What if most medical errors are not caused by bad doctors… but by broken healthcare systems?

In the Season 2 premiere of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, host Kay Van Wey welcomes nationally recognized patient safety expert Dr. Matt Austin for a powerful conversation about the hidden system failures driving preventable medical harm in hospitals across America.

Dr. Austin, a PhD-level patient safety expert with a background in systems engineering and aviation safety, explains why healthcare continues to struggle with medical errors despite decades of research, technology, and regulation. Together, Kay and Dr. Austin explore one of the biggest questions in healthcare today:

Are medical mistakes caused by bad people — or bad systems?

This episode dives deep into:

1. Preventable medical errors
2. Patient safety failures
3. Hospital system design
4. Healthcare worker burnout
5. Wrong-site surgeries and communication breakdowns
6. The parallels between aviation safety and healthcare safety
7. Artificial intelligence in medicine
8. Why healthcare accountability matters more than ever

Kay brings the perspective of a nationally recognized medical malpractice attorney who has spent decades representing families devastated by preventable medical mistakes. Dr. Austin brings the perspective of a systems engineer focused on improving hospital safety and reducing harm before tragedy occurs.

Together, they unpack why patients continue to be harmed in hospitals every day — and why fixing healthcare requires more than blaming individual doctors or nurses.

One of the most eye-opening moments of the episode comes when Dr. Austin compares preventable medical harm in hospitals to “three 747s crashing every day” in America — a staggering comparison that highlights the scale of the patient safety crisis.

But this conversation is not about fear.

It is about awareness.

It is about accountability.

And it is about building safer healthcare systems for everyone.

Listen to more episodes of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

Learn more about Van Wey & Metzler Law Firm in Dallas, Texas:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/

Subscribe for conversations about:

Medical malpractice, patient safety, healthcare accountability, hospital negligence, birth injuries, healthcare reform, medical errors, physician burnout, and patient advocacy.

Welcome back to AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable.

Season 2 begins with a very special conversation between host Kay Van Wey and her law partner Luke Metzler, a birth injury attorney at Van Wey & Metzler Law Firm in Dallas, Texas.

After Season 1 explored the shocking failures behind the Dr. Death case, Kay and Luke are widening the lens. This season is not just about the cases that make headlines. It is about the families whose lives change in an instant because of medical malpractice, preventable medical errors, birth injuries, hospital negligence, and healthcare system failures.

These are the stories Kay and Luke see in their work every day.

In this season premiere, Kay and Luke talk about why patient safety is personal, why medical negligence is often bigger than one bad doctor, and why healthcare accountability matters to every patient, every parent, and every family. Kay explains that Season 2 will take listeners inside the issues that too often stay hidden from hospital decision-making and patient safety science to nurse burnout, doctor burnout, birth injury cases, and the growing role of AI in healthcare.

This episode is the bridge between Season 1 and what comes next: deeper conversations, real-world examples, and expert insight into how the healthcare system can better protect patients.

In this episode, Kay and Luke discuss:

1. Why Season 2 moves beyond the Dr. Death case
2. The real families behind medical malpractice lawsuits
3. How birth injuries can affect a child and family for a lifetime
4. Why hospital errors are often connected to larger system failures
5. How nurse burnout and doctor burnout can affect patient care
6. Why patient safety should matter to everyone
7. What listeners can expect from Season 2 of AdvoKAYte

At Van Wey & Metzler Law Firm, Kay Van Wey and Luke Metzler represent patients and families whose lives have been forever changed by medical negligence. Through this podcast, they are opening up honest conversations about medical malpractice, birth injury, patient safety, hospital accountability, and the future of healthcare.

Because healthcare accountability is not abstract.

It is personal.

It is urgent.

And it affects all of us.

Learn more about the podcast:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

Learn more about Van Wey & Metzler Law Firm:

https://www.vanweylaw.com/

Subscribe to AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable for thoughtful conversations about medical malpractice, patient safety, birth injuries, healthcare system failures, and patient advocacy.

Season 1 was a deep dive—sometimes infuriating, sometimes heartbreaking —into how Christopher Duntsch (“Dr. Death”) was able to hurt so many people.

But this season was never about retelling a story you’ve already heard.

It was about getting to the real question: how could this happen again and again without institutions stepping in to stop it?

In this short wrap-up, Kay Van Wey reflects on why we started here, why the public outrage still hasn’t translated into the changes patients need, and what she hopes you’re walking away with: a clearer understanding of the system, and a reason to keep pushing for accountability because whether you’ve been affected or not, we’re all patients eventually.

Kay also shares an open invitation: if you’ve got a story, feedback, or expertise that belongs in this conversation, reach out. This podcast is for you and it’s not meant to be an echo chamber.

That’s a wrap on Season 1… we’re heading into Season 2! We hope you come along for the ride.

Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

New episodes every Wednesday at 9 AM CT

#AdvoKAYtePodcast #HoldingHealthcareAccountable #PatientSafety #HealthcareAccountability #DrDeath #HealthcareReform #MedicalMalpractice

Christopher Duntsch made headlines. But if you zoom out, the bigger question is harder and more important:

How did the system let him keep going?

In BONUS Episode 2 of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, Kay Van Wey sits down with Laura Beil, the investigative journalist and host of Wondery’s Dr. Death, to talk about what most people miss. This story was labeled “true crime,” but Laura explains why it was never really a whodunit. It was a why-was-this-allowed.

They get into what Laura learned reporting Dr. Death, what happens when healthcare is treated like a business, and why transparency is still so hard for patients even when they’re trying to do everything “right.”

In this BONUS episode, we talk about:

1. Why the healthcare system is the main character in Dr. Death
2. The money, pressure, and incentives that shape decisions behind the scenes
3. Why patients can research a refrigerator more easily than a surgeon
4. What to look for when you’re choosing a doctor (and why instincts matter)
5. Tools like ProPublica’s Surgeon Scorecard and what data can—and can’t—tell you
6. Why people inside hospitals are often afraid to speak up, even when they know something’s wrong
7. What has (and hasn’t) changed since Dr. Death and why that matters now

If you’ve followed Dr. Death, or if you’ve ever wondered how stories like this keep happening, you’ll want to hear this conversation.

Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

New episodes every Wednesday at 9 AM CT

#AdvoKAYtePodcast #LauraBeil #DrDeath #Wondery #PatientSafety #HealthcareAccountability #MedicalMalpractice #InvestigativeJournalism #HealthcareReform

A 57-year-old man went in for what should have been a routine cataract procedure at an outpatient surgery center… and never came home. Full story: https://www.vanweylaw.com/insights/deadly-routine-eye-surgery/

In this BONUS episode of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, Kay Van Wey is joined by a powerhouse panel to break down the horrifying “Bingo Doctor” case—where an anesthesiologist allegedly sedated patients while staff were distracted by music bingo, and the monitor alarms were believed to be turned off.

This isn’t just a shocking story. It’s a spotlight on the same system failures we keep seeing: weak oversight, loopholes in reporting, and a culture that can silence people who know something is wrong.

Panelists

1. Kay Van Wey — medical malpractice attorney & patient safety advocate
2. Bob Oshel — former associate director, National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB)
3. Dr. Robert Henderson — board-certified spine surgeon
4. Anne Roberts — VP of Medical Staff Services, major New England hospital system
5. Dr. Martin Lazar — board-certified neurosurgeon

In this BONUS episode, we discuss:

1. Why this level of sedation is unusual for cataract surgery and what that could mean
2. How monitoring and alarms are supposed to protect patients (and what happens when they’re silenced)
3. Why distraction in the OR violates the standard of care—no matter how “routine” the procedure seems
4. How ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) handle peer review and why accountability can be harder in smaller facilities
5. The NPDB reporting rules and the loopholes facilities use to avoid reporting
6. Why there are effectively no real penalties for non-reporting
7. How doctors can move state-to-state with a “clean slate,” and why continuous query matters

If you’ve ever assumed “outpatient” automatically means “safe,” this conversation will change how you think about oversight, reporting, and patient protection.

Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

New episodes every Wednesday at 9 AM CT

Question: Should the public have access to more provider safety data—yes or no?

#AdvoKAYtePodcast #PatientSafety #HealthcareAccountability #MedicalMalpractice #NPDB #OutpatientSurgery #AnesthesiaSafety #HealthcareReform #KayVanWey

What if Christopher Duntsch wasn’t the exception… but the warning?

In this new episode of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, Kay Van Wey and patient safety expert Anne Roberts pull back the curtain on the doctors Anne calls “the deplorables”—providers linked to horrific outcomes who were still allowed to keep practicing because the system looked the other way.

This conversation isn’t meant to scare you. It’s meant to show you how these patterns happen and what patients and families can do to protect themselves.

You’ll hear real examples, including:

1. Dr. Bruce Hinckley — a cocaine-addicted spine surgeon and the shocking lengths taken to avoid detection
2. Dr. Michael Swango — often called the original “Dr. Death,” and how credentialing failures let him keep moving
3. “Pill mill” medicine — how profit-driven prescribing became deadly
4. Dr. Raynaldo Ortiz — violence, warning signs, and how accountability came far too late

A common thread shows up again and again: money, weak oversight, and the refusal to act until it’s catastrophic.

Premieres Wednesday at 9:00 AM CT

Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/

Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube (wherever you get your podcasts)

Question for you: What should happen when a hospital or facility sees repeated red flags: mandatory reporting, automatic suspension, or something else?

#AdvoKAYtePodcast #HoldingHealthcareAccountable #PatientSafety #HealthcareAccountability #MedicalMalpractice #HealthcareReform #PatientRights #TrueCrimePodcast #HealthcareLeadership #QualitySafety

If you’ve ever wondered why patients can be permanently harmed by a preventable medical error and still struggle to find answers, accountability, or justice—this episode is for you.

In Episode 12 of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable (Part 2 of our conversation from Episode 11), Kay Van Wey sits down again with healthcare executive and patient safety expert Anne Roberts to talk about what the system doesn’t want to say out loud:
Texas tort reform made it financially impossible for many injured patients to bring legitimate cases.

And the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB), which is the federal reporting system meant to flag dangerous doctors, has loopholes so wide that some hospitals avoid reporting altogether.
Kay breaks down what “tort reform” really did in Texas, why so many families are told “we can’t take your case,” and how that erodes trust in both medicine and the legal system. Then Kay and Anne walk through the NPDB: what it’s supposed to do, why it hasn’t meaningfully evolved since the 1980s, and how hospitals can use technicalities to keep bad actors moving quietly from one facility to another.

In Episode 12, we cover:
Texas tort reform and how damage caps shut most patients out of court
Why the “lawsuit crisis” narrative took hold and what Kay says was actually happening
The Healthcare Quality Improvement Act (HCQIA) and why the NPDB still operates on outdated rules
NPDB loopholes: how reporting can be avoided (and why it matters)
The enforcement problem: penalties exist… but they’re not used
Why Dr. Death (Christopher Duntsch) wasn’t the end of the story, but the warning!

🎧 New episodes every Wednesday at 9 AM CT
🔎 Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-p...

Watch/Listen here:
▶️ YouTube playlist: • AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable!
🎙️ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0Vvmpsj...
🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...

💬 Question for you: Should hospitals be fined when they don’t report dangerous doctors to the NPDB?
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#AdvoKAYtePodcast #HealthcareAccountability #PatientSafety #TexasTortReform #NationalPractitionerDataBank #NPDB #MedicalMalpractice #PatientRights #HealthcareReform #DrDeath #KayVanWey #AnneRoberts

What if Christopher Duntsch wasn’t an anomaly, but a warning?

In Episode 11 of AdvoKAYte: Holding Healthcare Accountable, Kay Van Wey is joined again by healthcare executive and patient safety expert Anne Roberts to confront a difficult truth: there are other “Dr. Deaths” hiding in plain sight—and the data proves it.
Despite coming from opposite sides of the healthcare system, Kay (a medical malpractice attorney) and Anne (a hospital executive) share a deep commitment to patient safety. In this episode, they unpack how systemic failures, profit-driven pressures, outdated laws, and a lack of political will continue to allow dangerous providers to slip through the cracks.

In this episode, we cover:
Why most doctors, nurses, and hospitals want to do the right thing and why the system still fails
How burnout, addiction, and financial pressure can turn good providers into dangerous ones
Why healthcare keeps repeating the same safety failures
What the airline industry gets right about safety and healthcare doesn’t
How profit pressures put patients last
Why patients often feel powerless and what they can do to protect themselves
Texas tort reform and how it closed courthouse doors to injured patients
The Healthcare Quality Improvement Act of 1986 and why it hasn’t been updated in nearly 40 years
Loopholes in the National Practitioner Data Bank that let hospitals avoid reporting dangerous doctors
The shocking truth: not a single hospital has ever been punished for failing to report

Season One of AdvoKAYte focused on Christopher Duntsch in the hope that public outrage would finally spark reform. This episode asks the harder question: why hasn’t it?
⚠️ This conversation continues in Part 2, where Kay and Anne dive into even more extreme cases of dangerous physicians and what it will take to stop the next one.
🎧 Listen and subscribe for honest conversations about patient safety, accountability, and healthcare reform.
🔎 Learn more: https://www.vanweylaw.com/advokayte-podcasts/