Lead Well MD: Transforming Healthcare Through Effective Clinician Leadership

The transition from practicing physician to system leader looks smooth from the outside. Internally, it’s often much more complicated.

In this episode, Ashley Wendel talks with Dr. Rob Nordgren, Divisional Chief Medical Officer at Sutter Health, about what physicians have to learn as they move from bedside expertise into broader organizational leadership. They discuss the identity shift that comes with leadership, the role of trust and emotional intelligence, how to navigate resistance and change, and why courageous conversations matter so much in complex systems.

This is a grounded, honest conversation about what le...

In this episode of Lead Well MD, Ashley sits down with physician executive Dr. Rob Nordgren, Chief Medical Officer of the Greater San Francisco and East Bay Division for Sutter Health, to explore the leadership shift clinicians must make as they move from expert problem-solver to system leader. Drawing on Rob’s journey from pediatrician to senior, system-level executive, the conversation unpacks what physicians often need to unlearn about authority, hierarchy, and control in order to lead through influence instead.

Together, Ashley and Rob discuss why trust, humility, curiosity, and emotional intelligence matter so much in...

Episode Summary (succinct, with key highlights)

In this episode, Ashley sits down with Dr. Erica Kreismann - emergency medicine physician turned executive coach - to explore what it means to be a woman and clinician leader in today’s healthcare landscape. Erica shares her own formative journey, from training in New York City during 9/11 to making a radical “pattern interrupt” move to Tasmania, and how those experiences reshaped her understanding of purpose, contribution, and sustainable leadership.

Together, they unpack why so many high-performing women in healthcare feel hollow or stuck - not because they’r...

What if leadership felt less like carrying all the answers - and more like creating the conditions for others to think and act well together?

In this episode, Ashley Wendel is joined by Dr. Richard Winters, a practicing emergency medicine physician, Director of Leadership Development for the Mayo Clinic Care Network, ICF-certified coach, and author of You’re the Leader, Now What?, for a grounded, honest conversation about what clinician leadership really asks of us.

Together, they explore why leadership can feel so destabilizing for clinicians and how practical frameworks, coaching skills, and fa...

In this episode, Dr. Stephen Beeson and I dive deep into what it truly takes to build, and sustain, a culture of excellence in healthcare.

Drawing from his experience leading transformation at Sharp Healthcare and founding Practicing Excellence, Steve shares why identity-based change is far more powerful than behavior correction alone, and why clinician engagement is the single most important predictor of successful transformation.

We explore:

ER physician–turned–healthcare leader Dr. Tony Briningstool joins Lead Well MD to unpack how trust is built when seconds matter - and what the HBO series “The Pitt” gets right about life in the trauma bay. From first-contact behaviors that create instant patient trust to the moment-to-moment cues that make teams feel psychologically safe, Dr. Briningstool breaks down the leader habits that steady a room under pressure: consistency, clear modeling, and calibrated vulnerability. We explore “trust at speed,” co-regulation vs. self-regulation, and how to read (and repair) the nonverbal signals that stall performance. Dr. Briningstool also shares lesso...

In this episode of Lead Well MD, host Ashley Wendel talks with Dr. Sergio Zanotti, Chief Medical Officer for Critical Care at Sound Physicians and host of the podcast Critical Matters, about what it takes to build what he calls a “Fearless ICU.” 

Drawing on decades in critical care leadership, Dr. Zanotti shares why psychological safety is the single most important factor in high-performing ICU teams - and why it’s not about being “soft,” but about creating an environment where people can speak up, learn from mistakes, and still be held accoun...

In this powerful episode of Lead Well MD, we step outside of medicine and into the world of military leadership — but stay firmly rooted in what matters most: building trust in high-stakes, high-pressure environments.

Ashley is joined by Colonel Randall Wickman, a retired U.S. Army Infantry Officer, combat-wounded veteran, and former Pentagon leader who now works in healthcare leadership development. With nearly 30 years of active duty, Colonel Wickman has led soldiers in some of the most intense environments on earth -  and he brings battle-tested wisdom directly to clinician leaders navigating the chaos and responsibility of mod...

How does a clinician leader balance being professional with being an authentic, vulnerable leader that builds trust? In this episode of Lead Well MD, we sit down with Dr. Greg Johnson, the System Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at UnityPoint Health, to talk about just that. 

In our conversation we discuss this delicate balance between being real and being professional and offer strategies for how leaders can build trust and connection by being their authentic selves ... without crossing the line into oversharing.

We dive into how vulnerability can be a strength in healthcare leadership, a...

In healthcare today, change is constant—and emotional fatigue is real. In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Karen Weiner to explore what it really takes to lead when clinicians are stretched thin, burned out, and wondering if the work is still sustainable.

Karen shares hard-earned lessons from her journey—from primary care pediatrician to CEO of a large medical group—leading through organizational transformation, a Fortune 6 acquisition, and the unprecedented pressures of the pandemic.

We talk about:

In this open and candid conversation, Dr. Holly Beeman shares her evolution from being a hands-on problem-solver to becoming a more empowering and emotionally intelligent leader. Drawing from her journey as an OBGYN turned senior healthcare executive, Dr. Beeman reflects on early leadership missteps, the role of vulnerability in building trust, and how creating psychological safety can transform team culture and performance.

We talk about the temptation to "fix" things as a leader, how to lean into humility and curiosity instead, and what it truly means to create space for others to shine. Dr...

Healthcare is facing a crisis—not just of resources, but of culture. Burnout, disengagement, and top-down leadership structures are leaving clinicians feeling disconnected from their purpose. But what if we could reimagine healthcare leadership as something radically different?

In this episode of LeadWellMD, I sit down with Dr. Apurv Gupta, a physician leader, consultant, and founder of the Loving Organization Consortium, to explore how trust, compassion, and human connection can transform the way we lead in healthcare.

We discuss: