#65: The Future of Healthcare with JR Burgess, Chief Executive Officer of HealthOvators
What does the future of healthcare look like?
With COVID-19 and the creation of life-saving vaccines, this has been on my mind lately.
This episode, I was joined by JR Burgess, the Chief Executive Officer of HealthOvators, who has experience working with medical fitness as well as lifestyle, functional, and regenerative medicine.
JR speaks about how:
Ego should not be a factor in healthcare
He is managing his own chronic pain
Personalization is a key factor of effective healthcare
JR shares my mission to have success and impact while having joy and love in your heart, so be sure to tune into this episode!
Learn more about JR here: https://jrburgessconsulting.com or check out his Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/burgess.jr/.
Check out my new free new training on www.yournextmillion.me, where several of my seven figure clients and colleagues share what they're doing in the next year to scale their businesses to the multi-million dollar mark and beyond.
Listen to the Show:
Laura (00:01):
So here's the challenge: so many entrepreneurs dream of leading a life of impact by creating a multi-million dollar brand, but only a tiny percentage of businesses actually scale to that point. On this podcast, we speak openly and authentically about what it takes to scale your business, following the journeys of innovators, disruptors, experts, and leaders, looking at the behind the scenes of their most challenging moments and greatest lessons learned. My name is Laura Meyer and I'm your host. I'm a serial entrepreneur, wife and mom to three. I love talking all things business, especially digging into the mindset and strategies of scaling joyfully to the multi-million dollar mark and beyond. Let's go!
(00:50):
Welcome back to the Scale with Joy podcast. I have a special guest for you today. This is JR Burgess and he is the Chief Executive Officer of HealthOvators. We actually originally connected on Clubhouse and when I heard what JR had to say just about his own health and healthcare, I realized what an incredible resource he is for anybody who's scaling as an entrepreneur, but particularly in the healthcare space. So thank you JR so much for being here.
JR (01:17):
Thank you, Laura. As we were just talking what an important mission, how to have success in impact while having joy and love in your heart is what a beautiful gift to share with the world. So I'm so excited to be here and be a part of this. It means a lot to me.
Laura (01:33):
Yeah. And I know we're both parents and we're so committed to our families on showing up as our best selves, not only within the work environment, but also as a parent. So share with me a little bit about your journey. I know we both came from a brick and mortar background.
JR (01:49):
Yeah. So, you know, it was 2014. I've you know, was the CEO of Rejuve Medical, which was an integrated center that had medical fitness, lifestyle medicine, functional medicine, and regenerative medicine. And we're about to get the keys. And I'm walking through the final walkthrough with our contractor and I'm on cloud nine. We're having big impact in our community. And I get a phone call from our insurance network and they say, JR, you guys are going to have to stop STEM cells, or we're going to take away your insurance contracts. And it was like, the world just kicked me in the gut. And it was just like a hard moment because insurance is how we got people through the door and then into those components. And also that we ever seem to be getting was delays discounts and denials and the traditional care wasn't getting restoration and regeneration in our patients' lives.
(02:44):
It was, it would manage their symptoms. So I felt like we were going to have to bow to something different to our beliefs. And I went to my partner, Dr. Baumgardner and I said, I think we're going to have to give this up. And he leaned in and said, JR, I'd rather go bankrupt. And going back to medicine that does more harm than good. So if we weren't already all in. So I was, you know, my wife was pregnant with our third child at that time. I went home to her and I said, you know, and she, I could see she's already lonely. She's already challenged and doing a lot on her own to keep our family going, but I'm building this big dream and we're already starting to license and scale our model around the world. And she's like, do what you gotta do.
(03:25):
So we were already all in. I knew I had to go all in, but we were going to have to build a business model that wasn't dependent on me, my partner insurance contracts. So it was a humbling couple of years of learning from the best of the mess, masterminds, going to our patients, going to our team members and saying, we all believe in this model, how do we come together and make cash practice not only work here, but around the world, because we believe in this medicine. So, you know, two years later looking out at our full parking lot, I get a call from the Minnesota innovation award. And they're like, you guys are the epitome of what this award was designed for and we'd love to be on or with you. And that was a powerful moment because we were considered the voodoo doctors for doing STEM cells and functional medicine.
(04:14):
And now in 2021, all of our competitors, the community, everybody's doing this medicine. And I'm hopefully going to be able to wrap up of where I think the next level of integrated healthcare is that I've learned, but that's a little bit of our journey from that point on, we became the top volume regenerative medicine clinic in the entire country and licensed our model to over 150 locations around the world, Dr. Masterminds, and in 2019, because I wasn't showing up as the father and husband that I needed, I made a decision to sell those businesses and to go all in on my family and myself, healing myself, what I hadn't been able to do at that point yet.
Laura (04:53):
Wow. Okay. So you had this brick and mortar business that you expanded within the functional medicine space and moved away from insurance. So you, you went all in on a cash system, then you exited, which is incredible in 2019. And then what have you been up to since then?
JR (05:10):
Yeah, so I recognize, and I was a big believer in our model of health care. Right. But there was a few challenges that I see inside of healthcare, one in myself and one with the model of healthcare itself. So I'll start with the model of healthcare and I can get a little sidetrack sometimes, but I grew up in competitive sports where the goal was to be the best that you can be, but beat the other teams. So there's my high school rival
teams. They may be my best friends if they're on my team, but we're in the small town and you want to fight them, right? Sports taught me how to compete, how to play as a team, but it was about competition. And I played college baseball. I ruptured my knee and I ended up missing the fall ball in, in the cut of team.
(05:57):
So I played my first rugby game and I was invited by a former team member that said you were pretty good in high school at football. Why don't you come give this a try? So I went out there, wanted to play and beat the other team, just like any sport. But at the end of the game, it was a little bit different. We hosted a barbecue for the opposing team and we tapped the cake for them. And then an hour later, they start singing all these weird songs and we're drinking beer out of each other's boots. And we put our arms around each other and we're swinging back and forth. And we're high fiving, the other team members, and we're hugging and having this greatest time. And I realized rugby became a brotherhood that it wasn't about the other team that, hey, we are all out here to play this incredible sport to mesh.
(06:45):
So I could go to England. I could go to there and not know anybody and say, Hey, any rugby mates here and there and you would have a brotherhood. And why I'm telling you that story is in my years of healthcare, I would see the MD say, oh, they're just a chiropractor. And I would see the surgeon say, they're just an MD. And I would see the traditional healthcare model when they actually went to a functional regenerative, got extra education, the first time I've ever heard somebody with more education, be less legitimate with somebody that doesn't have that education. And my background was in personal training and nutrition and all this. That's what I brought to the table. And I would see the ketos say to the vegetarian, that's crazy. And I'd see the yoga person say to the CrossFit saying, that's crazy.
(07:30):
And it's just like, everybody's ego was involved in health care. But when you look at all of these things, everybody has a place in a position. You may be soft spoken. I made me more passionate. That person may be more aggressive is everybody's going to resonate with somebody and all of these principles if done consistently and predictably over time, have their place. But instead we're competing that everybody that's trying to help heal. Somebody is somehow bad or less than because they don't know what I know. And if we are going to change healthcare, ego's got to get out of the way. Maybe you have any questions on that, but that is the problem of healthcare that we face today. Ego is in the way.
Laura (08:13):
So interesting. Yeah. I've definitely noticed that. And everybody has been treated by a doctor at one point or another and felt totally talked down to when it was your body or your kid and intuitively you had a pretty good idea of what was going on. And then later on you found out that that intuition was pretty accurate actually. Why do doctors
experience burnout? Like why are they fried? What's going on with the medical systems?
JR (08:37):
I want to say your point, right? There is often the doctors have to go be an expert at one or two things. Right? And they go so deep. So when that patient comes to them and says, well, what about energy or meditation? If they don't know it, the easy reaction answer for them is to be as like, well, it must not be relevant because I don't know it. Instead of saying, that may be a possibility and that's great. My, you know, strength lies here, but we can measure where we're going. And if you're not making progress, yes, let's look at some things. So sometimes they do it out of a fear that they have to have the answer or that they don't know it. But when we look at healthcare in general, we are not very good when it comes to solving chronic pain and chronic disease.
(09:20):
So unless ego gets out of the way and we look at how do we actually heal and restore lives. We are going to feel what we are feeling right now, either egos in the way, or the doctors are burning out. Why? Because they spend more time in their electronic health records than they do connecting or looking somebody in the eyes or having the time to listen. The system is up against them. They have three, $400,000 in student loan and debt. So if they don't go to making a money or jumping a conventional system, then they know they're given band-aids or just prescription medications. And these patients aren't getting any better. So what they are in is they are trapped in a system. If they're looking into their heart, it's not fully aligned with what they did in the old Chinese world is if you are sick as a patient, the healthcare was free.
(10:11):
It was, you got paid when your patient is well in showing up. So meaning they're at a moral crisis point, they're burnt out. They're doing the things that they're not gifted at. They don't have the time to connect or actually anything that most of them are practicing is not comprehensive enough to actually get the result that they want. And if they had the courage to go on their own in private care, now they're having to be marketers, salespeople, coaches. And if they don't learn those skills of communication of leadership, of business development, it's a whole new dimension. So I have such empathy and kindness, but not stay stuck in the problem, but how do we solve these problems together and change the way healthcare is delivered?
Laura (10:57):
Right. That's so, so interesting that you say that because I think again, many of us have noticed that you notice when you go to check in at the doctor, that everybody seems so stressed at the front desk, or you notice that they're always on the phone with insurance or battling insurance or rolling their eyes. When they talk about having to contact insurance about something that you know is covered and you should feel like, well, that should just be a pretty basic conversation because we pay for that coverage. And so have you found that some doctors move from that traditional practice and they're able to
get into, I think what I hear you saying is something along the lines of like a concierge type of service, are you, are you seeing doctors being able to make that transition just with how much that they're kind of all in, on the current path that they're probably on?
JR (11:45):
Yeah, absolutely. We are seeing it, but it doesn't happen overnight. Just like restoring, if you're in chronic pain or disease, it's a journey to be explored. So it's like managing expectations and having joy in the progression that I am making progress versus wanting the world or our health to change overnight. But we're, my focus is, is matters of the heart are the matters of the health. So if you look, if somebody is not expressing their truths, if, and this goes for a patient for a doctor to a wife, a husband, then emotionally they're in their head and they're living in the past, which I don't not have empathy or compassion for because some people were raped. Some people are molested. Some people were teased. Some people have been put in system and abusive relationships, but that doesn't serve them. That's living in the past. And some people are in the future.
(12:42):
Like when I have this integrated cash practice or when I'm healthy or when I have the partner of my dreams or my life, then I'll be happy. And both those things are in our ego versus learning how to be in our heart and present and grateful for living today and happy and recognizing what is the one step and this positive energy that I can take. Who's the one person that can show up in my life that has already done what I'm trying to do. And that can be my guide to get me on this journey of hope, healing and business. And that's, you know, what I do is meet those for practitioners, but what, how do we help them is they got to heal their heart. First, if your body battery just like a car, battery is dead. You can't jumpstart another car. So our bodies are no different.
(13:30):
If they're burnt out, if they're in a state of reaction or emotional resilience that is lacking or reactive or angry and not smiling in the chief energy officer, the whole clinic feels that they think it's the employees, the insurance is know how they are showing up and no difference if your kids are crazy and being disrespectful or there are you and your husband connected, are you connected? It's easy to blame the outside world and everything right there. But when we're in this place of love, serving respect, life can be much easier than what we make it in our logic and in our head. And I know I'm going pretty broad here, but all the summarizes I have to first help the practitioners get in their heart to see possibility. Why did they go into medicine in the first place? And then being willing to do something differently because every human are systems perfectly designed for the results that it produces. You want a happier marriage, business children, then what are you going to do differently for you to show up happy, engage, passionate, present? Because if not, we're just hoping or praying, and I'm not saying certain things can have small changes, but it won't last. And we're just what I call the trauma or emotional loop of our lives of just showing up in different forms.
Laura (14:55):
That's so insightful. I love that. You're saying that you start with the hard work. I would imagine for some doctors or traditional medicine practitioners, that that is very unfamiliar territory. Are you finding that to be the case?
JR (15:09):
But you have to start with logic and meet people where they're at. So like, how is your health, your marriage in your business? So let me put a diagnostic evaluation to this. There's four pain points that practitioners have the first that they meet before. Are you able to attract and convert your ideal cash paying patient? If not, we're going to have to do something different to our communication, our leadership, our certainty, our coaching. Otherwise, we're going to say they just have Medicare, Medicaid insurance. My market can't afford that. They don't have that. The marketers don't help me. They they're not doing no until you own your marketing and attraction. You're always going to be in the external world of why that second problem is. Are you doing your best gifts are spending your one-on-one time, doing what you love. Can you delegate? Can you lead?
(16:01):
Can you hire people to do what you're not great at? None of us have the abilities to do it all. And there's no shame in that. Just recognize awareness, what you are not needing support in our you'll go to your, you know, lack of the impact that's possible. So I at least had awareness through my sports teams of, I am not good at spelling and grammar. I am not good at the tech. So my first hire is I'm bringing in this and this person while I work on my skills to become this, that will allow me to have that. So complete radical responsibility of what I feel I was called to have the greatest impact in that third is they are in transactional care. Maybe they can even start selling one PRP or functional tests or a yoga session, but are you ultimately prescribing a program that will transform one's life, which is mind, body, emotional and spirit we address or don't address one of those components you'll end up like me, 11 STEM, cell treatments, 13 surgeries overcome Lyme's disease, but it took me leaving and addressing the emotional I would stuff and needed sports or drugs or alcohol to manage my emotions.
(17:13):
Now, all of that's gone. And for the first time in my life, while I shouldn't say life in 15 years, I have no chronic pain. And I'm learning how to either Jedi train, like completely let emotions go feel and breathe them through or communicate in my truths. But my truth is different from anybody else's. So if it's with my wife, I'm feeling like, you know, maybe you're not hearing me or I'm not hearing you, what is going on. I feel frustrated that, you know, I am doing X, Y, and Z, and maybe, you know, at the end of the day, I'm challenged with how you're perceiving this.
(17:52):
I'm trying. What is your, well, I didn't even know that was a problem. And maybe I am busy doing okay. So there's just a conversation because if, what do you have is important to say, somebody's gotta be able to receive it. And this is the challenge we
see in politics and religion and beliefs, fixed notions that something's going on is we're not listening or hearing. And in our relationships, in our business, communication is the number one skill. So either telling or we're listening or we're evolving together, otherwise we're going to get more of what we think they don't listen. They don't care. Nobody's committed. They're not doing what I, and that's just a hard place to see people in. And I have empathy for it because I lived in that, that box for a long time.
Laura (18:35):
Yeah. It's interesting. What you'll go to when you have that dormant pain, like you said, drugs, alcohol, I'm not going to lie. I have a mommy stash of chocolate. And like, when things get crazy, of course, you know, the sugar spike, you're like, oh, I'll just grab a couple of these chocolate chips, but I know deep down, you know, I'm really just looking for something to, you know to ease the crazy. And I think we all do it. Right. So in the last few years, it sounds like you took yourself on this journey. I know you've spoken a lot about communication, making sure that you are always just clean. It sounds like in your emotions and that you're feeling the things you need to feel and that you're processing them correctly. Are there other things that you've done in the last few years to prioritize your whole health?
JR (19:18):
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you for asking that. So all those three components, we were booked out months long having success, right? I was doing as the CEO, my best gifts, which were coaching strategizing, leading the team. Um, we were having transformations. We weren't selling one-offs. We were the top volume STEM. So we were transforming lives. But the fourth component, which in this is there's entrepreneurs listening and everything like that. I was doing all those things all in. I wasn't taking the self-rituals, the self-love, the daily meditation, the yoga I was dying because I was grinding. I had these traumas or trying to prove significance or provide for my family versus all they wanted was a present, loving show up dad that came. So that forced step of any entrepreneur is how do you have it all? I believe that's fully possible when you do spend time with your heart, when you do learn how to manage your emotions, when you do have a daily movement practice, and you may say, how do I have time to take care of the kids, run my business, do everything else?
(20:30):
Every one of those long-term will suffer if you're not taking care of yourself. So that's right back to helping the healers have energy in each one of us. So, yes. What did that mean for me is it started with, I was busy. I couldn't meditate, but my back would go out every two months. So it was yoga. And I always say for anybody's budget, beliefs or openness, you can have it all from a health recovery too. And most of your powers are within you that meditation, that breathing, that yoga, those self-affirmations that love the nutrition, the sleep, the hydration, that's all on each one of us as entrepreneurs, as parents, as, as partners, is to give that space for possibility, whether that's 10 minutes a day or 30 minutes a day, and just know if that's not in place your sustainability or everybody else, your energy to give to everybody else is going to impact.
(21:26):
And that's what that two years of journey has been me is the self-care, which I've overcome the pain, but I had to go deeper. So I had some traumas as a child. So in as a teenager, it comes down to, I had to go to EMDR therapy, talk therapy. I had to even get into plant medicine because the subconscious was running the show for me. So can you get there in, in church was important to me. Faith was important. Me, all those things are accessible to every one of you. And then there is the functional or the regenerative fix the gut. Why are you not sleeping? That's the medicine. But if you're not doing your stuff first, I'm going to put it on to each one of us, got to do your stuff first because doctors aren't magical work, where thy wear the cloak of healing you, if you're not aware of what you can do to heal yourself, but then when you combine that with the right supplements, the IVs, the functional tests, the STEM cells, and then you learn how to manage your emotions.
(22:27):
Emotions are matters of the heart, your truth. That is that next level that was missing in healthcare. Now that's my next mission is already been involved with some of the top integrative centers and built those to myself. But unless we are addressing mind, body spirit and taking ownership, that is where it's just going to be one partnership or one doctor or one diagnosis chasing the others where it's matters of the heart and joy and health that are going to give you the biggest leverage. So it's no accident to me that you invited me on to this amazing, you know, mission that you have going of heart and joy work. That is the root cause of all health love, happiness, and in sustainable business success from my perspective.
Laura (23:14):
Oh, so good. And I can talk about this forever because it's such a passion of mine having scaled businesses in a way that made me want to jump out a window and having scaled businesses currently where you do have the margin for self-care. And it's fascinating how many times people have like a limited belief, but a lot of it's the upper limit stuff that I think comes up in the self-worth and the deservedness. And we, we end up throwing out all of these blocks without even realizing it. I think until you have gone through enough experiences that you notice it, and, you know, you start becoming aware of what comes up based on your own health journey, I'm sure you're so passionate, not only on helping other people be able to take better care of themselves as medical and health practitioners, but also be able to anticipate what's coming up next and what the future of all of this is like, if you were to look into a crystal ball and you were to anticipate what the future is of healthcare, especially given that we at the time of recording or coming out of the pandemic, which is going to be probably a pivotal moment for many doctors and nurses and people in traditional health care, what do you think is, is coming up next for those who are filling the roles?
JR (24:28):
Personalization, is each person has a different path. And each one of these tools, whether it's the doctor tools functional or regenerative like the STEM cells, those
happen, but that self-care path is different for every person. So the introduction of going from one-on-one transactional care to group transformational, people do good in communities and culture. We know this in the coaching world. So putting people that are wanting to overcome diabetes, heart pressure, blood pressure, we are seeing the influx of group visits, meeting them where they're at and tele med, educating and going deep. So the introduction of personal trainer, health coaches, life coaches, um, mental health, emotional health is the next wave. And it's happening like functional medicine, like I said, was voodoo medicine and regenerative the rise because of the burnout, the doctors recognize it's not expandable instead of the large brick and mortar, this can be delivered virtual and fitness needed healthcare in it.
(25:32):
And healthcare needed wellness and fitness, the merger of, of these things. But now the ability of technology to measure and predict based on emotions, AI, wearables, things like that instead of like shooting shotguns and just prescribing whatever somebody projects, no, the AI and the body and the emotions will tell the practitioners what they need. So care will be easier for them. That is carrot. And this is amazing because I'm seeing that transformation and we're seeing that happen. But what is the underpinning that needs to change is respect in service. We've gotten too fast. We don't listen. We don't care. We don't connect. I'm not saying everybody. It's just, when I say we it's, it's, it's just that intention focus of how do we go forward? How do we respect the medicine, the people, every human in front of us and be in the heart and just ask them, do you want a better life today? Are you ready to walk with me towards that knock step? And if you don't know that next step, and it's let me refer you to somebody who I think could help you.
Laura (26:40):
I love that. It's so funny when you were talking, not listening and not hearing sometimes as a parent, you, you think you feel that all too real, right? Um, but it's so fascinating your own journey and how much you care and how passionate you are for those who are in a similar position that you were in. And if you were to sum up in one word, how you hope to scale and grow your own company moving forward, or what your primary focus is, is there a single word or a statement, or just some wisdom that you could leave our audience with?
JR (27:16):
In two words? I am enough that's for me, meaning it used to be about another business deal or me getting on a TV show or doing something or showing the world. And that ego had to die. Meaning that is about me feeling loved insignificance. That second word goes to respect, but it starts with yourself that self-love and respect that I just said, but then your family, meaning just like you and I were talking, if I'm going to do this the right way, I didn't allow my wife into that world thinking they had to be separate. So we weren't connected. And that was creating divide. And if I want the happiest healthy children, my wife and I need to be like the beacons of the energy that, that life and that generational thing. So that next level is self-family now world and saying yes to business opportunities that are grind versus which are coming in there is that next level
for me and for anybody, if it's hard and difficult, are you taking care of yourself and are you emotionally showing up in ease and flow? And I'm not saying it makes you a good or bad or any of that is just an awareness too, are the first things first self and family first, otherwise it will come at a cost.
Laura (28:45):
Yeah, for sure. I completely agree and have felt that myself. So if people want to learn more about this incredible vision that you have for the future of healthcare, where can they connect with you? How can they get in touch with you and where can they learn more?
JR (29:01):
Thank you. HealthOvators is my website. So www.healthovators. That's the mission that we have a coaching academy that's teaching people how to run these integrated practices that are cash based that are group and teaching the doctors, how to be entrepreneurs and leaders and then the done for you system. We've done it this in a hundred plus clinics of the marketing materials that work, um, JR Burgess Consulting is where my personal brand is my books, my podcasts. So if anybody's listening in, interested in learning, engaging, there's plenty of free resources on, on that. And I'm just so grateful and thankful for you, Lara for putting me on here, it's a beautiful mission and you're helping people recognize what makes it sustainable and really legacy work when you're coming from a place of joy and happiness and health. And it's just music to my ears. And thank you for, for allowing me to be on here and share,.
Laura (30:00):
Thank you so much. That's a wonderful, wonderful affirmation, especially coming from somebody such as yourself, that I know is passionate about similar things. So I just appreciate you being here. And I'm so excited for listeners who really feel called to reach out to you, to connect with you and learn more. Thanks so much.
(30:23):
Hey there: before you head out, I want to let you know about a free new training I have right on a brand new website called yournextmillion.me. It's yournextmillion.me, where several of my seven figure clients and colleagues share what they're doing in the next year to scale their businesses, to the multi-million dollar mark and beyond. And I have to tell you, it is not what you think. So check it out at yournextmillion.me. And if you loved this show, will you subscribe to it and share it with a friend or just say something nice about it to someone, you know? I’d really appreciate it so much. Thanks so much for being here and I'll see you now.
The Scale with Joy podcast dives into the mindset and strategies of scaling your company to the million dollar mark and beyond. Each week, we follow the journeys of innovators, disruptors, experts and leaders - sharing behind the scenes stories of their most challenging moments and greatest lessons learned-all while building their multi-million dollar empires.