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A small company. A big impact.

Born for a Cause

We are a group of clinicians who grew tired of seeing people with diabetes fall through the cracks. And we did something about it.

Glucose Guards is an incubator company affiliated with Practice Management of America (PMA). PMA manages the healthcare costs of full-risk employers. One employer, whose primary spend was diabetes, requested a solution. 

Glucose Guards was developed to test the power of employee education & empowerment in improving self-care behaviors while decreasing healthcare expenditure. 

It started as an educational course, modeled off of diabetes self-management training programs, but quickly developed into something more. We implemented innovative high-tech high-touch solutions to combat traditional barriers to care. 

Cellular enabled glucometers were delivered to the doorstep with unlimited testing supplies. Readings were automatically transmitted to certified diabetes coaches for real time targeted feedback. 

A platform to house “all things diabetes” was rolled out to include live webinars, blood glucose logbooks, analytics, an anonymized community forum, and real-rewards – including giftcards and merchandise.

The model worked!

 

Michael Guarino (Left) and Sean White (Right) at the Glucose Guards debut in Tampa, FL
Marisa Censi (Left), Taylor Hamzy (Middle), Jordan Robinson (Right) at the Glucose Guards office in Smithtown, NY.

Coming of Age

Not only did the model work but healthcare costs plummeted and members satisfaction went through the roof. The employer saw a 33% reduction in their healthcare spend with diabetes dropping from the number one spot to outside the top five.

Glucose Guards was brought to other employers and introduced to the clinical market. The Platform expanded to support Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) and the service model reflected it with new Clinic Liaisons to help busy practices. 

Glucose Guards also added Medical Nutrition Therapy (MNT) and Diabetes Self-Management Training (DSMT) to it’s offering of reimbursable services. 

Members expressed interest in getting their family members and loved ones involved. To answer this need, we formally launched a self-enrollment pathway.

Looking to the Future

Things might be moving quickly but we’re just getting started. We’re expanding our services to include hypertension, heart failure, sleep apnea, and other chronic conditions.

Here’s the harsh reality: The prevalence of diabetes in 1958 was 0.93%, or 1.58 million Americans; in 2019 it was 11.3%, or 37.3 million Americans. And it shows no signs of slowing down. If things don’t change then it’s predicted that 33%, or 120 million Americans, will have diabetes by 2050. 

We’re here to change that!

Taylor Hamzy (Left), Jordan Robinson (Center), Sean White (Right) at the American Diabetes Association conference in New Orleans.

The Team

Every team member holds the power to make a profound impact on the lives of our members. Healthcare is highly personal and while we employ the latest and best technology, we never outsource from man to machine; we believe in high-tech and high-touch. Meet your team:

Michael Guarino

Michael Guarino is an accountant by trade and is the Founder and Executive Director of the Independent Physician Association of Nassau / Suffolk Counties which consists of over 2,000 physician members. In addition, Mr. Guarino is the Founder and President of Practice Management of America, “PMA”, a Managed Service Organization (MSO) that is responsible for population health of over 400,000 patients.

The goal for PMA is to provide The Right Care, at the Right Place, at the Right Time at a lower cost. In addition, Mr. Guarino has operated Ambulatory Surgery Centers for over two decades in both Florida and New York.

Mr. Guarino and his spouse Marissa are proud parents of three children; a daughter with autism, a son who is a Physician Assistant, and a youngest son who recently graduated from college and is entering the Navy as an Officer. The Guarino’s serve on many boards and give much of their time as volunteers to many organizations such as Guiding Star Tampa which focuses on transforming women’s health. They are actively involved with their parish, St. Jerome’s Catholic Church where they serve as Youth Ministers to both Middle and High School students.

Board Chairman

Taylor Hamzy

Taylor Hamzy, co-founder of Glucose Guards, LLC is a graduate of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX where he achieved High Honors. In addition, Taylor has earned his Board-Certification in Advanced Diabetes Management from the American Association of Diabetes Educators. Taylor is currently employed by an Independent Physician Group in Long Island, New York where he specializes in Internal medicine. Taylor has traveled to over 60 countries and almost every continent.

During his travels he had a near death experience in rural Ghana where he suffered a tremendous sea urchin injury that left him with over 150 venomous sea urchin spines lodged throughout his body. With limited access to healthcare he was forced to remove the majority of spines himself before falling ill to a nearly fatal infection that he battled for 11 days at sea while being transported by ship to Christian Bernard Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa for surgery. Upon his return to the US, he developed Crohn’s disease and then 6 months later was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis.

In his relationship with these two chronic illnesses his deep interest in medicine was kindled. He read medical journal after journal and ultimately was able to achieve remission for his chronic diseases with the help of vigorous lifestyle management and now lives a healthy and productive life.

Taylor is one of the primary visionaries behind Glucose Guards. He is a strong proponent of functional and lifestyle medicine as adjuncts to traditional care. He is a classically trained pianist, guitarist, martial artist, rugby player, avid skier, and nature enthusiast.

CEO, Co-Founder

Sean White

Sean White, co-founder of Glucose Guards, LLC is a graduate of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX where he achieved High Honors. In addition, Sean has earned his Board-Certification in Advanced Diabetes Management from the American Association of Diabetes Educators. Sean works his clinical hours with Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) where he specializes in critical care medicine. He is also involved with the physician assistant program at BCM where he has mentored students and given lectures on heart failure and kidney disease.

Prior to working as a PA, he worked with patients diagnosed with advanced terminal diseases. Sean helped these patients live in the comfort of their own homes as they transitioned to end of life care. These experiences helped to shape his patient centered medical philosophy and has strengthened his belief that care should be collaborative and focus on a comprehensive approach where the goals of the medical team align with those of the patient.

Outside of work, Sean enjoys running, rock climbing, swimming, and getting out in nature.

CEO, Co-Founder

Marissa Guarino

Marissa Guarino has been in the healthcare industry for over two decades where her focus has been developing processes within organizations that result in driving efficiency and maximizing productivity in the workplace. She was responsible for rolling up the operations and processes of over thirty nursing homes in New England and further implemented several centralized models that resulted in increased revenues, such as a centralized admission and intake process and an internal staffing company that not only serviced all the nursing homes within that company but later expanded their services to outside nursing homes which generated revenues.

Marissa left this company as Vice President and joined a family owned internet company known as GiftCards.com a subsidiary of Wolfe.com Marissa served as Vice President of GiftCards.com for over seven years and was responsible for the full development and deployment of the product which she launched in 2005, and by 2008, the annual revenues were almost $100 million dollars making it the number one on-line prepaid company in the world. It was later acquired by Black Hawk Network.

In 2009 Marissa returned to the healthcare industry and joined Apria Healthcare and was responsible for spearheading a centralized system for both customer service and revenue management that resulted in a $6 million-dollar savings for the company within 10 months. She further developed a claims management system by leveraging technology that resulted in a tracking system that brought clear visibility to the actual number of claims worked and resolved.

In 2012, Marissa launched her own consulting company, Wolfecare Consulting, LLC and focused on healthcare companies in need of work-flow restructuring. She consulted with Wells Pharmacy Network, another start-up company that specialized in compounding pharmaceuticals. Marissa spearheaded the consolidation of multiple sites into one centralized location resulting in significant savings. This is when Marissa joined forces with Practice Management of America, LLC and currently serves as their COO working closely with the President to execute his vision by developing processes and implementing strategies companywide.

Marissa holds a bachelor’s degree in science and a master’s degree in business administration as well as a license as a practical nurse.

Chief Operations Officer

Michael Shanik

Michael H. Shanik, MD, FACP, FACE is an endocrinologist and managing partner of Endocrine Associates of Long Island in Smithtown, New York. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Stony Brook University Hospital, New York.

After earning his medical degree from New York Medical College, Dr. Shanik completed his residency in internal medicine at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New Hyde Park, New York and a fellowship in endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism at North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System in Lake Success, New York.

Dr. Shanik is board certified in internal medicine and endocrinology, diabetes, and metabolism. He is a fellow and member of the American College of Endocrinology and the American College of Physicians.  He is a member of the American Diabetes Association and Endocrine Society. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Nassau-Suffolk Independent Physician Association and the Lower New York chapter of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.

His honors include American Diabetes Association “Father of the Year” and Leading Physicians of the World. Dr. Shanik received the Harold Vigersky Practicing Physician Award from the Endocrine Society (2012) and was named Community Physician Teacher of the Year at Stony Brook University Medical Center, department of Family Medicine (2009).

Dr. Shanik has been an invited speaker at regional, national, and international meetings. He serves as principal investigator for many studies in diabetes and metabolism. Research interests include cardiovascular outcomes in diabetes patients and major cardiovascular events and conversion to Type 2 diabetes mellitus in obese and overweight patients.

Dr. Shanik has authored or co-authored numerous articles published in the journals Endocrine Reviews; Diabetes Care; Diabetes, Technology and Therapeutics; Endocrine Practice; International Journal of Obesity; and Diabetes Metabolism Research and Reviews.

Chief Medical Officer

Marisa Censi

Dr. Censi grew up in a multi-cultural, interfaith family. As a young girl, she watched her loved ones struggle to manage their health because of complex chronic conditions like diabetes.

Her upbringing sparked an interest in primary care and chronic disease education and management.

She received her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy Studies with a minor is psychology and Doctor of Pharmacy degrees at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. Marisa also completed a post-graduate year one residency in community pharmacy at Middleport Family Health Center/University at Buffalo, NY and completed a post-graduate year two residency in ambulatory care at Midwestern University Chicago College of Pharmacy.

Dr. Censi firmly believes that education is the key to chronic disease management. She strives to empower patients to improve their health through education and lifestyle modifications.

A true foodie at heart, Marisa loves to explore new cuisines and travel as much as she can in her spare time. She also enjoys riding roller coasters at her favorite amusement parks and spending time with her family and friends.

Manager of Clinical Oucomes

Jordan Robinson

Jordan Robinson grew up in a military family and was transplanted frequently including to homes in Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Washington D.C. This upbringing taught Jordan the value of adaptability and openness to new experiences.

She obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Health from the University of South Carolina then went on to earn her Masters of Healthcare Administration at George Mason University where her Capstone Research Project focused on exploring ways to bring value, savings, and quality to healthcare delivery.

Jordan understands the importance of supplying education and health management resources as a means to guide positive health outcomes.

In her free time, Jordan enjoys cycling, painting, exploring new areas, and trying new foods - vegetarian friendly of course!

Manager of Member Success

Faith McMahon

Faith was raised on a dairy farm in rural Pennsylvania and fondly remembers canning home-grown and home-cooked foods as well as tending to the livestock. Her hard work on the farm fostered life-long skills which empower her to translate complex medical and scientific knowledge into relatable and easy to digest information.

Of her 30-year career as a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator 23 years were spent in a bustling Endocrinology Department affiliated with a large academic hospital.

Faith witnessed the boom of diabetes technology during her career. She’s experienced first-hand the profound impact that insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring, and remote patient monitoring have all had on the health and well-being of her patients.

Some of Faith’s other focuses included weight loss surgery, food allergies and tube feedings for cancer patients. She always comments on how much she has learned from her patients who’ve lived such varied and unique lives.

Faith has a rich life filled with volunteer work and hobbies. While outside of work she loves to go kayaking, cross-country skiing, Salmon fishing, water color painting. She’s even got experience in the field of Bee Keeping!

Diabetes Education Specialist