GLP-1 medications are transforming healthcare—but what happens when they enter skilled nursing and post-acute care?

In this episode of Our Purpose – The LTC Podcast Host James Dieter, Kip Kruger and Chris Light sit down with Dr. Norberto Vargas, a board-certified physician in physical medicine & rehab, pain management, addiction medicine, and obesity medicine, to unpack the real-world impact of GLP-1s in long-term care settings.

We discuss:
• Why GLP-1–driven weight loss can become dangerous muscle loss (sarcopenia) in SNFs
• How dehydration, reduced intake, and therapy setbacks can create facility risk and F-tag exposure
• Who the right and wrong candidates are for GLP-1s in post-acute and long-term care
• The expanding science behind GLP-1s: cardiometabolic benefits, dementia risk reduction, and addiction “noise”
• Why obesity meets many real-world criteria for addiction—and why DSM-5 doesn’t classify it that way

This episode is essential listening for LTC administrators, medical directors, clinicians, and operators navigating GLP-1 use while protecting outcomes, compliance, and patient safety.

Skilled nursing has a story problem—and Cantex is working to change it.

In this episode of Our Purpose – The LTC Podcast, Kip Kruger, James Dieter, and Chris Light sit down with Armando Guzman (Chief Strategy Officer, Cantex) to break down the strategy and culture behind Cantex’s momentum—including 15 facilities reaching 100% occupancy in 2025.

Armando shares his path from managed care into LTC, why the industry needs new voices, and how strong accountability cultures attract elite talent. The conversation dives into “hospitality + medical” as the future of skilled nursing, aligning Sales and Nursing with a “start with yes” mindset, and how vertical integration (including Cantex’s I-SNP) creates better outcomes, visibility, and operational control.

They also unpack a standout innovation: bringing blood transfusions into the SNF to reduce avoidable transfers and help residents age in place—plus the realities of rural specialty access, telehealth, fraud prevention, and the road toward value-based care.

Hosts James Dieter, Kip Kruger and Chris Light joined by Chuck Moody, Senior VP of Clinical Services at Creative Solutions, for a leadership-forward conversation on what’s reshaping skilled nursing. We cover staffing through a “help-first” culture, PDPM documentation and cross-team alignment, the impact of I-SNPs on rehospitalizations, survey pressure, and how AI could eliminate duplication and return time back to the bedside. Chuck also shares what makes a good nurse, why LTC can be surprisingly fun, and how purpose-driven leadership changes outcomes.