Go Back

The challenges healthcare executives and administrators face are constantly changing.

Host Kevin Stevenson talks with the heroes behind the heroes that are enabling hospitals, urgent care centers and telemedicine operators to spend their time tending to patients, while they handle the logistics.

MarketScale

Healthcare

From the C-Suite to the Classroom: A Healthcare Leader’s Bet on the Next Generation

Kevin Stevenson
May 25, 2026
artificial intelligence in healthcare
health policy
Healthcare Leadership
hospital administration
+more

 

Healthcare isn’t short on strategy right now—it’s short on people, access, and experienced leadership where it matters most. In Texas alone, more rural hospitals have closed than in any other state over the past decade, leaving entire communities with limited access to care. At the same time, many health systems are realizing they haven’t built strong pipelines for the next generation of leaders—making the transfer of real-world experience more critical than ever.

So what happens when seasoned executives step away from operational leadership and into academia—and can that shift help solve healthcare’s talent and access challenges?

The latest episode of I Don’t Care focuses on what happens when decades of healthcare leadership experience meets the classroom. Dr. Kevin Stevenson sits down with Dr. Michael Wiggins, Assistant Professor at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, to explore his transition from hospital CEO to educator. The conversation spans leadership development, rural health innovation, academic medicine, and the evolving role of technology in care delivery.

What you’ll learn…

  • Why healthcare leaders need both practical experience and academic grounding to handle modern system complexity.
  • How rural health challenges are reshaping leadership priorities, from access and infrastructure to community-centered care models.
  • What emerging forces—AI, industry consolidation, and financial pressure—mean for the future of healthcare delivery and how leaders must adapt.

Dr. Michael Wiggins, DBA, FACHE, is a seasoned healthcare executive with more than 30 years of leadership experience across academic medical centers, pediatric health systems, and community-based care. He has served as President and CEO of nationally recognized children’s hospitals, where he led strategic planning, operational excellence, physician partnerships, and philanthropy initiatives to improve care delivery and community health outcomes. Now an Assistant Professor at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, he focuses on developing future healthcare leaders, advancing research, and guiding organizations on strategy, leadership alignment, and performance improvement.

Article written by MarketScale.

Recent Episodes

vascular surgeon
View episode

When Geography Meets Purpose: How One Move Reshaped a Vascular Surgeon’s Career

Medicine isn’t what it used to be—not for the people practicing it. Independent physicians are becoming the exception, not the norm, as more doctors move into hospital systems, corporate groups, and academic networks. At the same time, the pipeline of specialists isn’t keeping pace with growing patient needs, particularly in complex fields like vascular…

specialty pharmacy
View episode

At the Center of Care: How Specialty Pharmacy Aligns Patients, Providers, and Payers

As healthcare costs continue to rise, more patients are finding themselves navigating not just illness, but the growing complexity of paying for treatment. Specialty pharmacy sits right at the center of that challenge—often out of sight, but increasingly essential to how modern care actually works. These high-cost, high-touch therapies now make up more than…

healthcare
View episode

The Healthcare Talent Fix: Build Pipelines Early, Use Data, and Get the Experience Right

There’s a growing tension inside healthcare right now—between the people leaving the workforce and the patients still arriving every day. It’s a dynamic that leaders can no longer afford to ignore. The numbers make that clear: the Association of American Medical Colleges estimates that the U.S. could be short of as many as 86,000 physicians…

Launch Your Branded Show Today

Engage your audience with original, industry-specific content.

Book a Demo Talk to an Expert