The PennHealthX Podcast

87 - Dr. Evan Fieldston - Leadership, Operations, & Value-Based Care

Hosts Habib & Ziad sit down with Dr. Evan Fieldston, Associate Chief Medical Officer at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and Professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine, who focuses on improving healthcare systems for children and their families. They discuss his journey from childhood patient to physician-leader, how training in pediatrics, business, and public policy shapes his approach to value in healthcare, the nuts and bolts of evidence-based management and quality improvement, the role of technology and AI in hospital operations, CHOP’s future expansion and behavioral health initiatives, and his advice for students interested in system-level impact.

86 - Dr. Akl Fahed - Digital Health, Genetics, & GLP-1s

In this episode of the PennHealthX Podcast, Habib sits down with Dr. Akl Fahed to discuss his career as an interventional cardiologist, physician–scientist, and digital health entrepreneur working at the frontiers of genomic medicine and chronic disease care. Dr. Fahed serves at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute, where he leads an NIH-funded research program focused on using large-scale genomics and data science to better understand cardiometabolic disease and identify risk long before symptoms appear. He is also the clinical co-founder of GoodPath, a virtual-first care platform that delivers integrated, whole-person management for chronic conditions through a multidisciplinary, value-based model.This episode explores how advances in genetics, data-driven prevention, and technologies like AI can transform the way we identify, manage, and ultimately prevent chronic illness. We discuss the emergence of obesity “endotypes,” the promise of polygenic risk scores, and the rapidly expanding role of GLP-1 medications. Dr. Fahed also shares how digital health tools can reduce fragmentation, enhance patient engagement, and address rising healthcare costs by meeting patients where they are. His career offers a compelling look at how clinicians can shape the future of medicine by bridging scientific discovery, clinical practice, and technology to build systems that meaningfully improve patient health.

85 - Dr. Alex Beschloss - Insights, Policy, and Practice

Today, we’re taking with Dr. Beschloss. Dr. Beschloss is a resident physician in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine and Wharton School, where he earned his MD/MBA. A Williams College alum, his work sits at the intersection of clinical care, health policy, and healthcare innovation. Before residency, he worked with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, focusing on healthcare financing and policy reform. He now serves as an Assistant Medical Director at Accompany Health, advancing value-based care models for dual-eligible and high-risk Medicare Advantage patients. In this episode, Dr. Beschloss shares how he brings a systems-level perspective to medicine—blending research, policy, and business insight to reimagine how care is delivered.

84 - Dr. Kevin Volpp - Behavior, Incentives, & Systems

In this episode of the PennHealthX Podcast, Habib sits down with Dr. Kevin Volpp to discuss his career as a physician–economist and his pioneering work at the intersection of medicine, economics, and behavioral science. Dr. Volpp is the Mark Pauly President’s Distinguished Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, with joint appointments at the Perelman School of Medicine and the Wharton School. He founded the Center for Health Incentives & Behavioral Economics (CHIBE) and co-created Penn Medicine’s Nudge Unit—the first behavioral design team embedded in a health system. This episode explores how behavioral economics and incentive-based interventions are transforming healthcare decisions, improving outcomes, and shaping the future of medicine.

83 - Dr. Rachel Kelz - Surgery, Equity, & Innovation

In this episode of the PennHealthX Podcast, hosts Ziad Hassan and Habib Akouri sit down with Dr. Rachel Kelz to discuss her path into surgery and the wide-ranging impact of her career. Dr. Kelz is the William Maul Measey Professor of Surgery and Executive Vice Chair of the Department of Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania. She also directs Penn’s Center for Surgery and Health Economics, where she applies advanced analytics and AI to improve surgical outcomes, health equity, and medical education. A nationally recognized surgeon, educator, and researcher, Dr. Kelz has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed studies and earned numerous awards for leadership, mentorship, and teaching.