate insurance coverage after a medical event, the impracticality of patient responsibility in a crisis, the factors that expedited resolution, and the policy action needed to address this universal issue.

We’re discussing The Compass of Connection: Using Moral Insight to Guide Patient-Centered Care! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Peter Murphy, from Mountain View Direct Care. Our conversation revolves around defining what sets Direct Primary Care apart from other models, considering the moral injury of financial harm as part of patients’ health, and forging a new path based in quality relationship- and value-based care.

We’re discussing A Year in Review: Looking Forward to 2026! Faisel and Dan are reflecting on all we learned through our conversations in 2025, and projecting what’s on the horizon this year. Our conversation revolves around improving the healthcare system for all patients, expanding access to Direct Primary Care through health savings accounts, and personalizing the way we coordinate care for better outcomes.

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Following the Information Blueprint: Restoring Joy in Primary Care. Faisel and Dan are talking with Karen Johnson, PhD: Vice President of Practice Advancement at the American Academy of Family Physicians. Our conversation explores reducing the burdens of practice by utilizing AI, improving information-sharing and data flow to guide impactful action, and rebuilding trust within the healthcare workforce. Read the Primary Care Information Blueprint here: https://www.aafp.org/dam/AAFP/documents/practice_management/payment/primary-care-information-blueprint-aafp.pdf

We’re discussing Smarter Tech, Stronger Connections! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Paulius Mui & Dr. Gina Engel Our conversation revolves around preserving human connection and clinical judgement in a digital landscape, enhancing care with responsible AI use, and treating technology as support rather than replacement. This episode was recorded live at FMX, the AAFP's premier Family Medicine conference! Learn more about FMX here: https://www.aafp.org/events/fmx/2026.html

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Reclaiming the Human Interaction in The Age of AI. Faisel and Dan are talking with Dr. Steven Waldren & Dr. Jay Lee. Our conversation explores empowering clinicians with technology, optimizing team collaboration with AI, and reclaiming the narrative around primary care physicians as trusted voices of wellness. This episode was recorded live at FMX, the AAFP's premier Family Medicine conference! Learn more about FMX here: https://www.aafp.org/events/fmx/2026.html

We’re discussing Empowering Patients to Make the Best Decisions! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Alex McDonald: Family and Sports Medicine Physician, AAFP Vaccine Science Fellow, and Immediate Past President of the California Academy of Family Physicians. Our conversation revolves around exploring vaccination options with patients, building a movement from an online immunization community, and prescribing lifestyle medicine.

We’re discussing Raising the Bar in Value Based Primary Care Payment! Faisel and Dan are joined by Purva Rawal, PhD, Former Chief Strategy Officer, CMS Innovation Center at Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Our conversation revolves around navigating changing healthcare policies, unlearning fee for service as the default, and leveraging community relationships within alternative care models.

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Growth, Equity, and Alignment in Primary Care Systems. Faisel and Dan are talking with Dr. Doug Jacobs: Executive Director of the Maryland Health Care Commission (MHCC). Our conversation explores caring about what’s happening in fee-for-service even if you are in a value-based model, communicating with patients about accountable care, and understanding complexities of the “efficiency adjustment” in the upcoming fee schedule.

We’re discussing Teaching Tomorrow’s Family Doctors: Residency, Resilience, and New Models of Care! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Makandall Saint Eloi, Dr. Christian Widder and Dr. Farah Shaukat. Our conversation revolves around training the next generation of doctors, implementing new models of care, and identifying practical applications of AI in family medicine. This episode was recorded live at FUTURE, the AAFP's annual conference! Learn more about FUTURE here: https://www.aafp.org/events/future-conference/2026.html

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing From Inspiration to Impact: Family Medicine at the Crossroads of Change. Faisel and Dan are talking with Shawn Martin, Executive Vice President and CEO of the American Academy of Family Physicians, and Dr. Tina Sharma, Chief Resident of Family Medicine at The University of Texas at Tyler. Our conversation explores the growing direct primary care movement, the utilization of artificial intelligence in medicine, and the bright future workforce of Family Medicine. This episode was recorded live at FUTURE, the AAFP's annual conference! Learn more about FUTURE here: https://www.aafp.org/events/future-conference/2026.html

We’re discussing Direct Primary Care: a Rising Tide for American Healthcare! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Jeffrey Davenport, from One Focus Medical and Direct Primary Care Alliance. Our conversation revolves around recent policy changes in favor of DPC, timely momentum in the alternative care model movement, and finding physician satisfaction after burnout. This episode was recorded live at FUTURE, the AAFP's annual conference! Learn more about FUTURE here: https://www.aafp.org/events/future-conference/2026.html

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Beyond the Copay: DPC, HSAs, and the Politics of Change. Faisel and Dan are talking with Jay Keese: CEO of Capitol Advocates and Executive Director of the Direct Primary Care Coalition (DPCC). Our conversation explores meaningful changes to healthcare delivery, groundbreaking achievements in IRS policy, and advice for leveraging law to provide more personal patient experience and better outcomes. Learn more at www.dpcare.org

We’re discussing Taking Care: of Ourselves, Each Other, and Our System! Faisel and Dan are joined by Dr. Asaf Bitton, executive director of Ariadne Labs and Associate Professor of Medicine and Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School and Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Our conversation revolves around innovating payment models beyond units, taking responsibility for patient needs beyond clinic visits, and efficiently connecting with patients and colleagues beyond bare necessity.

This week on Faisel and Friends, we are discussing Advanced Primary Care: Investing in Happier and Healthier Patients. Faisel and Dan are talking with Dr. Jon Leizman, Chief Medical Officer at Premise Health. Our conversation explores navigating access to primary care, shifting the focus within a model of onsite employer-based healthcare, and addressing the role of policy in the future of the healthcare workforce.