Expert SMA Consulting
From First Session to Full Program: Dr. Jacob Mirsky, a national leader in SMA implementation, has helped 20+ organizations across primary care, specialty practices, health systems, and digital health successfully launch and scale SMA. Here's how he can help yours.
SMA Catalyst offers a range of services designed to meet healthcare organizations at every stage of their Shared Medical Appointment (SMA) journey.
As the founder of the largest Lifestyle Medicine SMA program in the country at Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School, Dr. Jacob Mirsky brings 7+ years of real-world implementation experience to every engagement. Since 2022 he has also consulted with 20+ healthcare organizations — from solo practices to health systems to digital health startups — helping each one navigate the clinical, operational, and financial complexities of SMA implementation.
Whether you're just starting to explore SMA, ready to launch your first session, or looking to optimize and scale an existing program, there's a consulting package designed for your stage.
Find The Right Engagement For Your Stage
1. SMA IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
3 months | Virtual Meetings + Written Deliverables
Designed for organizations exploring or planning their first SMA session. This engagement gives you everything you need to launch with confidence: a clear picture of your readiness, a customized roadmap, and the financial and compliance groundwork to support the launch of your initial SMA.
Initial Assessment: We begin with a comprehensive evaluation of your practice, patient population, provider and staff readiness, and preliminary feasibility. This includes identification of your ideal SMA candidate population and any organizational barriers to address before launch.
Custom Implementation Roadmap: Based on the assessment, Dr. Mirsky develops a detailed roadmap for implementing SMA within 90 days, tailored to your setting, including attention to resource requirements, budget planning, billing and compliance guidance, documentation standards, and revenue projections.
What You'll Receive: A written implementation roadmap serving as your framework for moving forward, including timelines, key decisions, staffing recommendations, and next steps your team can act on immediately.
2. SMA EXPANSION SUPPORT
3 months | Virtual Meetings + Written Deliverables
Designed for organizations that have launched an SMA program and are ready to grow. Whether you're looking to increase patient volume, add new session types, expand to new specialties, or build the financial case for a multi-site program, this engagement gives your existing program a structured path forward.
Workflow Optimization: We start with a thorough review of your current SMA operations — visit structure, patient identification, outreach strategies, and billing practices — and develop concrete recommendations to improve efficiency and maximize reimbursement.
Staff Training: Live training sessions (in-person or virtual) focused on group facilitation best practices, patient-centered communication, and the clinical skills that separate high-performing SMA programs from average ones.
Expansion Planning: A forward-looking plan that identifies new SMA opportunities within your organization, including specialty-specific adaptations and a financial model built to support sustainable, multi-session or multi-site growth.
Ongoing Consulting Retainer (Optional): For organizations that want continued expert support beyond the initial engagement, Dr. Mirsky offers an ongoing retainer to help you optimize, troubleshoot, and scale over time.
3. CUSTOM SOLUTIONS FOR EVERY NEED
Flexible engagements for organizations with specific, focused needs yet without the scope of a full implementation or expansion program.
Not every organization needs a comprehensive 3-month engagement. Sometimes you need one specific thing done well. Dr. Mirsky offers three focused standalone services for exactly those situations:
SMA Readiness Assessment: Not sure whether SMA is the right fit for your organization, or whether now is the right time? A focused evaluation of your practice, patient population, staffing model, and organizational readiness — with a clear recommendation on whether and how to proceed. A practical first step before committing to full implementation planning.
Staff Training: Already have your implementation plan in place but need your team ready to run a high-quality session? Dr. Mirsky provides targeted training in group facilitation, patient-centered communication, motivational interviewing, and SMA-specific clinical workflows — in person or virtually.
Program Troubleshooting: SMA running but not delivering the results you expected? Whether the issue is low attendance, billing problems, workflow friction, provider dissatisfaction, or clinical outcomes, Dr. Mirsky will identify the gaps and develop a concrete plan to get your program back on track.
4. HALF-DAY CHARRETTE
A single intensive session | In-person or virtual
A charrette is a structured, facilitated working session designed to rapidly align a team around a shared vision and concrete next steps. In the context of SMA, it's the fastest way to go from "we've been thinking about this" to "here's exactly what we're going to do and how."
This engagement is ideal for leadership teams, clinical champions, or cross-functional groups that need to build organizational alignment before committing to full implementation planning. It's also well-suited for organizations that have a decision-maker who needs to see a clear strategic vision before approving an SMA initiative.
What the Session Covers: Working alongside your team in real time, Dr. Mirsky facilitates structured discussion and decision-making across the key dimensions of SMA program design: target patient population, session structure, staffing model, billing approach, and preliminary financial projections.
What You'll Receive: An executive summary document capturing the vision developed during the session, including strategic recommendations and a prioritized set of next steps for development, implementation, and scaling so that you are ready to share your bold vision with your leadership or develop the foundation for a full implementation plan.
5. CLINICAL ADVISOR
Ongoing engagement | Customized to your organization's needs
For digital health companies, health tech startups, and healthcare organizations developing SMA-integrated products or services, Dr. Mirsky serves as an embedded clinical expert, bringing deep SMA knowledge into your strategic and operational decision-making on an ongoing basis.
This isn't a one-time consultation. It's a sustained advisory relationship designed to help your organization avoid costly implementation mistakes, accelerate product development, and build clinical credibility with partners, investors, and health system clients.
The scope is customized to your organization's priorities and may include:
Clinical and Operational Strategy: Expert guidance on SMA program design, clinical workflows, patient population selection, and care delivery models to ensure that your product or service is built on a foundation that actually works in real clinical settings.
Business Development Support: Dr. Mirsky helps translate clinical expertise into business value, supporting pitch development, partnership conversations, grant applications, and revenue modeling for SMA-integrated offerings.
Product and Service Input: For technology companies building group care platforms, virtual visit tools, or chronic disease management programs, Dr. Mirsky provides direct clinical input on product design, feature prioritization, and implementation feasibility.
Who This Is For: This engagement is especially well-suited for health tech startups building SMA-adjacent products, digital health companies integrating group care into virtual platforms, healthcare organizations developing SMA programs at scale, and companies seeking a credible clinical voice for investor or health system conversations.
What Clients Say
Lifestyle Medicine Consulting LLC + SMA Catalyst
Health System
“Dr. Mirsky provides tremendous value to teams seeking to implement group medical visits. He is incredibly thoughtful and thorough in his approach. He translates his knowledge and skills into actionable insights for clinical teams. We are so grateful for the support he provided to us!”
Kristi Artz MD, FACLM, CCMS
Vice President, University Hospitals Connor Whole Health (2025)
Specialty Practice
“Dr. Mirsky took the time to understand our program structure and goals to help us create a shared medical appointment (SMA) workflow that meets our unique needs. He shared his expertise while maintaining curiosity so we could create our optimal strategy. His approach was comprehensive, from high level strategy to specific workflow details, including advertising, scheduling, check-in, follow-up, etc. He also modeled what an ideal SMA should look like from a patient perspective. I highly recommend Dr. Mirsky to anyone looking to start an SMA program.”
Steven Borer MD
Medical Director, Lifestyle Medicine Program, Hartford HealthCare Heart & Vascular Institute (2024)
Solo Practice
“Dr. Mirsky has an incredibly organized, brilliant mind that lends itself to an uncanny ability to problem solve and integrate. He laid out a logic path for implementation of lifestyle medicine focused shared visits. He has a rare offering in a rare niche. If you are reading this, congratulations on finding him.”
Ryan Zaklin MD
Owner, ECS Wellness (2024)
Digital Health Startup
“What I appreciate most about working with [Dr. Jacob Mirsky] is the incredible depth of knowledge and expertise [he] brings to SMA (Shared Medical Appointment) design and implementation. Dr. Mirsky's insights into best practices have been invaluable, providing us with practical and effective strategies tailored to our specific needs. His extensive understanding of lifestyle medicine has significantly enriched our approach to patient care. I have been particularly impressed by Dr. Mirsky's dedication and commitment to our venture. He is always focused during meetings, ensuring we stayed on track and made meaningful progress. His responsiveness and prompt follow-up has also made collaboration seamless and productive. Overall, it has been a truly rewarding experience working with such a knowledgeable and committed collaborator.”
Simin Lee MD MBA
Co-Founder and CEO, Systole Health (2024)
Clients
DUKE
HEALTH
Is SMA Catalyst Right For Your Organization?
Not every organization is at the right stage for consulting — and Dr. Mirsky will tell you honestly if you're not. Here's a straightforward guide to whether SMA Catalyst is the right partner for you right now.
Best for healthcare organizations that:
Are committed to improving patient access and care quality
Want to reduce provider burnout through innovative care models
Are willing to invest time and resources in implementation
Value expert guidance and partnership
Are ready to try something new (even if it feels uncertain)
Especially well-suited for:
Primary care practices (family medicine and internal medicine)
Specialty practices with chronic disease populations
Health systems planning multi-site programs
Individual providers or small groups launching their first SMA
Organizations that have tried SMA before but struggled
It might not be the best fit if:
You're looking for a quick-fix solution
You're not willing to invest in proper training and setup
You want to implement SMA without stakeholder buy-in
You need immediate results (proper implementation takes 90 days+)