[Re-Release] Startups, Strategy, and Serendipity: Navigating Healthcare Innovation with Dr. Paige Bhansali

Originally released in March 2025, this episode with Dr. Paige Bhansali remains one of our most downloaded and discussed conversations and we're bringing it back for anyone who missed it.

What if you could break out of the traditional physician career path and create a role that blends clinical care with entrepreneurship and innovation? In this episode, I sit down with my friend and colleague, Dr. Paige Bhansali, a pediatrician with an incredible journey through consulting, healthcare startups, and value-based care. Paige has carved out her own unique path in medicine—balancing residency, an MBA, and a startup career—all while maintaining her passion for improving pediatric healthcare.

Dr. Paige Bhansali is the Head of Clinical Strategy and Operations at Playground Pediatrics, a fast-growing value-based pediatric practice focused on delivering the highest quality of care for children. She is a practicing pediatrician and Assistant Professor at Lurie Children’s in Chicago. Prior to medical school, she started her career in strategy consulting at the Boston Consulting Group where she worked with providers transitioning to value-based reimbursement models. She’s had the privilege to work for several value-based care organizations focused on underserved populations including the Commonwealth Care Alliance, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, and Imagine Pediatrics. She has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Northwestern University, medical degree from the University of Michigan, and a master of business administration from Harvard Business School. 

Episode Highlights:

[0:45] - Welcome to the episode! Meet Dr. Paige Bhansali and hear about her unique background in healthcare startups.

[1:39] - From childhood inspiration to pediatrics—Paige’s journey into medicine and her early exposure to healthcare.

[5:50] - How Paige took an unconventional approach during her medical training to explore startup opportunities.

[9:00] - The power of saying yes—how she turned the pandemic into an opportunity for professional growth.

[12:27] - The serendipity of networking: how one connection led Paige to her work with Imagine Pediatrics.

[14:31] - Using clinical expertise to shape early-stage startups—Paige’s role in analyzing claims data and building innovative care models.

[19:32] - Why physicians' skills in critical thinking, research, and data analysis are invaluable to healthcare companies.

[24:53] - How Paige balanced residency, an MBA, startup work, and becoming a new parent—and what she learned along the way.

[26:14] - Do you need an MBA to break into healthcare startups? Paige shares her thoughts on building business skills in different ways.

[28:27] - Exploring alternative career paths: how physicians can contribute to startups while still practicing medicine.

[30:23] - What’s next? Paige shares her current work at Playground Pediatrics and her mission to transform pediatric value-based care.

In the free Physician Founder Roadmap webinar, we’ll share how physicians can begin evaluating their ideas and understand what it takes to bring them to market.

Mark your calendar for October 22 at 12 PM CT / 1 PM ET and join us for the webinar!

Create a venture-ready concept pitch in just 45 minutes! Join our free AI session designed for practicing physicians, where we guide you through the concept-assessment process used in the Startup Physicians Incubator.
 
Download the guide, open it with Claude, and you'll end up with a one-page pitch ready to share with an advisor, investor, or selection committee.

A six-month program that takes a practicing physician’s idea to an investor-ready company. Cohort 2 starts January 2027.