ASC Insights: The Role of Culture and Relationships in ASC Success with Allison Stock, Chief Operating Officer at Surgical Management Professionals

Why the success of an ASC relies on preserving the physician's voice and cultivating a strong, unique culture. In this episode of ASC Insights, recorded live at ASCA SAMBA 2026, Lindsay Alexander is joined by Allison Stock, Chief Operating Officer at Surgical Management Professionals (SMP). Drawing on 20 years of experience in the ASC space, Allison shares what it takes to build a successful surgery center from the ground up and the importance of keeping independent physicians at the center of clinical decisions. She discusses the evolving challenges of the ASC marketplace, including the impact of private equity, the shift toward higher case complexity, and the pressures of supply chain and reimbursement. Looking ahead, she emphasizes that while innovations like AI and robotics offer new operational efficiencies, human relationships and collaborative teams will always be the true drivers of an ASC’s success. Tune in as Allison Stock explores why a customized approach to culture and staffing is critical, and how ASC leaders can navigate a rapidly changing landscape while delivering exceptional outpatient care. Resources: Connect with and follow Allison Stock on LinkedIn. Follow Surgical Management Professionals (SMP) on LinkedIn and explore their website!

Patients are the largest unorganized constituency in American healthcare—and Matthew Zachary believes that needs to change. In this episode, I speak with Matthew Zachary, CEO and Co-Founder of We The Patients, brain cancer survivor, author of the book: We The Patients, founder of Stupid Cancer, and host of Out of Patients. Matthew shares why traditional advocacy built around awareness and moral arguments has not been enough to change healthcare policy. He explains his vision for organizing patients around shared economic interests, using the 3.5% rule as a framework for building real civic power. We also discuss how insurance barriers, administrative burden, medical debt, and delayed access to prevention continue to harm patients, and why aligning patient protections with economic incentives could create meaningful reform. Tune in to learn why an organized patient constituency could become one of the most powerful forces in healthcare! Resources: Connect with and follow Matthew Zachary on LinkedIn. Visit Matthew Zachary’s website. Get a copy of We the Patients: Understanding, Navigating, and Surviving America’s Healthcare Nightmare. Listen to Out of Patients with Matthew Zachary. Learn more about Stupid Cancer. Read Matthew’s The Hill op-ed on patients sharing a civic identity. Explore Erica Chenoweth’s research on the 3.5% rule. Learn more about Lucid Diagnostics and the EsoGuard test.

High-quality care only improves outcomes when patients can access it, navigate it, and complete the next step in their care journey. In this episode, I speak with Todd Gottula, Co-Founder and CEO of Clarify Health Solutions, about his personal experience navigating a serious back injury and how it reinforced the importance of timely access to care. Todd shares how Clarify Health uses nationwide claims data, AI-enabled insights, and outcome-based partnerships to help health systems identify where patients are leaving their networks or facing barriers to care. He also discusses Clarify Meridian, which supports physician activation, and Arrival, a patient activation solution designed to help more patients complete specialty referrals and receive the care they need. Tune in to learn how better data, patient engagement, and aligned incentives can help health systems improve access and outcomes! Resources: Connect with and follow Todd Gottula on LinkedIn. Follow Clarify Health Solutions on LinkedIn and explore their website.

Cancer care is complex, emotional, and often difficult for patients to navigate alone. In this episode, Marcia Macphearson, Chief Operating Officer at ThymeCare, discusses how the company is working to transform cancer care through value-based care and a connected approach to the oncology ecosystem. She explains how ThymeCare brings together health plans, oncology practices, health systems, and multidisciplinary care teams to help patients navigate the financial, social, clinical, and emotional challenges of a cancer journey. Marcia also shares how building trust with patients and connecting the different parts of the healthcare ecosystem can help care teams respond quickly when patients need support. She explores the potential of AI to support clinicians by reducing administrative work, consolidating information, and giving care teams more time and insight to focus on individual patient needs. Tune in to learn how coordinated, whole-person cancer care can close gaps, build trust, and improve outcomes! Resources: Connect with and follow Marcia Macphearson on LinkedIn. Follow ThymeCare on LinkedIn and explore their website. Learn more about Thyme Companies.

Radiology teams are facing rising imaging volumes, persistent staffing shortages, and growing burnout, making workflow-focused AI more important than ever. In this episode, Dr. Jeff Chang, Co-Founder and CEO of RAD AI, discusses building generative AI solutions that help radiologists work faster while maintaining their existing workflows. Jeff shares how RAD AI started by automating parts of radiology reporting, then expanded into patient follow-up and AI-powered reporting tools that reduce dictation time and support more consistent care. He also discusses why successful healthcare AI must fit naturally into clinical workflows, the lessons RAD AI learned while navigating early startup challenges during COVID-19, and how generative coding could accelerate innovation across healthcare. Tune in to learn how workflow-driven AI can reduce radiologist burden, improve follow-up care, and support the future of medical imaging! Resources: Connect with and follow Dr. Jeff Chang on LinkedIn. Follow RAD AI on LinkedIn and explore their website!

A business cannot scale beyond its founder unless the founder is also willing to evolve. In this episode, Steve Preda, Founder and CEO of Summit OS Group, discusses the systems founders need to build scalable, leadership-led companies. Steve shares how business operating frameworks helped him grow and sell his investment banking firm, which in turn inspired him to create Summit OS. He explains how the system establishes execution momentum, develops leaders into “mini CEOs,” and helps businesses progress from operational discipline to strategic differentiation. He also touches on why healthcare professionals must understand the business they lead, even when they delegate its daily management, and why continual reinvention is essential as companies grow and face disruption. Tune in to learn how the right systems can help founders strengthen execution, empower their teams, and build businesses that can scale beyond them! Resources: Connect with and follow Steve Preda on LinkedIn. Follow Summit OS Group on LinkedIn and explore the Summit OS website! Visit StevePreda.com to explore Steve’s books, podcasts, videos, and other resources. Explore the Summit OS book library, including Summit OS: A Fable. Preorder Steve’s upcoming book, 5 Climbs: That Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain. Listen to Steve’s Management Blueprint podcast. Download the free Summit OS Starter Toolkit.

Mental health support becomes more accessible when it reaches people through a tool they already use every day. In this episode, Johnny Crowder, Founder and CEO of Cope Notes, discusses turning his lived experience with mental health challenges into a simple, evidence-based support platform. Johnny explains how Cope Notes delivers daily text messages featuring psychology facts, exercises, and journaling prompts written by peers and reviewed by clinicians. He talks about why text messaging can reach more people than an app, how employers can measure its impact through engagement, productivity, turnover, and healthcare claims, and why preventive support can benefit people whether or not they are currently struggling. Tune in to learn how accessible, bite-sized mental health support can help people build healthier thinking patterns one text at a time! Resources: Connect with and follow Johnny Crowder on LinkedIn. Email Johnny directly at [email protected]. Follow Cope Notes on LinkedIn and explore their website! Learn more about the evidence behind Cope Notes on their research page. Try Cope Notes free for seven days at copenotes.com.

Protecting Medicaid access starts with identifying coverage risks before paperwork problems interrupt care. In this episode, Asya Rudikoff, Co-Founder and CEO of AccessIQ, discusses how her experience as a physical therapist and home healthcare leader exposed the consequences of preventable Medicaid disenrollment. She explains how procedural issues, including missed forms, outdated contact information, and complicated renewal processes, can cause eligible patients to lose coverage. Asya also explores how these disruptions affect families, provider revenue, hospitals, health plans, and state healthcare spending. She shares how AccessIQ uses coverage signals to identify at-risk patients, help organizations prioritize outreach, and shift Medicaid coverage management from reactive problem-solving to proactive prevention. Tune in and learn how actionable data can help protect Medicaid coverage, preserve access to care, and support healthcare organizations. Resources Connect with Asya Rudikoff on LinkedIn. Follow AccessIQ Health on LinkedIn and visit its website. Connect with Asya Rudikoff via email at [email protected]

The future of healthcare is not limited to clinics and hospitals. It is increasingly about meeting patients where they are and supporting them between visits. In this episode, I speak with Aqil Chishty, CEO of TimeDoc Health, about shifting healthcare from episodic visits to continuous, longitudinal care. Aqil explains how TimeDoc Health serves as a bridge between patients and providers through chronic care management, remote patient monitoring, behavioral health support, and other virtual care programs. We discuss why compassion is essential for effective care coordination, how regular communication can prevent unnecessary hospital visits, and why healthcare organizations must listen closely to both patients and clients. Aqil also shares why he believes the home will become an increasingly important setting for care delivery. Tune in to learn how compassionate care coordination can close gaps, support providers, and help patients manage their health between appointments! Resources: Connect with and follow Aqil Chishty on LinkedIn. Follow TimeDoc Health on LinkedIn and explore their website!

The future of robotic surgery lies in helping surgeons see better, make stronger decisions, and operate with greater precision. In this episode, Jean-Pierre Hubschman, Founder and CEO of Horizon Surgical Systems, discusses the development of Polaris, a physical AI platform built specifically for ophthalmic surgery. He explains how variations in surgeons' vision, judgment, and technical execution can influence patient outcomes, even for routine procedures. Jean-Pierre explores how robotics and real-time imaging can provide intelligent surgical assistance while keeping physicians in control. He also shares his vision for making consistently high-quality eye surgery accessible to every patient, regardless of who performs the procedure. Tune in to discover how physical AI and robotics could transform the future of eye surgery! Resources: Connect with and follow Jean-Pierre Hubschman on LinkedIn. Follow Horizon Surgical Systems on LinkedIn and explore their website!