Shows
Take Charge with HELPcareBuilding a Better Future for HealthcareWhen rising healthcare costs threatened Merrill Steel, HR leader Matt Ohrt pioneered a direct primary care clinic that saved millions and improved employee health. Now as Executive Director of the Free Market Medical Association and co-founder of new health plans, Matt shares how direct primary care (DPC) and direct specialty care (DSC) are transforming healthcare for employers, patients, and communities.
2025-08-1830 minTake Charge with HELPcareHow Direct Specialty Care is Saving Patients & Employers ThousandsIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, hosts Lee Aase and Dan Hinmon talk with Dr. Steve Borene, an anesthesiologist and co-founder of Renovo Health, about how direct specialty care is challenging the traditional healthcare system—and winning.Dr. Borene shares real stories of patients avoiding care due to high costs, and how transparent, bundled pricing through direct specialty care is helping people get the treatment they need without fear of surprise bills. From $17,000 colonoscopies reduced to under $3,000 to companies saving thousands per employee, this episode reveals how simple shifts in the delivery model can drive mas...
2025-08-0437 minTake Charge with HELPcareWelcoming Kristen EhmkeIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, we welcome our newest nurse practitioner, Kristen Ehmke, to the team! Hosted by Lee Aase and Dan Hinmon, this conversation explores Kristen’s 12-year journey in nursing, her passion for serving rural communities, and why HELPcare’s relationship-based approach to care felt like the perfect fit.Kristen shares what inspired her to pursue a Doctor of Nursing Practice, how mindfulness plays a role in both patient care and provider wellbeing, and what she hopes to accomplish as she begins seeing patients in our Austin clinic. You'll also hear about her i...
2025-07-2817 minTake Charge with HELPcareWhat the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Means for EmployersIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, host Lee Aase is joined once again by healthcare policy expert John Kelly for an in-depth look at how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) is reshaping healthcare options for employers—especially those in high-cost regions like southern Minnesota.John breaks down what the new law means for benefit plan design, including:Why Direct Primary Care (DPC) is no longer considered insurance—and why that mattersHow employers can now pair DPC with traditional insurance or offer it as a standalone benefitUpcoming chan...
2025-07-2121 minTake Charge with HELPcareBig Win for DPCs and HSAsHealth policy expert John Kelly joins us to discuss an important change contained in the recently enacted One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which makes direct primary care memberships such as at HELPcare Clinic an eligible expense for people with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).
2025-07-1431 minTake Charge with HELPcareHow HELPcare Is Giving Practitioners Back Their PurposeHealthcare has become too rushed, too impersonal, and too controlled by outside forces. In this episode, we explore how HELPcare is restoring the soul of medicine through relationship-based care, practitioner ownership, and a model built on values that truly matter.
2025-06-3023 minTake Charge with HELPcareBuilding a Purpose-Driven BrandIn this episode of Take Charge with HELP Care, Lee Aase and Dan Hinmon engage with Rick and Sally Kennedy, exploring their journey from graphic design to creating a mission-driven agency. They discuss the importance of branding in healthcare, emphasizing that effective branding goes beyond visuals to include company culture and values. The conversation highlights the role of user experience in website design and the significance of collaboration in achieving shared goals. The episode also touches on the impact of COVID-19 on their business purpose and the empowering nature of the direct primary care model.
2025-06-2327 minTake Charge with HELPcareRevolutionizing Employer Health PlansIn this conversation, Lee Aase and Colton Storla discuss the challenges and opportunities in employer health plans, focusing on cost containment strategies, the role of pharmacy benefit managers, and the benefits of direct primary care. They explore how modernized health plans can align incentives for employers and employees, ultimately leading to reduced healthcare costs and improved access to care.
2025-06-1626 minTake Charge with HELPcareUnlocking the Power of FastingIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, hosts Lee Aase and Dan Hinmon delve into the transformative practice of fasting. They explore Lee's personal journey with fasting, its health benefits, and practical advice for incorporating fasting into daily life. The conversation covers various fasting methods, including intermittent and extended fasting, and discusses the science behind how fasting affects insulin levels, weight loss, and overall health. Listeners are encouraged to consult healthcare providers before starting fasting and to utilize available resources for support.
2025-06-0931 minTake Charge with HELPcareLearning Where the Money Goes in Health CareEverybody agrees health care in the U.S. is way too expensive. Our guest this week on Take Charge with HELPcarehas devoted himself to learning the reasons why, and to developing health plans for employers that enable them to provide better benefits for employees while keeping costs under control.Colton Storla from North Risk Partners has been a trusted partner for us in developing employer health plans that have HELPcare Clinic membership as the foundation, which we call Health Insurance with HELPcare.
2025-06-0227 minTake Charge with HELPcareFrom Army Nurse to HELPcare Clinic DirectorIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, Margo White shares her inspiring journey from military service to becoming the clinic director at HELPcare Clinic. She discusses her diverse nursing background, the challenges she faced, and her passion for patient care. Margo emphasizes the importance of sincerity in healthcare and the supportive environment at HELPcare Clinic, which fosters teamwork and patient-centered care. She also offers advice for those interested in pursuing a career in healthcare, highlighting the fulfillment that comes from working in a compassionate and dedicated team.
2025-05-2624 minTake Charge with HELPcareFamily Matters: The Heart of HELPcareTwo of HELPcare Founder Lee Aase's children, Rachel Borg and Joe Aase, play crucial roles in on the Leadership Team for HELPcare LLC, the management services provider for HELPcare Clinic. In this episode they discuss the HELPcare family roots that have borne fruit in a more personal, affordable model of health care.
2025-05-2024 minTake Charge with HELPcareEscaping the Health Care Hamster WheelNurse Practitioner Danae Boorsma describes her health care journey that led to a literal journey for herself and her family, leaving her traditional insurance-based practice in southern California to move to southern Minnesota to join HELPcare Clinic.We're growing and planning expansion, so we're looking for more practitioners who resonate with this approach to primary care and share our GOT LIFE values. If that's you, we'd love to start a conversation with you as we did with Danae last year about being part of the HELPcare Clinic team. Check out our HELPcare Careers page....
2025-05-1223 minTake Charge with HELPcareElizabeth Hedlund - "Don't Give Up Hope"In this episode, Physician Assistant Elizabeth Hedlund shares her journey from traditional family medicine to joining HELPcare Clinic. She discusses the challenges faced in the conventional healthcare system, emphasizing the importance of time and personal connection in patient care. Elizabeth highlights the benefits of the HELPcare model, which allows for longer appointments and fewer insurance hassles, ultimately leading to better patient outcomes. She encourages other practitioners feeling frustrated in their roles to explore alternative healthcare models that prioritize patient relationships and holistic care.
2025-05-0522 minTake Charge with HELPcareStephanie Kimmes - "The Time is Precious"In this episode of Take Charge with Help Care, HELPcare Founder Lee Aase and co-host Dan Hinmon interview Stephanie Kimmes, a nurse practitioner with a diverse background in pediatrics and family medicine. Stephanie shares her journey from nursing school to her current role at HELPcare, highlighting her passion for direct primary care and the freedom it provides to practice medicine in a way that prioritizes patient relationships and compassionate care. She discusses the integration of her faith into her practice and the importance of listening to patients' stories. The conversation concludes with advice for aspiring practitioners interested in the...
2025-04-2821 minTake Charge with HELPcareTransform Your Metabolic Health with HELPcare ChallengeCoach Jane Connell joins us again along with HELPcare Challenge Coordinator Rachel Borg, to discuss how this 13-week program helps participants truly take charge of their health.Jane and Rachel explain how the program works, providing both personalized coaching and group support, with educational sessions and practical assignments designed to help participants achieve results that go beyond the numbers on the scale.And while participants do lose weight (over 10 lbs. of fat on average during the 13-week challenge), that's not the main point.You don't lose weight to get healthy: you get healthier and...
2025-04-2230 minTake Charge with HELPcareTransforming the Mower County Health ProgramIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, Mower County Human Resources Director Kris Kohn joins HELPcare Founder Lee Aase and co-host Dan Hinmon to discuss how the new Mower County Health Program is saving money for both employees and taxpayers while increasing options for employees and their families.
2025-04-1432 minTake Charge with HELPcareJane's Journey as a Health CoachIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, host Lee Aase, co-host Dan Hinmon, and guest Jane Connell discuss Jane's journey as a dietitian and health coach. They explore her passion for nutrition, her specialization in diabetes and eating disorders, and her transition to HELPcare, where she can provide more personalized coaching. The conversation highlights the importance of lifestyle changes in managing health, particularly in relation to diabetes, and shares success stories from HELPcare's programs.
2025-04-0721 minTake Charge with HELPcareBetsy Morem's Journey of Entrepreneurship and WellnessIn this episode of Take Charge with HELPcare, Betsy Morem shares her entrepreneurial journey, her proactive approach to health care with HELPcare, and the implementation of the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) in her businesses. Betsy also discusses the importance of being aware of community resources and discusses an upcoming Women's Wellness Workshop aimed at connecting women with local resources and promoting: Financial WellnessHealthcare Wellness, andPersonal Care Wellness.Here's the link to register for the April 5 event at Austin Country Club.Chapters 00:00 Introduction to Be...
2025-03-3124 minTake Charge with HELPcareSeeds of the HELPcare RevolutionDr. Dave Strobel joins Lee Aase and co-host Dan Hinmon to reflect on how HELPcare and HELPcare Clinic came to be, starting with a fateful coffee get-together on Oct. 12, 2019.HELPcare's goal is to help many other primary care physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants to become partners in clinics in which they're owners, not just employees.
2025-03-2624 minTake Charge with HELPcareDr. Dave's Patient Care JourneyDr. Dave Strobel joins Dan Hinmon and Lee Aase for this third episode of Take Charge with HELPcare. We start by discussing his background and experiences growing up and becoming a family medicine physician in Austin, Minnesota.Dr. Dave describes how he became aware of metabolic syndrome in the late 1990s, and his analogical explanation of how insulin works provides a glimpse into what makes him an excellent physician: deep medical knowledge combined with the heart of a teacher. He seeks to help patients understand their health conditions so they'll be motivated and equipped to ta...
2025-03-2622 minTake Charge with HELPcareBringing the Social Media Revolution to Health CareSummaryIn this episode, Lee Aase and Dan Hinmon discuss the creation and evolution of the Mayo Clinic Social Media Network, sharing insights on the importance of social media in healthcare, and the creation of a collaborative community for healthcare professionals. Lee shares how this experience has been crucial in enabling him to found HELPcare LLC, and lessons from his Mayo Clinic experience that he has applied in this new venture.TakeawaysThe Mayo Clinic Social Media Network was founded to share best...
2025-03-2127 minTake Charge with HELPcareInnovating Healthcare Communication at Mayo ClinicSummaryIn this conversation, Lee Aase shares his journey from a political career to his impactful role at Mayo Clinic, where he pioneered the use of podcasting and social media in healthcare communication. He discusses the importance of innovation, the influence of his faith, and the core values that have guided him through various career transitions, including his current venture in direct primary care.Chapters00:00 Introduction to Take Charge Podcast02:13 Lee Aase's Early Life and Career Path04:17 Transition to Mayo Clinic and Podcasting08:01 Innovating...
2025-03-1925 min
Shift Forward HealthGREATEST HITS: Lee Aase & the Next Primary Care Revolution (#391)Direct primary care and digital-based functional medicine have a lot in common. In the latest episode in our greatest hits collection, we revisit our conversation with Lee Aase and why he considers personalized, membership-based, whole-person health to be the next revolution. Lee joined the show in April 2022 to share his story of unretiring from a notable career leading the healthcare social media revolution with Mayo Clinic, to manage HELPCare, a new direct primary care clinic. This show is produced by the Consumer-First Health Group, the community for consumer health enthusiasts. (#391) See omnystudio.com/lis...
2025-01-3125 minHealthcare RapGREATEST HITS: Lee Aase & the Next Primary Care Revolution (#391)Direct primary care and digital-based functional medicine have a lot in common. In the latest episode in our greatest hits collection, we revisit our conversation with Lee Aase and why he considers personalized, membership-based, whole-person health to be the next revolution. Lee joined the show in April 2022 to share his story of unretiring from a notable career leading the healthcare social media revolution with Mayo Clinic, to manage HELPCare, a new direct primary care clinic. This show is produced by the Consumer-First Health Group, the community for consumer health enthusiasts. (#391) See omnystudio.com/lis...
2025-01-3125 min
Delta: HealthTech InnovatorsMedTech Disruption: AI Agents Transforming HealthcareExplore how AI-powered care coordination is reshaping healthcare. Hear from Helpcare AI’s founder Huzaifa Sial on building a HealthTech startup, boosting patient outreach, and leveraging Y Combinator for next-level innovation. Learn about administrative automation, real-time patient engagement, and the promise of preventive medicine through cutting-edge technology.Roupen Odabashian:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/roupen-odabashian-183aaa142/X: https://twitter.com/RoupenMDEmail: roupen@deltahealth.techHuzaifa Sial:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hsial/0:03 – Introducing Delta: Collaboration in Healthcare0:39 – Guest Introduction: Huzaifa Sial
2025-01-1738 min
Healthcare SuccessDirect To Patient Healthcare With Lee AaseStruggling with burnout while maintaining high-quality healthcare services that patients love? Listen as Lee Aase shares how his innovative membership-based direct-to-patient healthcare model, HELPCare, LLC, can transform your organization.
2024-10-0847 min
The BackstoryDigitaLee: MRI on Tuesday, Surgery on Thursday, Home on FridayLee Aase is a digital healthcare pioneer and a social media expert. Now, he's a healthcare entrepreneur as co-founder of HELPCare Clinic, a membership-based direct primary care clinic. His current work is particularly relevant for this conversation because we talk about why there hasn't been an episode of DigitaLee recently: Lee's recent back surgery. We discuss how the referral process went, the seamless handoff from his primary care physician to the surgery team at Mayo Clinic. Plus, thoughts on where digital comes into play with a good streamlined care continuum. Learn more about your ad...
2022-08-3113 min
DigitaLeeHealthcare at Its Best: MRI on Tuesday, Surgery on Thursday, Home on FridayLee Aase is a digital healthcare pioneer and a social media expert. Now, he's a healthcare entrepreneur as co-founder of HELPCare Clinic, a membership-based direct primary care clinic. His current work is particularly relevant for this conversation because we talk about why there hasn't been an episode of DigitaLee recently: Lee's recent back surgery. We discuss how the referral process went, the seamless handoff from his primary care physician to the surgery team at Mayo Clinic. Plus, thoughts on where digital comes into play with a good streamlined care continuum.
2022-08-3113 minDigitaLeeNorman Rockwell Meets the JetsonsThis week, we're doing something a bit different. We keep referencing the fact that, after retiring from the Mayo Clinic, Lee Aase now spends his time as a healthcare entrepreneur. And we've mentioned the clinic that he and a physician friend started. But what, exactly, are they up to? How is Lee's work today informed by his two-plus decades in healthcare working on connecting the digital and physical elements of the industry to deliver better care? That's today's conversation. We look at the new venture, called HELPCare Clinic, and talk about the why and how of this membership model...
2022-06-2214 min
The BackstoryDigitaLee: Netflix, Rent vs Own and How Health Tech Personalizes HealthcareWelcome to DigitaLee, the podcast for healthcare marketers, where we look at the digital news, tools, tips and tricks for effective healthcare communications. This week, David Shifrin and Lee Aase talk about the news that Netflix is cracking on their long-standing policy of going ad free. Then Lee gives an update on the rent versus own debate – and that’s with regards to blogs and social media, not the housing market, although that might be an interesting discussion too. Finally, they close by talking about Lee’s latest venture the HELPCare Clinic as an example of how digital tools can help...
2022-05-2513 minDigitaLeeNetflix, Rent vs Own and How Health Tech Personalizes HealthcareWelcome to DigitaLee, the podcast for healthcare marketers, where we look at the digital news, tools, tips and tricks for effective healthcare communications. This week, David Shifrin and Lee Aase talk about the news that Netflix is cracking on their long-standing policy of going ad free. Then Lee gives an update on the rent versus own debate – and that’s with regards to blogs and social media, not the housing market, although that might be an interesting discussion too. Finally, they close by talking about Lee’s latest venture the HELPCare Clinic as an example of how digital tools can help...
2022-05-2513 min