Why Mental Health Is the Missing Piece in Cancer Care with Kyle Lavin

In this episode of Healthcare Uncensored, host Rani Khetarpal sits down with Dr. Kyle Lavin, Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Cerula Care, to talk about the role of mental health support in cancer care and why it should be more accessible to patients from the start of their journey.Kyle shares his personal and professional path into psychiatry, palliative care, and oncology, including the life experiences that shaped his work and led him to focus on improving access to behavioral health for people living with cancer. He also explains what palliative care psychiatry is, why palliative care is often misunderstood, and how these services can better support patients and families facing serious illness.Rani and Kyle also discuss the collaborative care model, the gaps in the current mental health system, and how Cerula Care is working to scale an evidence-based approach that helps cancer patients get the support they need.Meet the Guest: Kyle LavinKyle Lavin is the Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer of Cerula Care, an integrated behavioral health company focused on people living with cancer. He is one of fewer than 100 palliative care psychiatrists in the country and is deeply passionate about improving access to mental health support for patients facing serious illness. Kyle also serves as an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.In This Episode, You’ll Learn:How Kyle’s personal journey led him into psychiatry and palliative careWhat palliative care psychiatry is and why it mattersWhy palliative care should begin earlier in the care journeyHow palliative care has evolved over timeWhy mental health support remains difficult for cancer patients to accessWhat the collaborative care model looks like in practiceHow Cerula Care is integrating behavioral health into oncology careWhat it takes to launch a healthcare startup and secure an early provider partnerWhere Kyle believes healthcare may be headed in the next 12 monthsConnect with Kyle Lavin & Cerula Care🔗 LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-lavin-857a4222🌐 Website: https://cerulacare.com/ Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters:https://missionmatters.com/author/rani-khetarpal/