In this episode of The Root Cause: Business of Medicine, Dr. Erik Lundquist and Dr. Davin Lundquist talk with Dr. Aaron Wenzel, founder and CEO of Brentwood MD in Nashville. Dr. Wenzel shares his journey from family and emergency medicine to building a thriving concierge practice focused on restoring the sacred doctor-patient relationship. He discusses the risks, lessons, and rewards of creating a membership-based model free from insurance constraints—and why clarity, excellence, and focus are key to practicing medicine with purpose.

In this episode of The Root Cause Business of Medicine, Drs. Erik and Davin Lundquist interview Dr. Linda Mattioli, who shares her inspiring journey from conventional family medicine to founding a thriving cash-based membership practice and the Origins Incubator, a mentorship program for clinicians. Linda discusses how burnout led her to embrace functional medicine, build patient-centered systems based on trust and empathy, and grow through community outreach and feedback. She now helps other practitioners design practices that align with their values—restoring balance, purpose, and authentic healing to both doctors and patients.

This episode of The Root Cause - Business of Medicine features pediatrician Dr. Chris Magryta, who shares how he integrated functional medicine into a traditional pediatrics practice serving many Medicaid patients. He shifted focus after observing rising chronic illnesses in children and applied “five pillars of health” principles (stress, nutrition, movement, sleep/sun, toxins) in affordable, practical ways. Despite longer, less profitable visits, his egalitarian group model and Medicaid-funded care management make the approach sustainable. The episode highlights how culture, leadership, and a child-centered ethos enable better outcomes in underserved populations.

In this episode, Davin recounts his transition from a successful yet unfulfilling career in conventional medicine and healthcare technology to practicing functional and direct primary care. He explains how personal challenges, systemic pressures, and the pandemic prompted him to rethink his approach to medicine, ultimately leading him to create a low-overhead, cash-based practice centered on holistic, patient-focused care. Erik and Davin also discuss the legal considerations of moving from insurance-based to cash practices and explore how AI can help clinicians practice more meaningfully. Davin closes by sharing his “why” in medicine: empowering people to feel their best so they can pursue their dreams.

Erik shares his long journey from traditional family medicine to founding the Temecula Center for Integrative Medicine, shaped by dissatisfaction with conventional approaches, inspiration from mentors, and pivotal patient experiences. Davin, newer to functional medicine, reflects on his own career in traditional systems, physician burnout from technology and regulations, and his desire to practice more holistically. Together, they discuss the differences between functional and integrative medicine, the importance of aligning practice with authentic values, the role of collaboration and vision, and the challenges of building a sustainable clinic. Their goal is to inspire clinicians, students, and patients by sharing real stories of practitioners who found fulfillment and effectiveness outside the conventional system.