• TP471 - Developing a “Route-First” Access Strategy
    Jan 21 2026
    Access is still one of healthcare’s most talked-about problems. But a year after our last access-focused episode, the conversation has shifted in quieter and more consequential ways. In this episode, Chris Boyer and Reed Smith revisit access not as a single front door problem, but as a routing challenge shaped by workforce constraints, digital behavior, reimbursement realities, and patient expectations that continue to evolve. Rather than rehashing familiar headlines about staffing shortages or online scheduling, they introduce a route-first access strategy. One that prioritizes guiding patients to the right care, at the right time, through the right channel. Sometimes that means digital. Sometimes it does not. The conversation covers what has actually changed over the past year, where health systems are making progress, and where access friction has simply moved instead of disappearing. Chris and Reed also explore how consumer expectations are colliding with clinical capacity, why access success increasingly depends on orchestration rather than availability, and what leaders should stop measuring if they want real improvement. This is a practical, forward-looking discussion for healthcare leaders who want to move beyond access theater and design experiences that work in the real world. Mentions From the Show: Fierce Healthcare 2026 outlook on hybrid care Gartner Strategic Predictions for 2026 Zocdoc 2024 What Patients Want report Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    39 Min.
  • TP470 – When AI Becomes the First Stop for Care
    Jan 14 2026
    For years, healthcare has talked about patients as informed consumers. Now, many of them are showing up informed before they ever touch a health system. In this episode of Touch Point, hosts Chris Boyer and Reed Smith unpack what’s behind OpenAI’s launch of ChatGPT Health and why it signals a meaningful shift in how people seek, process, and act on health information. The conversation starts with a look at new research from OpenAI that shows how millions of people are already using ChatGPT for healthcare related questions. Not hypotheticals. Real behavior. Real scale. From understanding lab results to navigating insurance, AI has quietly become a first stop in the health journey. From there, Chris and Reed break down what ChatGPT Health actually does, what it does not do, and why that distinction matters for health systems, marketers, and experience leaders. They explore how AI is filling gaps created by short appointments, fragmented records, and limited access, and what that means for trust, preparation, and patient expectations moving forward. They then feature an interview with Brandon Scott, Chief Innovation and Growth Officer of TenAdams, that grounds the discussion in reality, examining where AI genuinely helps patients, where it creates new tensions, and why slow moving, walled garden thinking is increasingly out of step with how people now manage their health. This is not an episode about replacing clinicians. It is about understanding a new layer of the patient experience that already exists and deciding how healthcare organizations respond to it. If your digital strategy still assumes the website is the first interaction, or that education starts after the visit, this episode will challenge that assumption. Mentions From the Show: OpenAI — AI as a Healthcare Ally (Jan 2026) OpenAI — Introducing ChatGPT Health ChatGPT Health launches to serve “hundreds of millions” seeking health and wellness guidance each week Anthropic joins OpenAI's push into health care with new Claude tools Brandon Scott on LinkedIn TenAdams.com Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    57 Min.
  • TP469 – 2026 Is the Tipping Point (Healthcare, Digital, and the New Consumer)
    Jan 7 2026
    As healthcare heads into 2026, the signals are getting harder to ignore. Financial pressure is mounting. Consumer expectations are accelerating. And digital strategies that once felt optional are now core infrastructure. In this episode, hosts Chris Boyer and Reed Smith kick off the new year with a trend-focused conversation unpacking what is actually changing across healthcare, digital strategy, and consumer behavior and what that means for health systems of all shapes and sizes. The discussion spans three critical areas. First, how hospitals, health systems, and academic medical centers are navigating margin pressure, workforce challenges, and increasing scrutiny while being asked to do more with less. Second, how digital and marketing strategies are evolving from campaign-driven efforts into intelligence and experience infrastructure powered by data, AI, and governance. And third, how patient expectations are shifting as consumers bring behaviors learned from retail, banking, and technology into healthcare. Rather than predictions for prediction’s sake, this episode focuses on real signals already shaping 2026 and the strategic implications leaders need to understand now. From hybrid care and digital access to AI-enabled personalization and experience design, this conversation is about where healthcare is heading and how prepared organizations truly are. Whether you work in marketing, digital experience, strategy, or executive leadership, this episode offers a grounded look at what is changing, what is breaking, and where health systems need to adapt next. Mentions From the Show: Chartis: From reactive to proactive: Health systems look to AI and digital to flip the healthcare delivery paradigm within 5 years Fierce Healthcare: 2026 Outlook: Hybrid care companies poised for growth driven by economic, policy tailwinds Gartner: AI’s Influence Runs Deeper Than You Think — 2026 Gartner Strategic Predictions Explain Why Paul Keckley website HealthGrades: Special Report: Seven Hospital Marketing Trends You Should Know in 2026 KLAS: AI being used more often at point of care, KLAS research shows Salesforce: The Ninth Edition State of Marketing Report Telus Digital: Six healthcare trends reshaping digital care in 2025 with expert insights on AI, ops, mobile and more The Economist: The truth about affordability Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    40 Min.
  • TP468 - The 2025 Listener Choice Awards
    Dec 31 2025
    Every year, they pause to look back at what resonated most with the Touch Point community. In our 2025 Touch Point Podcast Listener Choice Awards show, hosts Chris Boyer and Reed Smith share a behind-the-scenes look at how the show performed this year and what listeners told us matters most. They break down where the show;s audience is tuning in from, including top cities, states, and countries. They also share download trends across the year and highlights from Spotify Wrapped that show how Touch Point is performing inside the Spotify ecosystem. Lastly, they also dig into the results of our annual listener survey, covering what topics resonated, how people are using the podcast in their work, and what they want more of in the year ahead. And of course, they close with the awards. Best Episode of the Year goes to TP421 – The Evolution of Patient Experience, a conversation that traced how experience has shifted from satisfaction scores to a broader human and digital lens. Best Guest Interview of the Year goes to John Berndt of Valtech, recognized for a conversation that challenged how healthcare organizations think about digital trust, experience, and transformation. Think of this episode as a year-in-review, a thank you to our listeners, and a preview of where Touch Point is heading next. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    47 Min.
  • TP467: ICYMI: SEO is Like Golf Now
    Dec 24 2025
    In case you missed it, this episode tackles one of the biggest shifts quietly reshaping healthcare marketing: search is no longer about winning keywords. It is about understanding intent, context, and how AI now mediates discovery. Chris Boyer and Reed Smith revisit a timely conversation on how generative AI is changing the rules of SEO and why many traditional optimization tactics no longer hold up. As search results become AI-assembled experiences rather than ranked lists, health systems are being forced to rethink how they create, structure, and distribute content. This ICYMI episode explores why SEO now looks less like a checklist and more like a precision sport, where strategy, patience, and adaptability matter more than brute force tactics. Thought leader Carrie Liken joins the conversation to unpack what Google’s generative search future means for healthcare organizations, including the rise of zero-click discovery, the collapse of keyword-first strategies, and how hospitals can stay visible when AI becomes the first interaction layer. If your SEO playbook still assumes users are clicking blue links, this is one worth revisiting. Mentions From the Show: How AI is reshaping SEO: Challenges, opportunities, and brand strategies for 2025 Search Engine Land Search trends for 2025: Is a new ecosystem emerging? 2025 trend: Generative search will become the new normal, shaking up ad spend How to navigate the changing landscape of search in 2025 AI-driven search ad spending set to surge to $26 billion by 2029, data shows Carrie Liken on LinkedIn Carrie Liken on SubStack Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 Std. und 1 Min.
  • TP466 – Second Helpings: Our Best Episodes of 2025 (Part 2)
    Dec 17 2025
    We are back with the second half of our annual Holiday Sampler, featuring the remaining three episodes that round out Touch Point’s most downloaded shows of 2025. These are the conversations listeners kept coming back to. The ones that sparked follow-up questions, internal debates, and hallway conversations at conferences. Together, they reflect the themes that defined healthcare marketing and digital strategy this year, including privacy-first advertising, AI-driven content strategy, and a rethinking of reputation management beyond simple star ratings. In this episode, Reed Smith and Chris Boyer revisit three standout conversations that explore where digital transformation is actually working inside health systems, how AI is reshaping consumer expectations, and why trust and access remain the real competitive differentiators. As a reminder, the annual Touch Point listener survey is still open through December 19. This is your opportunity to vote for Best Guest and Best Interview of the Year. The race is close, and every vote matters. Consider this the second half of the sampler platter. Different flavors, big ideas, and still plenty of great choices on the table. Mentions From the Show: Episode 420 - The 2025 State of Digital Advertising for Healthcare TP423 – Healthcare Content in 2025: AI, Composability, and the Content Stack TP424 – Rethinking Reputation Management (Moving Beyond Google Reviews) 2025 Annual TouchPoint Listener Survey Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    38 Min.
  • TP465 – Holiday Sampler: Our Best Episodes (Part 1)
    Dec 10 2025
    Health care did not have a quiet year. AI, experience, platforms, and “vibe” all took turns in the spotlight. In this first half of our Holiday Sampler, hosts Chris Boyer and Reed Smith revisit four of the most downloaded Touch Point episodes of 2025. These clips capture the themes that kept listeners coming back. This episode features standout moments from: Episode 421: The Evolution of Patient Experience We look at how patient experience grew up. From the days of satisfaction surveys and HCAHPS to a broader, human centered view that includes families, communities, and digital expectations. This clip returns to the point where COVID, consumer behavior, and online access collided and forced health systems to rethink what experience really means. Episode 428: Breaking the Healthcare Content Mold AI quietly moved from pilot projects to everyday content work. In this segment, we revisit how health systems are using AI to draft education materials, website copy, social content, and SEO at scale, while staying compliant and avoiding PHI. The clip focuses on the human plus AI dynamic and why better prompts and guardrails lead to better outputs. Episode 431: AI, Are You Killing Our Vibe Vibe marketing became one of the buzz phrases of the year. Here we unpack what people actually mean when they talk about “vibe,” how it influences discovery and trust, and where AI fits in as a tool to shape and scale emotional connection. This highlight walks through concrete examples of how teams brought vibe into campaigns without losing substance. Episode 435: The Website Is Now a Platform In this conversation, we challenged the idea of the hospital website as a static brochure. The clip you will hear looks at what happens when you treat the site as a true platform for access, engagement, and growth. We talk about scheduling flows, self service tools, data capture, and the privacy and trust questions that come with a more intelligent experience. It is a snapshot of how digital front doors are becoming digital operating systems. Taken together, these four episodes show how quickly the ground is shifting under healthcare marketers and digital leaders. Experience is broader. Content is more automated. Brand is more emotional. The website is more operational. The leaders who follow these threads are already working differently heading into 2026. Our annual listener survey is open through December 19. It is your chance to vote for the best guest and best interview of the year and to tell us what you want more of in the year ahead. We will share the results and celebrate the winners in our final episode of 2025. Mentions From the Show: 2025 Annual TouchPoint Listener Survey Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Final note Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    50 Min.
  • TP464 – The AI Loop Problem (Where Humans Still Matter Most)
    Dec 3 2025
    In this episode, hosts Chris Boyer and Reed Smith explore how health systems can make smarter decisions about Human In The Loop and Human Out Of The Loop models, and why these choices will define trust, safety, and experience in the coming years. What HITL and HOOTL actually mean How healthcare is applying these frameworks Why governance is the missing layer Where humans must remain as the final authority Chris then sits down with Carrie Liken, CEO and founder of Sotto Strategies and a leading voice in healthcare search and AI driven consumer behavior. She offers a grounded perspective on how agentic AI, new browsing models, and health system data strategy are reshaping digital engagement. Mentions From the Show: Carrie Liken on LinkedIn Carrie Liken on SubStack Reed Smith on LinkedIn Chris Boyer on LinkedIn Chris Boyer website Chris Boyer on BlueSky Reed Smith on BlueSky Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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    1 Std.