In this episode of The Healthcast, host Phil Zappone speaks with Shlomit Liberty, founder of Patient Path NYC, about helping patients and families navigate some of the most overwhelming and confusing moments in healthcare.
Shlomit began her career as a medical speech-language pathologist, specializing in swallowing disorders, communication, and cognition in adults recovering from serious illness, surgery, and acquired brain injuries. Her work placed her at the center of complex medical decisions involving nutrition, rehabilitation, discharge planning, and collaboration across specialties.
Over time, she noticed a recurring problem: patients and families were often surrounded by highly skilled clinicians but still did not understand what was happening, what their options were, or what questions they needed to ask.
That realization led Shlomit to become a board-certified patient advocate and launch Patient Path NYC.
She describes her role as medical crisis management—serving as a bridge between patients, families, and hospital teams. By reviewing medical records, attending conversations, translating clinical language, tracking recommendations, and helping coordinate communication, she works to ensure that important information does not fall through the cracks.
Phil and Shlomit discuss the emotional importance of eating and swallowing, the difference between educating patients and policing their decisions, and why informed consent requires more than quickly asking, “Do you have any questions?”
The conversation also explores discharge planning, rehabilitation options, conflicting medical recommendations, medication timing, independent versus hospital-employed advocates, and the potential for technology and AI to help patients become more informed participants in their care.

Episode Chapters
00:50 – What a medical speech-language pathologist does
02:01 – Diagnosing swallowing disorders through imaging
04:35 – How speech pathology connects across medical specialties
06:10 – The emotional meaning of food and swallowing
06:58 – Advocating for informed patient decisions
08:18 – Shifting from judgment to education
09:40 – Why families struggle to ask questions in the hospital
10:05 – Translating medical language after clinicians leave
13:23 – The idea behind Patient Path NYC
15:48 – Who typically needs hospital-based advocacy
17:56 – Why families often seek help later than they should
20:40 – Medical crises and communication breakdowns
22:58 – Building relationships with the full care team
24:02 – Translating the medical chart into plain language
25:00 – Keeping families informed and aligned
26:18 – Tracking tests, medications, and conflicting recommendations
29:41 – Why patient advocacy remains unfamiliar
32:00 – How AI can help patients advocate for themselves
35:15 – AI-assisted medical imaging and swallowing assessment
37:52 – Growing a high-touch patient advocacy business

Episode Resources:
Website | https://patientpathnyc.com/
LinkedIn | http://linkedin.com/in/shlomit-liberty-28a221113/
Email | shlomit@patientpathnyc.com

Check out what I do helping small businesses here:
Website | https://nxaihealth.com/
LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/phil-zappone-647957379/

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