What can American healthcare learn from global healthcare? In our latest episode, Dr. Mark Stoltenberg, Harvard Medical School professor and Massachusetts General Hospital physician, joins Chris Comeaux to explore global healthcare, palliative care, Hospice leadership, healthcare Innovation, and the future of serious illness care in America.
Healthcare leaders often assume innovation requires more Money, more Technology, or more specialists. Dr. Stoltenberg argues the opposite, drawing from his work leading global palliative care programs throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Africa, and other underserved regions. He shares how resource-limited healthcare systems are pioneering solutions that can improve American healthcare, strengthen the healthcare workforce, and restore compassionate, person-centered care.
Together, Chris and Dr. Stoltenberg discuss workforce shortages, Project ECHO, community-based care, volunteerism, Family-centered decision-making, healthcare leadership, and why hospice and palliative care must preserve their founding values while continuing to innovate.
Through moving patient stories—including a remarkable experience in Belize—they reveal why dignity, compassion, community, and purpose remain healthcare's greatest innovations.
If you're a healthcare executive, hospice leader, physician, nonprofit executive, nurse, or business leader, this episode offers practical strategies for improving leadership, building stronger organizations, and delivering more compassionate care.
In this episode you'll learn:
✔ What America can learn from global healthcare systems
✔ Why palliative care is rooted in social justice
✔ How healthcare workforce shortages can be addressed creatively
✔ Why Project ECHO is transforming healthcare Education
✔ How community-based care improves patient outcomes
✔ Why family and spirituality remain essential to serious illness care
✔ How great organizations preserve their mission while scaling innovation
Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:23 Meet Dr. Mark Stoltenberg
02:08 Leadership Superpower
05:20 Palliative Care as Social Justice
07:48 The Belize Story
10:51 Innovation in Low-Resource Healthcare
16:07 Project ECHO & Workforce Development
20:58 Family, Community & Spiritual Care
23:55 Loneliness & Rebuilding Community
28:57 Preserving the Core While Scaling Access
33:11 Part Two Preview
👍 If you enjoy conversations about healthcare leadership, hospice, palliative care, leadership development, healthcare innovation, and serious illness care, subscribe to TCNtalks / Anatomy of Leadership for weekly conversations with today's leading healthcare Experts.
Guest:
Dr. Mark Stoltenberg
Attending Physician in the Division of Palliative Care and Geriatric Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School
Host:
Chris Comeaux
President / CEO of TELEIOS, author of The Anatomy of Leadership
The Anatomy of Leadership podcast explores the art and science of leadership through candid, insightful conversations with thought leaders, innovators, and change-makers from a variety of industries. Hosted by Chris Comeaux, each episode dives into the mindsets, habits, and strategies that empower leaders to thrive in complex, fast-changing environments. With topics ranging from organizational culture and emotional intelligence to navigating disruption and inspiring teams, the show blends real-world stories with practical takeaways. The goal is simple yet ambitious: to equip leaders at every level with the tools, perspectives, and inspiration they need to lead with vision, empathy, and impact.
https://www.teleioscn.org/anatomy-of-leadership