Elizabeth Saylor, Chief Executive Officer of Phoenix Heart Vein Vascular

Summary

Podcast Summary: Becker’s Healthcare Podcast

Guest: Elizabeth Saylor, Chief Executive Officer, Phoenix Heart Vein Vascular
Host: Elizabeth Gregerson, Becker’s Healthcare
Date: January 27, 2026
Episode Focus: Navigating patient access, service expansion, and the future of cardiology care at Phoenix Heart Vein and Vascular

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Episode Overview

This episode features an interview with Elizabeth Saylor, CEO of Phoenix Heart Vein and Vascular, a leading private cardiology group in the Phoenix area. Saylor discusses her organization's patient-first approach, recent efforts to expand access and improve the patient experience, and the key challenges and growth opportunities in cardiology heading into 2026.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Introduction to Phoenix Heart Vein and Vascular

[01:21 – 02:56]

• History & Reputation
  • Phoenix Heart Vein & Vascular has served the Phoenix area for 45 years as a private physician group.
  • Voted number one in greater Phoenix for several years.
• Locations & Services
  • Three main locations: Glendale, Avondale, Scottsdale, plus four satellite offices.
  • Proudly offer in-house testing at all main sites, comprehensive cardiology, office-based labs, and their own ambulatory surgical center (named Phase).
• Philosophy
  • Invests in state-of-the-art technology but emphasizes efficient, cost-effective care.
  • "At the end of the day we're really about delivering really high quality treatment so patients feel supported and cared for. Patience is the most important thing for our group."
    — Elizabeth Saylor [02:38]

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2025: Focus on Patient Access & Experience

[03:19 – 05:04]

• Initiatives
  • Opened two new locations (Buckeye and expanded Avondale) to address rapidly growing demand and gaps in west Phoenix.
  • Upgraded phone system to ensure patients reach real people, boosting customer service and responding to past complaints.
• Results
  • Notable improvement in patient satisfaction:
    "We started having patients in the wait areas actually telling our physicians and our front staff how much we've improved... It's exciting for us."
    — Elizabeth Saylor [04:38]

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2026 Priorities: Reducing Wait Times & Expanding Services

[05:30 – 06:14]

• Ambulatory Surgical Center Expansion
  • Growing their in-house surgical center, Phase, to reduce wait times and costs for patients.
  • Aim to enhance care coordination and provide high-quality treatment with fewer delays.
  • "We really want to reduce that wait time so we can get patients in sooner, so they can get the procedures that they need... to keep their costs low."
    — Elizabeth Saylor [05:34]

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Challenges Ahead: Balancing Costs & Change

[06:33 – 07:09]

• Main Challenge
  • Maintaining low costs and high care quality amid rising healthcare expenses and constant industry change.
  • Adapting swiftly to new regulations, reimbursement changes, and technology.
  • "It feels like there's always something new daily... So keeping staff on their toes."
    — Elizabeth Saylor [06:53]

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Opportunities for Growth & Innovation

[07:23 – 08:34]

• Meeting Demand
  • Anticipates continued growth in demand for cardiovascular care and aims to streamline patient care journeys.
• Collaborative Care
  • Focus on partnerships with primary care, podiatry, and potential expansion into metabolic care.
• New Capabilities
  • Exploring in-house ablations as a new service.
• Technology Investment
  • Ongoing investment in technology and incremental improvements for both staff efficiency and the patient experience.
  • "We're going to continue to invest in things such as technology and, you know, those smaller improvements that can still make big impact on how we operate."
    — Elizabeth Saylor [08:18]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Phoenix Heart's defining characteristic:
  "We provide comprehensive cardiology entirely in house... and we are really focused even though that we invest in that. We really do try to keep our costs and care efficient and effective."
  — Elizabeth Saylor [02:15]

• On the patient experience improvements:
  "We had it straight from the patients telling us that they could tell that we've worked really hard on those things."
  — Elizabeth Saylor [04:47]

• On healthcare's shifting landscape:
  "There's so many constant change within healthcare. So it feels like there's always something new daily, whether it's regulations, reimbursement, technology."
  — Elizabeth Saylor [06:41]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro & Overview: [00:47 – 02:56]
• 2025 Key Initiative (Access & Patient Experience): [03:19 – 05:04]
• Priorities for 2026 (Ambulatory Center Expansion): [05:30 – 06:14]
• Challenges Facing the Practice: [06:33 – 07:09]
• Growth Opportunities (Metabolic Care, Ablation, Technology): [07:23 – 08:34]

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Tone & Style

Elizabeth Saylor’s tone throughout is warm, practical, and highly patient-focused. The conversation is pragmatic, centered on real-world service improvements, and demonstrates her commitment to both operational excellence and compassionate care.

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For listeners seeking actionable insight into cardiology practice management and patient experience innovation, this episode offers a sharp, accessible look at how Phoenix Heart Vein and Vascular is navigating a dynamic healthcare landscape.

Transcript

[A]

The most important healthcare decisions don't happen in isolation. They happen when leaders come together. Becker's 16th annual meeting brings together more than 3,500 hospital and health system executives this April in Chicago. With 800 speakers from Ascension, Cleveland Clinic, Common Spirit and more, the conversations get real. Leaders will share how their scenario planning for policy shifts brief, breaking through value based care barriers and building clinical teams that translate new ideas into real world care. Join top decision makers in the room April 13th through the 16th. For the agenda and event details, visit BeckersHospitalReview.com and click on the Events tab in the upper right.

[B]

Welcome to the Beckers Healthcare Podcast. I'm Elizabeth Gregerson, a reporter here at Beckers and I'm thrilled to interview Elizabeth Baylor and the Chief Executive officer of Phoenix Heart Vein and Vascular on the podcast today. Elizabeth, thank you so much for joining me. I'm so grateful to share your insights with our podcast audience.

[C]

Thank you for having me. Glad to be here.

[B]

Great. So yeah, before I kind of dive into all my questions, could you take a bit here to introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your organization?

[C]

Yes. So as mentioned, I am Elizabeth Saylor. I'm the Chief Executive Officer here at Phoenix Heart, Vein and Vascular. We are a private physician group. We've been serving the Phoenix area for about 45 years. Over that time they've been really focused on building long term relationships with our patients as well as the local hospitals. We're very, very proud. We've been voted number one in the greater Phoenix area for many, many years. We have three main locations, Glendale, Avondale and Scottsdale. And then we have four satellite offices. Our three main locations are they all have in house testing. So we're very proud of that. One thing that sets us apart is that again, we provide comprehensive cardiology entirely in house. From Vein Care to office based labs to our own ambulatory surgical center called Phase. We do invest in state of the art technology and we are really focused even though that we invest in that. We really do try to keep our costs and care efficient and effective. And then at the end of the day we're really about delivering really high quality treatment so patients feel supported and cared for. Patience is the most important thing for our group.

[B]

Perfect. Well, I'm so excited to kind of share your perspective on how you're navigating the industry today. We're speaking just a little bit after the new year, but before we look ahead, I'd love to kind of look back and learn about maybe the most important initiative or program you've led in the last year what it took to make that happen and maybe what were some of the results?

[C]

Sure. In 2025, one of the important initiatives that we had was patient access. We do have other competitors in the area, but not on the west side. So earlier in 2025, we added two new locations. We added a Buckeye location. If you're not familiar with the Phoenix area, that area is growing like crazy and the access to cardiology just was not there. And then we expanded into our Avondale location, where we put testing and those types of things within in that location, which helps us reach more patients and reduce their wait times. So that was big for us. From there, we really turned our attention to how can we really improve our service lines while keeping care affordable. And then we started investing in better phone systems so patients can reach a real time person rather than always an automated menu. So, so we were really trying to focus on that patient centric care. And then customer, good customer service. It was important to us. And those in the past had been a lot of complaints from our patients. And I would say it was about October, November time frame, we started having patients in the wait areas actually telling our physicians and our front staff how much we've improved. So we improve. It's exciting for us. We had it straight from the patients telling us that they could tell that we've worked really hard on those things. So it's great.

[B]

Perfect. Yeah. It sounds like, you know, opening those locations helped with access, but even just a phone system. Right. I say just. But it's another tool, right. To help patients get the care that they need and that they want. When you kind of turn in the other direction and look ahead, what are some of the bigger priorities or headwinds that you're focused on tackling in 2026?

[C]

One of our main priorities is expanding our ambulatory surgical center called Phase. The goal here is we really want to reduce that wait time so we can get patients in sooner, so they can get the procedures that they need again. We partner with local hospitals, but to keep their costs low, we really want to get them into our, our ambulatory surgical center. One thing, by growing that side too, it keeps our practice, again, cost effective. It's good care coordination. And then we're still wanting to give them that high quality treatment without delays.

[B]

Perfect. I think that's something a lot of our listeners will be able to relate to, something that they're focused on in the coming year. Do you anticipate maybe one hard thing or One bigger challenge that you're going to have to undertake in the coming year.

[C]

I wouldn't say it's the hardest thing that we're going to face, but I would say it's going to be a challenge. It's going to be really keeping those costs low and still keeping high level of care. As we all know, costs tend to keep going up at the same time. There's so many constant change within healthcare. So it feels like there's always something new daily, whether it's regulations, reimbursement, technology. So really trying to adapt to those changes as quickly as we can. So keeping staff on their toes.

[B]

Yeah, absolutely. When you talk about kind of adapting to those changes and technology and innovation and where do you kind of see some of the best opportunities for organizational growth?

[C]

I think the demand for cardiovascular care is going to continue to grow. So we really want to get those patients in sooner and move them through a really smooth care treatment. Whether that means partnering with other organizations and things such as metabolic care or working with their PCPs, podiatry, those types of things, I think that's going to be one area of growth. Another one, again, as I mentioned earlier, will be our ambulatory surgical center. I think that's a key to our in house services so we can continue to grow. One of the things that we will be able to look towards this year is can we do ablations in house. So that will be, that would be an exciting new growth opportunity. And then we're going to continue to invest in things such as technology and, you know, those smaller improvements that can still make big impact on how we operate. So not only for the staff, but for the patients.

[B]

Absolutely. Yeah. And I feel like so much of what you hit on with, you know, metabolic care and ablation, those are all kind of keywords that I've seen come up, you know, in Becca's coverage over the past six months. So I'm excited to see, you know, how Phoenix Heart, Vein and Vascular navigates those opportunities and I hope we can connect again to see how things are going.

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

Well. Great. Thank you so much for joining me on the podcast today. I think it's been a great conversation giving a little insight to our listeners on what's happening in Phoenix and cardiology. I just want to thank you again for your time and your insights.

[C]

Thank you. I appreciate you.

[B]

Perfect. Well, I invite our listeners to tune into more podcasts from Becker's Healthcare by visiting our podcast [e-mail]. hope you all have a wonderful rest of your day.