Shaping the Narrative: Media, Influence and Public Trust
August 25, 2026
By David McKay Wilson
Today’s conversations about health happen everywhere. Meet four PCOM alumni leading them with knowledge, compassion and purpose.
From emergency room storytelling developed with Dr. Phil McGraw’s production company to reality television that demystifies foot surgery, from mental health commentary in Vogue to on-air health analysis for a New Orleans NBC affiliate, PCOM alumni are reshaping how medical expertise shows up in public life—through stories, interviews and media platforms that bring clinical experience into everyday view.
Charles J. Sophy, Jr., DO ’86, FACN
Dr. Sophy, a Beverly Hills–based psychiatrist and longtime guest on “The Dr. Phil Show,” understands the media’s power to help people struggling with frayed relationships that have roiled their families.
For close to two decades, he offered on-air advice to parents seeking ways to resolve power struggles between parent and child, understand parenting dynamics, and end the cycle of intergenerational neglect and abuse. He has documented that approach in two books: Family Values: Reset Trust, Boundaries and Connection with Your Child and Side by Side: The Revolutionary Mother-Daughter Program for Conflict-Free Communication.
He has viewed his books and television appearances as part of his mission in medicine, which promotes mental health both in the counseling room and in the public eye.
In his latest project, he will star in a show under development with Dr. Phil McGraw’s production company that will explore emergency room medical personnel and the impact trauma has on patients seeking care.
“The goal is to give viewers a clear view of how hard emergency room medical staff work and what families of patients experience,” said Dr. Sophy. “It will show the pain and challenges people go through, and how they can get help—whether for domestic violence, substance abuse or mental health.”
Dr. Sophy will also interview medical staff about their experiences on the frontlines.
“They put their heart and soul into treating their patients, then go home to process that while trying to lead a healthy life without interference from all that they have witnessed,” he said. “We’ll see how they cope as what they’ve experienced spills over into their marriages and parenting.”
Dr. Sophy, who treats Hollywood celebrities in his private practice, first appeared on “The Dr. Phil Show” in 2006 and later became a regular on the program, which ended in 2023. He has also appeared on CNN, “Today,” “Anderson Cooper 360°,” Fox News, and “Larry King Live.” In the early 2000s, he appeared on reality series including “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” “Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew,” and “Sober House.”
On the “Dr. Phil” podcast, he has discussed his five tools for healthy family living in a framework called S.W.E.E.P.: Sleep, Work, Eating, Emotional expression, and Play, including hobbies pursued alone or with others.
“Hobbies are very self-soothing,” he said. “For too many people, phones are their hobby. It’s an addiction.”
His media work provides a platform to educate the public about mental health through a perspective shaped during his PCOM studies in the 1980s.
“Being a DO, you understand that it’s not just the ailment you are dealing with,” he said. “It’s the whole person and the whole family system.”
Dr. Sophy said his time with the Los Angeles Department of Child and Family Services, where he served as medical director for an agency that placed 40,000 foster children, taught him that children raised in chaotic, trauma-filled environments may replicate those experiences in adulthood.
“If you have lived a life of trauma, you are going to seek it out and recast it in every relationship,” he said. “Brains get wired differently in a chaotic environment. It’s different than a stable home. If some people could get help, they could make better choices. They have to know they need help, what they need help for, and how they can get help without shame.”
Ebonie E. Vincent, MS/Biomed ’11, DPM, MBMS
A digitally savvy millennial, Dr. Vincent began educating the public about podiatry and foot health through posts on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Not long after joining Orange County Podiatry in 2018, she was invited to audition for the TLC reality series “My Feet Are Killing Me.”
The production team selected her, and she starred in a three-season run of the show, with 38 episodes streaming on YouTube, Hulu, and Discovery+. TLC also airs episodes in periodic marathons.
For Dr. Vincent, the series helped demystify foot and ankle surgery and highlight the range of procedures used to treat complex conditions. Her patients included a runner with severe bunions, a man with six toes on one foot, and a woman whose toe deformities required reconstructive surgery.
On the show, viewers saw the complexity of the foot—26 bones and 33 joints—and the potential for surgical intervention to relieve pain and restore function.
“It’s important for people to have access to knowledge,” said Dr. Vincent, who practices in Orange and Long Beach, California. “There is fear of the unknown. I tried to demystify the process and make it less intimidating to see a doctor.”
The show helped grow her practice and broaden her visibility.
“It was great for building my private practice,” she said. “It was a good advertisement.”
Since the series ended, Dr. Vincent has continued public education through “The Health Exchange” podcast on Spotify. In December 2025, she joined Dr. Cedric “Jamie” Rutland for a discussion on fungal infections, diabetic ulcers, and bunion biomechanics. She has also appeared on “The Portia Show,” “Live With Kelly and Mark,” and “Women’s Flow Space.”
A former collegiate volleyball player at Hampton University, she often speaks about footwear choices for young athletes and the importance of breathable socks to prevent infection.
She also addresses high heels and foot health, noting the style’s long-term impact on biomechanics.
“You are putting all your weight on the ball of your foot, so neuromas are a huge issue with a swollen nerve,” she said. “It can become sharp, shooting pain, numbness or a real mess. Fat-pad atrophy is a real thing for women who have worn high heels for decades. I’m now doing fat-pad restoration for those patients.”
Thea Gallagher, PsyD ’14
In a world where misinformation abounds on social media, Dr. Gallagher has emerged as a thought leader on mental health through her frequent appearances on network television, a weekly radio show, interviews for national publications, and her personal journalism publication on Substack.
Dr. Gallagher, a clinical psychologist and associate professor at NYU Langone Health in New York City, averages about three media interviews a week, ranging from brief television news segments to more in-depth analysis of mental health on “Doctor Radio: The Psychiatry Show,” a health information channel on SiriusXM 110.
She believes mental health professionals have an important responsibility to help counter online misinformation with evidence-based guidance. In recent years, she has been quoted frequently in top women’s magazines, including Vogue and Glamour.
“There are a lot of people on social media sharing really strong opinions, and they really don’t have the credentials,” she said. “It’s only from their anecdotal experience, which has some value. But I think it’s really important for more doctors to step down from the ivory tower to give people actionable tips, tools and guidance.”
She has built strong relationships with writers and producers, who often reach out to her on deadline.
“What’s nice is you build relationships with reporters, and they will reach out directly,” she said. “You make yourself easy to work with. I tell them to reach out anytime, and I can fit it in between sessions with patients.”
For example, in an October 2025 Vogue article about moving on after a breakup, Dr. Gallagher discussed how healing can involve both the mind and body, recommending physical activity—such as a morning walk—to help alleviate anxiety.
“It’s great to say that 5,000 to 7,000 steps a day and socializing can be valuable to your overall health and well-being,” she said. “But what are we really doing to prioritize them in our lives?”
In the March 2026 issue of Vogue, Dr. Gallagher was featured in an article about how morning rituals can support mental health. Her suggestions, based on scientific studies, included exercising, journaling, spending time outdoors, meditating, and taking a break from social media to help relieve anxiety.
She said many people are looking for ways to feel better, to maximize their happiness. But the nostrums pitched by online social media influencers may not hold up to scientific scrutiny, she warns.
“We need to look at what we know from the research that actually helps and mitigates against anxiety and depression,” she said. “There’s so much information on the internet about how to live your best life, but a lot of people get stuck on how to implement it or which thing to implement. We can look at the research behind it and say, ‘This is so important to our health.’ ”
Dr. Gallagher said she is open to nearly any media request if it provides an opportunity to share evidence-based views on mental health. She recalls that one of her first interviews focused on road rage—a topic several colleagues declined to discuss.
“One part of doing media is that I say ‘Yes’ to everything,” she said. “Road rage is actually a mental health issue. What are you mad at? Why are you so angry? How do you regulate your emotions? I can say ‘Yes’ to so many things because so many things come back to mental health.”
Courtney Arianne Washington, DO ’17
As a family medicine physician, Dr. Washington reaches patients far beyond the exam room.
Dr. Washington—known as Dr. Co—has expanded her outreach through work as a medical analyst for WDSU, the NBC affiliate in New Orleans, as well as through her YouTube channel, medical blog, and consulting work during the COVID-19 pandemic on the television drama “The Crossover.”
“It’s important for patients to hear from doctors,” she said. “Doctors need to be the voice of reason, to explain why preventive care matters. Patients need to hear that they should have an annual exam, that there’s no single test for cancer, that you can’t look at someone and know they have high blood pressure, and that diabetes doesn’t hurt until it does.”
Dr. Washington, founder of Fleur-de-Lis Aesthetics, a medical aesthetics and concierge practice in New Orleans, began working with producers of “The Crossover” in 2022. The Disney+ series is set in New Orleans, the hometown of author Kwame Alexander, whose young adult novel inspired the show, and follows the lives of 12-year-old twin boys whose father has health issues.
“I consulted on how to make the medical scenes more realistic, whether in the primary care setting or the emergency room,” she said. “I helped shape the storyline to include a subtle message that prevention can make a significant difference in how disease progresses.”
Her public profile led to speaking engagements, including keynote addresses at the Essence Festival of Culture in 2022 and 2023, where she spoke about GLP-1 medications and women’s health.
At WDSU, she regularly provides on-air commentary on emerging health issues. In May, she addressed hantavirus infections on a Dutch cruise ship, helping clarify transmission risk.
She also provided health guidance at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, encouraging hydration during extreme heat conditions.
Her podcast, “All About the Medicine With Dr. Co,” and her website AskDrCo.com cover topics ranging from hypertension to menopause and nutrition.
“You only have one body, so if you don’t use it, you lose it,” she said. “Stay mobile, and you’ll enjoy your retirement years. And don’t go five years without seeing a doctor.”