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Representative Sharon Cooper – Top Docs Radio

February 1, 2016 by CW

Top Docs Radio

Representative Sharon Cooper - Top Docs Radio

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Representative Sharon Cooper

I hosted MAG CEO/Executive Director, Donald Palmisano, Jr., and Georgia State Representative, Sharon Cooper. We talked about 2016 legislative priorities affecting healthcare in the state. More information soon!

Special Guests:

Sharon Cooper, Rep. Dist 43, Georgia State House of Representatives (R)

MA Education
MSN, Nursing
Authored 2 books on psychiatric nursing
Chair, Georgia Health and Human Services Committee

Donald Palmisano, CEO, Executive Director of Medical Association of Georgia

JD Law, Loyola School of Law
Board of Directors, Physician Advocacy Institute
Medical Payment Subcommitte Member, State Board of Workers’ Compensation
Treasurer, Board of Directors, Physicians’ Institute for Excellence in Medicine
Former Director, Government Relations/General Counsel/Director, GAMPAC

Kevy and CimCo

January 26, 2016 by CW

Midtown Business Radio

Kevy and CimCo

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Kevy and CimCo

This week we continued our series with Life University and Dr. Gilles LaMarche, VP of Professional Relations, focusing on business leaders of integrity. We hosted Brooke Beach, of Kevy, and Bill and Diedre Plunk, of CimCo.

After spending several years as a marketing expert, Brooke and some colleagues believe they could improve on the ecommerce/direct marketing customer experience and improve response rates and create more repeat customers. To date, most email automation solutions such as Pardot, SalesForce, and others, focused on the B2B sector, helping businesses increase contact and ultimately, sales, with companies they’re trying to reach. There are marketing automation solutions available for B2C/Retail enterprises to similarly leverage email to contact customers to enhance sales, these solutions have traditionally offered limited data that would let that enterprise truly evaluate ROI on a per email basis in dollars and cents.

The Kevy platform integrates with their clients’ existing ecommerce platform via java script that is embedded into the website code. Once there, it enables Kevy and the customer to track user behavior by where they go on the site, how long they stay, the products and types of products they’re viewing, and whether they buy. With this information, the retailer is able to display very behaviorally-relevant pop-up information that personalizes the experience and significantly increases conversion rates.

Additionally, the Kevy platform enables very user-specific automated email communications that are relevant to that user’s particular behavioral context. Combining these technologies results in a dramatic rise in sales from existing customers in the retailer’s database and the ability to get very targeted with discounts and marketing message. If you are interested in learning more, contact Brooke and her team here.

Upon entering the banking industry ~20 years ago, Bill unexpectedly found himself placed in charge of collections on loans in arrears. Without any experience or real training in how to do so, he set about contacting debtors. It turned out that his approach to this often-difficult conversation made him quite successful at it.

After spending some time with a collections firm that was not operating in an ethical fashion, he decided to launch his own firm and handle clients and debtors with the respect and professionalism that had served him so well to that point.

In that time, his integrity and professionalism made such an impression on debtors he was collecting on, some ultimately turned to him to collect for them after their accounts were settled. His highly-personal approach to his work allows him to turn around outstanding accounts quickly, in many cases in less than 1-2 months.

Special Guests:

Brooke Beach, Co-founder/CEO, of Kevy

BA, Public Relations; Journalism, University of Georgia
Former Co-Director, Windstream Communications SchoolsWIN Program
Founder and Chairman of Marketwake

Bill and Diedre Plunk of CimCo Commercial Collections

BS in Education, Minor in Business, Northeastern State University
Former Teacher and Coach, Oklahoma Public Schools
Board Member, River of Praise Ministries

Dr. Gilles LaMarche, DC, VP of Professional Relations at Life University

Doctor of Chiropractic, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College
Author, The ART of Responsibility, Insight Publishing 2012
Certified Six Advisors Coach, Six Advisors Coaching Academy
Previous Vice President, Parker College of Chiropractic

Cryotherapy for Early Stage Breast Cancer – Top Docs Radio

January 22, 2016 by CW

Top Docs Radio

Cryotherapy for Early Stage Breast Cancer - Top Docs Radio

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Cryotherapy for Early Stage Breast Cancer

On this week’s episode I sat down with award-winning Atlanta-area breast surgeon, Dr. April Speed regarding treatment options for breast cancers, including cryotherapy. She shared what motivated her to enter the medical field as her chosen profession and how she is pleased to have brought her expertise in treating cancers of the breast to a community that has limited access to cancer care.

Dr. Speed discussed the process through which she determines best course of action for treating a worrisome lump of the breast, be that a lumpectomy (removing the lump but leaving the healthy breast tissue), mastectomy (removing the affected breast), or a minimally-invasive approach.

Given the short recovery time of the minimally-invasive option, it is desirable when the tumor type and size fall within established guidelines. In many cases, patients are able to return to work the same day and typically results in less pain for them. One such procedure is the Visica 2 Procedure, made by Sanarus. (Visica 2 is the Treatment system, the Visica Procedure is the procedure.)

This technology allows the breast surgeon to use a small, super-cooled probe that is guided to the abnormal tissue within the breast by imagery. The probe is below freezing, and is used to freeze the cancerous tissue, destroying it. Over time, once the procedure is complete, the destroyed tissue is slowly reabsorbed.

I was pleased to talk about this with Dr. Speed, as she is one of fewer than 10 breast surgeons in the state of Georgia who are able to perform this minimally-invasive, early stage breast cancer treatment.

About Sanarus/the Visica Procedure – In 2001, the Visica® Treatment System was the first system available for cryoablation of fibroadenomas. Since then, our systems have been used to successfully treat thousands of patients. Since 2007, the Visica 2 Treatment System has been used to treat cancer in hundreds of cryoablation-assisted surgeries and dozens of cryoablation-only procedures in clinical trials.

Disclaimer: The Visica 2 Treatment system is FDA-cleared for the ablation of cancerous or malignant tissue and benign tumors. It’s been used in over 5,000 cryo-assisted surgeries and cryo-only procedures.

Special Guest:

Dr. April Speed, MD, Global Breast Health & Wellness Center; Just Breast, LLC

Doctor of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine
Residency, MD Anderson Cancer Center
Board of Directors, Susan G. Komen for the Cure
Board of Directors, Southeastern Primary Care Consortium

Digital Marketing with Richard Warner

January 19, 2016 by CW

Midtown Business Radio

Digital Marketing with Richard Warner

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Richard Warner talks digital strategy

Digital Marketing with Richard Warner

Long-time Georgia media personality, Richard Warner, joined me in the studio this week. He spent over 30 years in front of microphone and camera on TV and radio and was awarded the Career Achievement Award by the Georgia Radio Hall of Fame. He hosted Georgia’s Business on Georgia Public Broadcasting, and served as a business commentator and host for 11 Alive, WSB Radio, and WGST. But he’s not just a successful media talent. He’s also and expert in digital marketing strategy.

In addition to serving as on on-air talent for several decades, talking about business, Richard is also a successful entrepreneur. He founded What’s Up Interactive in 1990, which after transitioning from building a successful information service utilizing then-innovative fax technology, now provides media production, digital strategy, web design, and SEO services.

We talked about some things a business owner needs to be cognizant of regarding their approach to their online presence. With Google’s frequently-updated search algorithms placing ever-more emphasis on relevancy and freshness of content on a site, along with how frequently it’s consumed, linked, and shared, it is very important to have a good strategy for telling a company’s story and sharing useful, topical information to its clients and prospective clients.

Special Guest:

Richard Warner, CEO/Founder, What’s Up Interactive

ABJ, Broadcast News, University of Georgia
Former Host/Managing Editor, “Georgia’s Business, Georgia Public Broadcasting
Recipient, Career Achievement Award, Georgia Radio Hall of Fame
Board Member, Georgia Chamber of Commerce

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia – Top Docs Radio

January 18, 2016 by CW

Top Docs Radio

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia - Top Docs Radio

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Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia

On this week’s episode with our partner, Medical Association of Georgia, MAG CEO, Donald Palmisano, Jr., joined me in studio. We hosted Jeff Fusile, the recently-appointed President for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia. Jeff joined the company in the lead role, coming over from Anthem in November of 2015.

Jeff Fusile is president of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGa), the state’s oldest and largest health insurance company. He oversees sales, account service, marketing, underwriting, and customer relationships. Jeff is involved in corporate strategy planning and execution, and he serves as the primary contact for state regulators to ensure compliance and manage any state-related matters.

Jeff previously served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for the Commercial & Specialty Business Division of Anthem, Inc., which is Blue Cross and Blue Shield’s parent company. He joined Anthem in 2011 after spending 22 years as a strategic management consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers. Jeff is a licensed CPA. He has qualified as an expert witness in insurance and the broader health care industry. He is widely recognized as an industry leader in health care strategy, corporate governance, compliance, enterprise risk management, HIPAA, and ICD-10.

As the health care landscape undergoes an unprecedented transformation, the traditional relationships between providers and payers are also evolving. With the largest network of providers in the state, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGa) serves more than 3 million Georgians and is the only plan offered in all 159 counties. BCBSGa President Jeff Fusile will discuss how BCBSGa is developing programs to facilitate better collaboration with providers, make health care more affordable for consumers and simplify the access to care. Reaching out to rural communities and the impact of technology on delivering innovative solutions was also discussed.

Special Guest:

Jeff Fusile, CEO, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia

BS, Accounting & Finance, Florida State University College of Business
Certified Public Accountant
Previous Managing Partner, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
Former Senior VP/CFO, Commercial & Specialty Business, Anthem

Mountain View Group and My Professional CFO

January 12, 2016 by CW

Midtown Business Radio

Mountain View Group and My Professional CFO

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Mountain View Group and My Professional CFO

This week we continued our bi-weekly series with Life University’s Dr. Gilles LaMarche, focusing on business leaders who exemplify integrity, in a lead-up to Life University’s LIFEtalks World Congress, May 12-13, discussing integrity for life with a number of well-known speakers on the subject. We were joined in the studio by Thom Gonyeau and Alan Conner, of Mountain View Group and My Professional CFO, respectively.

I met Alan a few weeks ago in the hall of our office building. After learning about how he helps physicians, I knew we needed to have him stop by to talk about it. In addition to providing basic accounting/payroll functions, Alan also helps physicians develop effective, legal tax strategies, including self funded insurance plans to reduce their tax burden and risk at the same time.

Alan shared the story of a family member, an ER physician in Florida. He explained the fact that his family member, as do many physicians, work as 1099 contractors for the respective practice they serve. In this relationship, the doctor receives a gross paycheck with no tax withheld.

In this situation it is vital for the provider to plan for their tax obligation and pay it in a timely fashion (at least quarterly) or they face between 5-10% penalties, which can quickly add up to significant amounts, based on the numbers they’re working with.

Alan explained several options available to physicians that work as 1099 contractors, including self funded insurance plans, pension plans, SEP IRA’s, and others, that will help them preserve their hard-earned revenue for later while protecting them from risk such as loss of medical license should that occur.

It’s clear after speaking with him that it is advisable for our colleagues in the community to partner with experts such as Alan to develop a solid plan for managing their tax obligations as well as helping to secure their financial future.

I met Thom Gonyeau ~five years ago. Equal parts right-brain and left-brain, he’s an operational guru. He works with clients to solve their business needs. Thom is an avid photographer, tennis player, runner, and writer. H had his first brush with fame at age 8, when his poem “Things That Are Beautiful” was published in Highlights magazine.

We talked about the media production work he and his team execute to help their clients, which includes the likes of GE, Coca Cola, and numerous other well-known enterprises, tell the story of their brand both internally and externally. Thom draws on his love of writing and his curiosity to get to know his clients very well and then be able to craft engaging, award-winning media productions across a variety of platforms to share it with the target audience.

Special Guests:

Dr. Gilles LaMarche, DC, VP of Professional Relations at Life University

Doctor of Chiropractic, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College
Author, The ART of Responsibility, Insight Publishing 2012
Certified Six Advisors Coach, Six Advisors Coaching Academy
Previous Vice President, Parker College of Chiropractic

Alan Conner, CEO, My Professional CFO

MBA, Finance, Nova Southeastern University
Previous Investment Banker, Orosey & Pepe Capital Markets
Former Investment Manager, Arduus Asset Management

Thom Gonyeau, CEO, Mountain View Group

MA, Communications, The College of Saint Rose
Chair, Board of Trustees, Creative Education Foundation

Austin Clinical Research Professionals

January 6, 2016 by CW

Health Connect South

Austin Clinical Research Professionals

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Austin Clinical Research Professionals

On this week’s episode I sat down with the founder and CEO of Austin Clinical Research Professionals, Dana Austin. This company provides clinical technologists and researchers to conduct or support clinical trials. With a background in cardiology nursing, Dana and her team have particular expertise in studies around hypertension and diabetes, both of which are significant risk factors for heart disease.

Austin Clinical Research Professionals also offers certified CEU training to meet credentialing needs of existing research scientists and staff. Additionally, Dana is certified to serve as a monitor for clinical trials to provide oversight and feedback to sponsors as well as being qualified to sit on ethics committees for studies.

Dana shared how individuals in the community can participate in available studies to get access to care that might not otherwise be available. We talked about some studies she had been able to be a part of that ultimately resulted in helpful medications being made available to the public.

Special Guest:

Dana Austin, CEO/Founder of Austin Clinical Research Professionals

MSA, International Development, Andrews University
BSN, Emory School of Nursing
Certified Clinical Research Professional, Society of Clinical Research Associates
Previous Senior Clinical Team Leader, PPD

Dental Deserts – Top Docs Radio

December 23, 2015 by CW

GDHA — Misty Mattingly, Charlie Craig, and Sarah Smith explain GA HB 684

Dental Deserts

In the state of Georgia, 118 counties out of 159 have too few dentists to treat those residents. 16 Georgia counties have NO DENTIST at all. Clearly, this leaves a large, rural population in the state with limited or NO access to even basic, preventive dental care.

Today, there are only 5 states that do not allow hygienists to operate under a dentist’s supervision unless the dentist is physically on site where the dental hygiene care is provided. One of those is Georgia.

President of Georgia’s Dental Hygienist Association, Misty Mattingly, stopped by, along with Sarah Smith and Charlie Craig of Solution Road to talk about a measure before the Georgia House of Representatives that will address the lack of access to preventive screenings and treatments that are provided by hygienists.

Currently, Georgia law requires that a dentist is ON SITE while a hygienist administers care. Obviously, this is impossible in 16 counties without some sort of medical mission on the part of dentist and hygienist, and limited in 118 Georgia counties. Under HB 684, hygienists would be able to be supervised remotely by a dentist rather than requiring them to physically be on site. This would empower hygienists to provide diagnostic screening and preventive care in these areas with limited to no access.

When problems requiring restoration such as a filling or crown would be identified by the hygienist during these visits, they would be referred to a dentist for appropriate care. Without question this is a win for all parties, particularly the patients who today, have problems often going undiagnosed until serious, often resulting in an ER visit for evaluation.

https://soundcloud.com/cwhall333/ga-hb-684-and-hb-350

KSU BrainLab

December 22, 2015 by CW

Health Connect South

KSU BrainLab

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KSU BrainLab

On this week’s episode we sat down with Steve Krontz, Director of Innovation at the KSU BrainLab, located in the Coles College of Business. They’re doing some remarkable work, using brain activity studies to analyze how individuals react to a logo, or a flavor, or a host of business-related stimuli. Additionally, Steve and his team have been developing technology that will enable thought-to-text and thought-to-command capabilities.

This means they will be able to empower individuals who have neurologic problems that inhibit muscular control/activity such that they are rendered unable to speak or communicate. With this soon-available technology, persons dealing with such problems will be able to interact with their environment and their caregivers.

Steve explained how the KSU BrainLab at Coles College of Business partners with businesses small and large to help them answer important questions that help them be more effective in their work. The college is actively seeking companies who are looking to address important questions with their help.

The KSU BrainLab at Coles College of Business website describes their work this way, “Part science lab and part technology incubator, at the BrainLab we work to align computer technology with the human neurological system. Through our research we create meaningful applications for brain-computer interfaces by studying how users respond to and control brain-based devices.”

It is rewarding to help bring awareness to innovative initiatives like the KSU BrainLab at Coles College of Business. I was surprised to learn that, as Steve explained, the ability to use thought to communicate as well as to interact with our environment is potentially less than 10 years away. Such technology could clearly have an extensive impact on a wide range of healthcare patients as well as business.

Special Guest:

Steve Krontz, Director Innovation, KSU BrainLab, Coles College of Business