Empowered Patient Podcast

Dr. Carl Rothschild, CEO and Founder, and Eddie Brown, COO of Trifecta Light Technologies, discuss the therapeutic applications of red light and near-infrared therapy by bathing the entire body with these specific light wavelengths. The technology has FDA clearance for fat reduction and healing and clinical research indicates efficacy in neurological disorders and musculoskeletal conditions. The devices are user-friendly and have also been shown to support athletes in recovery and the beauty industry for skin health. Dr. Carl explains, "And so what has since subsequently been learned is that this light of both red, and we also use near infrared, which is even more powerful and more healing; what it does is it affects every cell that we can get to in your body. And the more cells we can get to, the better. That's why you want deep-penetrating, medical-grade beds that can penetrate as much as possible to affect as many cells." Eddie elaborates, "With any kind of red light item, usually the bed, the lights, they're FDA registered, which means basically it's an infrared heat source. What we did with our bed, nobody else was able to do this. Not to say that in the future they're not going to, but right now we're kind of ahead of the curve, the only ones who have it. We've had FDA clearance for ours."   #TrifectaLight #RedLightTherapy #Photobiomodulation #MitochondrialHealth #MetabolicHealth #ChronicCare #SportsMedicine #RegenerativeMedicine Trifectalight.com Listen to the podcast here  

Dr. Carl Rothschild, CEO and Founder, and Eddie Brown, COO of Trifecta Light Technologies, discuss the therapeutic applications of red light and near-infrared therapy by bathing the entire body with these specific light wavelengths. The technology has FDA clearance for fat reduction and healing and clinical research indicates efficacy in neurological disorders and musculoskeletal conditions. The devices are user-friendly and have also been shown to support athletes in recovery and the beauty industry for skin health. Dr. Carl explains, "And so what has since subsequently been learned is that this light of both red, and we also use near infrared, which is even more powerful and more healing; what it does is it affects every cell that we can get to in your body. And the more cells we can get to, the better. That's why you want deep-penetrating, medical-grade beds that can penetrate as much as possible to affect as many cells." Eddie elaborates, "With any kind of red light item, usually the bed, the lights, they're FDA registered, which means basically it's an infrared heat source. What we did with our bed, nobody else was able to do this. Not to say that in the future they're not going to, but right now we're kind of ahead of the curve, the only ones who have it. We've had FDA clearance for ours."  #TrifectaLight #RedLightTherapy #Photobiomodulation #MitochondrialHealth #MetabolicHealth #ChronicCare #SportsMedicine #RegenerativeMedicine Trifectalight.com Download the transcript here  

James Sapirstein, CEO of CoCrystal Pharma, is developing a platform of antiviral therapies to treat norovirus, influenza and other viruses.  Norovirus, commonly transmitted on cruise ships and in dormitories, currently lacks effective vaccines or treatments. CoCrystal's oral small-molecule approach aims to treat active infections by reducing viral shedding duration and provide prophylactic prevention using a novel mechanism that targets viral entry points to prevent replication. James explains, "At CoCrystal Pharma, we have a platform of antiviral programs. The first program is for norovirus, and we have another program for influenza A. And then we also have a platform for rhinovirus, which is also many times referred to as the common cold. There's really not much out there."   "Norovirus is commonly known on cruise ships and in dormitories, college dormitories, and really it spreads by touch. That's why, when cruise ships have an outbreak of norovirus, if people haven't washed their hands or they touch an area where someone has touched that area before with active norovirus, they can get infected. And because people touch their faces over a thousand times, literally in a couple of hours, it's easy to transmit the virus."   "But there's also chronic norovirus, which people don't really talk about much because it's mostly in the nursing homes and assisted living areas, where some of these patients really suffer, and they're septic for a very long period of time. And they're not tested to see if they have norovirus because they have so many other health issues that people just aren't tested correctly." "Most antivirals, for the most part, work on the RNA. They cleave off the RNA, or they cleave off the cell membrane so that it doesn't replicate and the virus dies off. For us, it's much more specific. We like to call it a pocket where the virus enters the cell. We design a drug to specifically kill the virus at certain aspects within the virus, and then it doesn't allow it to replicate. And that's the way it's designed." #CoCrystalPharma #Norovirus #Antivirals #DrugDiscovery #InfectiousDiseases cocrystalpharma.com  Listen to the podcast here

James Sapirstein, CEO of CoCrystal Pharma, is developing a platform of antiviral therapies to treat norovirus, influenza and other viruses.  Norovirus, commonly transmitted on cruise ships and in dormitories, currently lacks effective vaccines or treatments. CoCrystal's oral small-molecule approach aims to treat active infections by reducing viral shedding duration and provide prophylactic prevention using a novel mechanism that targets viral entry points to prevent replication. James explains, "At CoCrystal Pharma, we have a platform of antiviral programs. The first program is for norovirus, and we have another program for influenza A. And then we also have a platform for rhinovirus, which is also many times referred to as the common cold. There's really not much out there."   "Norovirus is commonly known on cruise ships and in dormitories, college dormitories, and really it spreads by touch. That's why, when cruise ships have an outbreak of norovirus, if people haven't washed their hands or they touch an area where someone has touched that area before with active norovirus, they can get infected. And because people touch their faces over a thousand times, literally in a couple of hours, it's easy to transmit the virus."   "But there's also chronic norovirus, which people don't really talk about much because it's mostly in the nursing homes and assisted living areas, where some of these patients really suffer, and they're septic for a very long period of time. And they're not tested to see if they have norovirus because they have so many other health issues that people just aren't tested correctly." "Most antivirals, for the most part, work on the RNA. They cleave off the RNA, or they cleave off the cell membrane so that it doesn't replicate and the virus dies off. For us, it's much more specific. We like to call it a pocket where the virus enters the cell. We design a drug to specifically kill the virus at certain aspects within the virus, and then it doesn't allow it to replicate. And that's the way it's designed." #CoCrystalPharma #Norovirus #Antivirals #DrugDiscovery #InfectiousDiseases cocrystalpharma.com Download the transcript here

Dr. Claire Smith, a regional medical officer at SCP Health and a practicing hospitalist in Missouri, highlights how virtual hospitalists are transforming healthcare by providing 24/7 physician collaboration to support onsite teams, particularly in rural hospitals and during patient surges. Implementing telehospitalists can play a critical role in reducing clinician burnout, improving access to physician expertise, and enhancing emergency department efficiency. Integrating telehospitalists into a care model shows potential to reshape workforce demographics and improve the ability to meet unpredictable demands. Claire explains, "So a hospitalist is typically an internal medicine or family medicine-trained physician who focuses the entirety of their career on hospital medicine. So, taking care of hospitalized patients. They are focused on the end-to-end experience of a patient who is hospitalized. So they are integral in the admission from the emergency department, from the time it is determined the patient needs care within the hospital to the time that they are discharged to their next site of care, whether that be home, a skilled nursing facility, etc. So hospitalists do not focus on outpatient medicine. They collaborate with primary care physicians and care for hospitalized patients."   "And what we are seeing is that we are now integrating virtual hospitalists or telehospitalists into workflows to support teams in a variety of situations, including resource shortages or temporary surges in the patient population, so that we can best support the onsite teams and patients."   "What we see is that telehospitalists are being utilized when demands exceed onsite capacities, as well as in those rural situations where resources are more scarce. So a telehospitalist changes the dynamic from really an occasional ad hoc contact with advanced practitioners who may be supporting rural practice hospital medicine to reliable collaboration."  #SCPHealth #Telehospitalist #RuralHealth #HospitalMedicine #Telemedicine #HealthcareInnovation #ClinicianWellbeing #VirtualCare #24x7Coverage #PatientCare scphealth.com Listen to the podcast here  

Dr. Claire Smith, a regional medical officer at SCP Health and a practicing hospitalist in Missouri, highlights how virtual hospitalists are transforming healthcare by providing 24/7 physician collaboration to support onsite teams, particularly in rural hospitals and during patient surges. Implementing telehospitalists can play a critical role in reducing clinician burnout, improving access to physician expertise, and enhancing emergency department efficiency. Integrating telehospitalists into a care model shows potential to reshape workforce demographics and improve the ability to meet unpredictable demands. Claire explains, "So a hospitalist is typically an internal medicine or family medicine-trained physician who focuses the entirety of their career on hospital medicine. So, taking care of hospitalized patients. They are focused on the end-to-end experience of a patient who is hospitalized. So they are integral in the admission from the emergency department, from the time it is determined the patient needs care within the hospital to the time that they are discharged to their next site of care, whether that be home, a skilled nursing facility, etc. So hospitalists do not focus on outpatient medicine. They collaborate with primary care physicians and care for hospitalized patients."   "And what we are seeing is that we are now integrating virtual hospitalists or telehospitalists into workflows to support teams in a variety of situations, including resource shortages or temporary surges in the patient population, so that we can best support the onsite teams and patients."   "What we see is that telehospitalists are being utilized when demands exceed onsite capacities, as well as in those rural situations where resources are more scarce. So a telehospitalist changes the dynamic from really an occasional ad hoc contact with advanced practitioners who may be supporting rural practice hospital medicine to reliable collaboration."  #SCPHealth #Telehospitalist #RuralHealth #HospitalMedicine #Telemedicine #HealthcareInnovation #ClinicianWellbeing #VirtualCare #24x7Coverage #PatientCare scphealth.com Download the transcript here  

Dr. Mark George is the principal psychiatric investigator of Abbott's TRANSCEND study and also a professor of psychiatry at MUSC Health Institute of Psychiatry.  The TRANSCEND study represents a paradigm shift in depression treatment by investigating deep brain stimulation as a potential solution for treatment-resistant depression. This research involves surgically implanting a device that delivers targeted electrical stimulation to specific brain circuits. By reframing depression as a brain disorder rather than a chemical imbalance, this study emphasizes the biological nature of depression, offering an alternative to a condition with limited options. Mark explains, "There are a lot of people, unfortunately, maybe a quarter of the people with depression who lead lives of misery where the medications and talking just don't get them back on their game. And so that's what we call treatment-resistant depression. And that's where I've spent my career trying to come up with new treatments."   "Well, so if the medications aren't working, you can try even more medicines, but the odds go way down. So there's a whole class of things where we actually stimulate the brain to try to, non-invasively and not using a pill, get in and change circuits in the brain. And those have started to really transform the care of treatment-resistant depression. There are several of them that are both non-invasive, and then others that are invasive."  "But the real holy grail would be for us to find the circuit or the spot in the brain and be able to put something there and then fix it. And then there you go, you live your life, and it would not be a pill that you have to take every day. And it would not have systemic side effects like medications. It wouldn't cause weight gain, sexual side effects, those kinds of things. So the real interest in the deep brain stimulation study that Abbott TRANSCEND is: "Could we stick a wire in the area of the brain that's not working right and pass very, very small amounts of electricity and really wake somebody up and get them out of their depression?" #Abbott #DBS #TRANSCENDstudy  #TRD #TreatmentReistantDepression TRANSCEND  Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Mark George is the principal psychiatric investigator of Abbott's TRANSCEND study and also a professor of psychiatry at MUSC Health Institute of Psychiatry.  The TRANSCEND study represents a paradigm shift in depression treatment by investigating deep brain stimulation as a potential solution for treatment-resistant depression. This research involves surgically implanting a device that delivers targeted electrical stimulation to specific brain circuits. By reframing depression as a brain disorder rather than a chemical imbalance, this study emphasizes the biological nature of depression, offering an alternative to a condition with limited options. Mark explains, "There are a lot of people, unfortunately, maybe a quarter of the people with depression who lead lives of misery where the medications and talking just don't get them back on their game. And so that's what we call treatment-resistant depression. And that's where I've spent my career trying to come up with new treatments."   "Well, so if the medications aren't working, you can try even more medicines, but the odds go way down. So there's a whole class of things where we actually stimulate the brain to try to, non-invasively and not using a pill, get in and change circuits in the brain. And those have started to really transform the care of treatment-resistant depression. There are several of them that are both non-invasive, and then others that are invasive."  "But the real holy grail would be for us to find the circuit or the spot in the brain and be able to put something there and then fix it. And then there you go, you live your life, and it would not be a pill that you have to take every day. And it would not have systemic side effects like medications. It wouldn't cause weight gain, sexual side effects, those kinds of things. So the real interest in the deep brain stimulation study that Abbott TRANSCEND is: "Could we stick a wire in the area of the brain that's not working right and pass very, very small amounts of electricity and really wake somebody up and get them out of their depression?" #Abbott #DBS #TRANSCENDstudy  #TRD #TreatmentReistantDepression TRANSCEND  Download the transcript here

Dr. Manish Arora, CEO at LinusBio, has developed an innovative approach to precision medicine through the Traced test, which measures exposure to trace elements and environmental toxins using hair biomarkers. The technology analyzes a small hair sample and can measure chemicals that enter the bloodstream and deposit in the hair as it grows.  This exposome-based test identifies exposure patterns through longitudinal monitoring and provides a precise method to measure environmental impacts, unlike genomic biomarkers, and offers actionable guidance for reducing toxic exposure. Manish explains, "So we like using hair for many reasons. One is we can collect it very easily at home. All you need is a pair of household scissors, a quick snip, and we only ask you for about three to five strands. We don't need a whole lot. What is amazing about hair is that it can actually give you a daily readout over the past month. And let me share with you how this happens. If you've ever seen a tree that's been cut down and you've seen growth rings in it, we think of them as yearly  growth rings."   "And here there's a growth ring forming almost every hour. So in fact, if you were able to take a strand of hair one centimeter, you would get a whole month of readout at an hourly resolution. That's like 800 to a thousand sequential blood tests. And that's what we have figured out. So unlike many other tests that just give you one number, we give you your monthly profile. Again, all from just one centimeter of hair." "The Traced test, as its first offering, is looking at essential elements like zinc and copper, but also the toxic metals that so many of us have heard of and are concerned about, like lead, cadmium, and arsenic. So what it does is it measures 15 different trace elements, the good and the bad, gives you an overall score, but gives you a daily profile over the last month. And there are such interesting patterns that we find. We find people who have high exposures every five to six days. And very often, when we speak to them, they're doing something very different on the weekend, which is a source of exposure. So we keep finding these patterns and instead of just saying, "Hey, you are high or low," we can work with them, look at these patterns, and then give them exposure guidance. Simple steps: how to improve your environment, how to reduce your toxic exposures." #LinusBio #TracedTest #PrecisionMedicine #Exposome #DigitalBiomarkers #EnvironmentalHealth #PreventiveCare #HealthcareInnovation #Diagnostics #Toxins #Wellness #HealthTech #Environment  linusbio.com  Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Manish Arora, CEO at LinusBio, has developed an innovative approach to precision medicine through the Traced test, which measures exposure to trace elements and environmental toxins using hair biomarkers. The technology analyzes a small hair sample and can measure chemicals that enter the bloodstream and deposit in the hair as it grows.  This exposome-based test identifies exposure patterns through longitudinal monitoring and provides a precise method to measure environmental impacts, unlike genomic biomarkers, and offers actionable guidance for reducing toxic exposure. Manish explains, "So we like using hair for many reasons. One is we can collect it very easily at home. All you need is a pair of household scissors, a quick snip, and we only ask you for about three to five strands. We don't need a whole lot. What is amazing about hair is that it can actually give you a daily readout over the past month. And let me share with you how this happens. If you've ever seen a tree that's been cut down and you've seen growth rings in it, we think of them as yearly  growth rings."   "And here there's a growth ring forming almost every hour. So in fact, if you were able to take a strand of hair one centimeter, you would get a whole month of readout at an hourly resolution. That's like 800 to a thousand sequential blood tests. And that's what we have figured out. So unlike many other tests that just give you one number, we give you your monthly profile. Again, all from just one centimeter of hair." "The Traced test, as its first offering, is looking at essential elements like zinc and copper, but also the toxic metals that so many of us have heard of and are concerned about, like lead, cadmium, and arsenic. So what it does is it measures 15 different trace elements, the good and the bad, gives you an overall score, but gives you a daily profile over the last month. And there are such interesting patterns that we find. We find people who have high exposures every five to six days. And very often, when we speak to them, they're doing something very different on the weekend, which is a source of exposure. So we keep finding these patterns and instead of just saying, "Hey, you are high or low," we can work with them, look at these patterns, and then give them exposure guidance. Simple steps: how to improve your environment, how to reduce your toxic exposures." #LinusBio #TracedTest #PrecisionMedicine #Exposome #DigitalBiomarkers #EnvironmentalHealth #PreventiveCare #HealthcareInnovation #Diagnostics #Toxins #Wellness #HealthTech #Environment  linusbio.com Download the transcript here

Xiaoxi Wei, CEO and Co-Founder of X-Therma, is revolutionizing organ transplantation by extending the preservation time of donor organs through advanced biopreservation technology. This approach addresses the gap in organ transplantation that exists because of limitations of cold storage, which constrains the hours of viability of an organ and results in over 50% of donated organs going unused.  By enabling longer preservation times, X-Therma increases organ availability and organ quality, expands geographic access to organs, and enhances donor-recipient matching.    Xiaoxi explains, "X-Therma is trying to make time available for all the patients who are waiting for lifesaving living medicines, such as organs for transplantation, cell and gene therapy for curing cancer, and tissue engineering products for rejuvenating your body parts. So all of those so-called living medicines with the current technology, they do not have a way to be put off the shelf, but we are changing that. At X-Therma, we firmly believe biological time is no longer fixed. So by advancing safe biopreservation, we make them last for an unprecedented amount of time. So those lifesaving organs can be off the shelf.  For example, at the organ site, we do about 27,000 kidney transplants per year, and roughly 100,000 patients are waiting on the official waiting list." "But actually, the real reason we have such a gap is not that we don't have enough organs - 60% of us are willing to donate organs to save others' lives. The biggest issue here is that we cannot keep those organs alive for more than 24 hours at a time. So, long story short, we're changing this time from less than a day to days for lifesaving organs. So you will have time, and then we can increase the organ volume for transplants and save more patients from waiting." #XTherma #TransplantInnovation #OrganPreservation #KidneyTransplant #HealthcareInnovation #Surgery #Nephrology #Biotech #PatientOutcomes x-therma.com Listen to the podcast here

Xiaoxi Wei, CEO and Co-Founder of X-Therma, is revolutionizing organ transplantation by extending the preservation time of donor organs through advanced biopreservation technology. This approach addresses the gap in organ transplantation that exists because of limitations of cold storage, which constrains the hours of viability of an organ and results in over 50% of donated organs going unused.  By enabling longer preservation times, X-Therma increases organ availability and organ quality, expands geographic access to organs, and enhances donor-recipient matching.    Xiaoxi explains, "X-Therma is trying to make time available for all the patients who are waiting for lifesaving living medicines, such as organs for transplantation, cell and gene therapy for curing cancer, and tissue engineering products for rejuvenating your body parts. So all of those so-called living medicines with the current technology, they do not have a way to be put off the shelf, but we are changing that. At X-Therma, we firmly believe biological time is no longer fixed. So by advancing safe biopreservation, we make them last for an unprecedented amount of time. So those lifesaving organs can be off the shelf.  For example, at the organ site, we do about 27,000 kidney transplants per year, and roughly 100,000 patients are waiting on the official waiting list." "But actually, the real reason we have such a gap is not that we don't have enough organs - 60% of us are willing to donate organs to save others' lives. The biggest issue here is that we cannot keep those organs alive for more than 24 hours at a time. So, long story short, we're changing this time from less than a day to days for lifesaving organs. So you will have time, and then we can increase the organ volume for transplants and save more patients from waiting." #XTherma #TransplantInnovation #OrganPreservation #KidneyTransplant #HealthcareInnovation #Surgery #Nephrology #Biotech #PatientOutcomes x-therma.com Download the transcript here

Dr. Rachel Artsma, lead audiologist at hear.com offers comprehensive hearing care services and she emphasizes how dramatically hearing aids have evolved from earlier generations. Bluetooth connectivity, rechargeable batteries, and real-time environmental adjustments are now being driven by smart chips in the devices, which also allow direct streaming of phone calls, music, and driving directions. Untreated hearing loss can lead to auditory deprivation, in which the brain does not receive clear auditory input, resulting in increased cognitive strain and a decline in cognitive function. Rachel explains, "Hearing loss can happen really gradually, and so oftentimes it can go unnoticed. What we do is we like to educate people on the early signs of hearing loss, such as asking others to repeat themselves, turning the television up, or family members noticing it before them. And then when it comes to the actual hearing test, we do a full comprehensive audiological evaluation. In that audiological evaluation, we sometimes see signs of other health issues. We do make referrals to other specialists such as ear, nose, and throat physicians if we're seeing that something else might be happening in the health of that person."   "I honestly feel like one of the most exciting developments in hearing healthcare is our growing understanding of the hearing-brain connection. We really don't hear with our ears. We really hear with our brain. Our ears are collecting the sound, but our brain is really giving that sound meaning. So what can happen if we don't treat hearing loss and it goes untreated is something called auditory deprivation, which essentially just means we're depriving the brain of the sound that it's looking for. And what happens is the brain then has to work a little harder and devote extra resources to decoding that speech and sound. And that extra effort is what can lead to some strain on other cognitive functions such as memory. So we see that that strain, because we hear with our brain, can lead to some of those other cognitive functions declining." #HearingCom #HearingHealth #Teleaudiology #Audiology #HearingAids #DigitalHealth #CognitiveHealth #PatientCare #HearingCareInnovation #HearingWellness hear.com Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Rachel Artsma, lead audiologist at hear.com offers comprehensive hearing care services and she emphasizes how dramatically hearing aids have evolved from earlier generations. Bluetooth connectivity, rechargeable batteries, and real-time environmental adjustments are now being driven by smart chips in the devices, which also allow direct streaming of phone calls, music, and driving directions. Untreated hearing loss can lead to auditory deprivation, in which the brain does not receive clear auditory input, resulting in increased cognitive strain and a decline in cognitive function. Rachel explains, "Hearing loss can happen really gradually, and so oftentimes it can go unnoticed. What we do is we like to educate people on the early signs of hearing loss, such as asking others to repeat themselves, turning the television up, or family members noticing it before them. And then when it comes to the actual hearing test, we do a full comprehensive audiological evaluation. In that audiological evaluation, we sometimes see signs of other health issues. We do make referrals to other specialists such as ear, nose, and throat physicians if we're seeing that something else might be happening in the health of that person."   "I honestly feel like one of the most exciting developments in hearing healthcare is our growing understanding of the hearing-brain connection. We really don't hear with our ears. We really hear with our brain. Our ears are collecting the sound, but our brain is really giving that sound meaning. So what can happen if we don't treat hearing loss and it goes untreated is something called auditory deprivation, which essentially just means we're depriving the brain of the sound that it's looking for. And what happens is the brain then has to work a little harder and devote extra resources to decoding that speech and sound. And that extra effort is what can lead to some strain on other cognitive functions such as memory. So we see that that strain, because we hear with our brain, can lead to some of those other cognitive functions declining." #HearingCom #HearingHealth #Teleaudiology #Audiology #HearingAids #DigitalHealth #CognitiveHealth #PatientCare #HearingCareInnovation #HearingWellness hear.com Download the transcript here

Amy Gordon Franzen, CEO of Rune Labs, developed StrivePD, a patient-facing app that supports those with Parkinson's disease by passively tracking their movements and collecting longitudinal data on tremor, gait, and activity patterns. The technology addresses a critical gap in neurodegenerative disease management by providing continuous, objective data that enables patients and clinicians to make more informed treatment decisions. There is also an AI chatbot that allows patients to interrogate their data and receive personalized insights while enabling clinicians and drug developers to optimize treatment strategies and accelerate development of therapies. Amy explains, "Rune Labs has been around for about seven years. We have consumer-facing and patient-facing technologies, with a core product called StrivePD. StrivePD helps patients with Parkinson's disease better manage their symptoms by passively tracking their movements, ingesting data that comes in naturally through HealthKit, and asking those patients questions so they can go back and forth with the app, better understand their disease, and provide actionable insights against it."   "If you think about the way that neurodegenerative diseases are treated, and Parkinson's is one of the best examples, historically, the disease has been treated as a moment-in-time disease. You see a clinician every six months if you're lucky, and that clinician is observing you in the moment. They're asking you about how you have been, and then they're applying a fairly well-researched, precise treatment to that very subjective point in time. What Rune Labs is out to solve is twofold. One, we are bringing objective longitudinal data to that discussion. So rather than rely on that point in time, you as a patient can now bring a report in that shows what the last six months have looked like, in fact, as your movements go throughout the day. And so your clinician can see tremor, dyskinesia, can see how it changes with time, and can see how it changes with your medication schedule." #RuneLabs #ParkinsonsDisease #DigitalHealth #BrainData #PrecisionMedicine #Neurology #AIinHealthcare #StrivePD runelabs.io Listen to the podcast here

Amy Gordon Franzen, CEO of Rune Labs, developed StrivePD, a patient-facing app that supports those with Parkinson's disease by passively tracking their movements and collecting longitudinal data on tremor, gait, and activity patterns. The technology addresses a critical gap in neurodegenerative disease management by providing continuous, objective data that enables patients and clinicians to make more informed treatment decisions. There is also an AI chatbot that allows patients to interrogate their data and receive personalized insights while enabling clinicians and drug developers to optimize treatment strategies and accelerate development of therapies. Amy explains, "Rune Labs has been around for about seven years. We have consumer-facing and patient-facing technologies, with a core product called StrivePD. StrivePD helps patients with Parkinson's disease better manage their symptoms by passively tracking their movements, ingesting data that comes in naturally through HealthKit, and asking those patients questions so they can go back and forth with the app, better understand their disease, and provide actionable insights against it."   "If you think about the way that neurodegenerative diseases are treated, and Parkinson's is one of the best examples, historically, the disease has been treated as a moment-in-time disease. You see a clinician every six months if you're lucky, and that clinician is observing you in the moment. They're asking you about how you have been, and then they're applying a fairly well-researched, precise treatment to that very subjective point in time. What Rune Labs is out to solve is twofold. One, we are bringing objective longitudinal data to that discussion. So rather than rely on that point in time, you as a patient can now bring a report in that shows what the last six months have looked like, in fact, as your movements go throughout the day. And so your clinician can see tremor, dyskinesia, can see how it changes with time, and can see how it changes with your medication schedule." #RuneLabs #ParkinsonsDisease #DigitalHealth #BrainData #PrecisionMedicine #Neurology #AIinHealthcare #StrivePD runelabs.io Download the transcript here

Dr. Sid Kerkar, CEO and Founder of AllerGene AI Therapeutics, is developing in vivo gene therapy for severe food allergies, where symptoms are currently treated rather than root causes. AllerGene AI is targeting mast cells, which are immune cells responsible for triggering allergic reactions, and their approach represents a significant opportunity to prevent these reactions. Unlike traditional cell therapy, this technology modifies cells within the body to recognize and eliminate armed mast cells, allowing the body to repopulate with non-reactive cells, preventing severe allergic reactions and establishing long-lasting immune tolerance. Sid explains, "Today, millions of people suffer from food allergies in the US and worldwide. And that's a spectrum from just the mild symptoms that cause discomfort to the really severe kind, which can lead to life-threatening issues. And for us as a company, that's where we focus and where the biggest need is to come up with new treatments that can help prevent these life-threatening events from happening."   "A lot of it is symptom management, and EpiPens are a staple. Everyone who has had a severe reaction or may have one has to carry one around that can help prevent you from having the cardiac and lung issues that cause death. But there's no real treatment that can prevent someone from having these severe reactions. And this is where we're focused: treating the root cause of these severe reactions in the hope that we can develop a treatment that can prevent these terrible reactions from happening." "The triggers can be wide-ranging, from many different food products such as peanuts or seafood or milk. It could be anything really that can sensitize one to have a reaction. And even beyond food, all other types of allergens like bee stings can cause a reaction. We know the cell type that is central to these reactions, and it's a cell type called a mast cell."  #AllerGeneAI #MastCells #AllergicReaction #SevereAllergy #FoodAllergy #AllergyGeneTherapy #GeneTherapy allergene.ai Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Sid Kerkar, CEO and Founder of AllerGene AI Therapeutics, is developing in vivo gene therapy for severe food allergies, where symptoms are currently treated rather than root causes. AllerGene AI is targeting mast cells, which are immune cells responsible for triggering allergic reactions, and their approach represents a significant opportunity to prevent these reactions. Unlike traditional cell therapy, this technology modifies cells within the body to recognize and eliminate armed mast cells, allowing the body to repopulate with non-reactive cells, preventing severe allergic reactions and establishing long-lasting immune tolerance. Sid explains, "Today, millions of people suffer from food allergies in the US and worldwide. And that's a spectrum from just the mild symptoms that cause discomfort to the really severe kind, which can lead to life-threatening issues. And for us as a company, that's where we focus and where the biggest need is to come up with new treatments that can help prevent these life-threatening events from happening."   "A lot of it is symptom management, and EpiPens are a staple. Everyone who has had a severe reaction or may have one has to carry one around that can help prevent you from having the cardiac and lung issues that cause death. But there's no real treatment that can prevent someone from having these severe reactions. And this is where we're focused: treating the root cause of these severe reactions in the hope that we can develop a treatment that can prevent these terrible reactions from happening." "The triggers can be wide-ranging, from many different food products such as peanuts or seafood or milk. It could be anything really that can sensitize one to have a reaction. And even beyond food, all other types of allergens like bee stings can cause a reaction. We know the cell type that is central to these reactions, and it's a cell type called a mast cell."  #AllerGeneAI #MastCells #AllergicReaction #SevereAllergy #FoodAllergy #AllergyGeneTherapy #GeneTherapy allergene.ai Download the transcript here

Dr. David Feldman is the Chief Medical Officer at Dimer Health, a virtual care medical practice designed to improve patient outcomes during the critical 1-3 days following hospital discharge, outpatient surgery, or emergency room visits.  The company addresses the gap in post-acute care between hospital care and primary care follow-up by proactive monitoring, medication management, and pain control. Inspired by the hospitalist model, Dimer is defining a transitionist model that is tailored to each patient's needs and home environment, intervening early on minor complications to reduce emergency room revisits and hospital readmissions.  David explains, "Dimer Health is a health tech company. It's a medical practice deliberately built to better serve patients after any post-acute care event. And what I mean by that is patients go to the emergency room and are discharged, patients are admitted to the hospital and are discharged, maybe they have surgery. And it's in those first 1 to 3 days after that when the trajectory of their recovery is really determined. As an emergency room physician, I see a lot of those complications that come in. A couple of our founders were also emergency room providers, and so we wanted to be deliberate about building a medical practice, a virtual care medical practice that fits right into that window to prevent those patients from coming back to the hospital." "And I think a good example of that is a very realistic scenario: a patient has joint replacement surgery, and it's a couple of days later. Their pain medications are changing. Maybe they're transitioning to different types of pain medications, or they're just starting to utilize their pain medications. They're adjusting to new mobility issues. Maybe they're learning different kinds of injections or blood thinners. They're not sleeping well. Families are trying to help, and there are just changes to their home life that occur because of the procedure that happened. And when you're outside the four walls of the hospital, it's sometimes difficult to understand what's normal post-op healing and what's more concerning than that." #DimerHealth #JointReplacement, #PostAcuteCare, #PatientSafety #HospitalReadmissions, #PostDischargeCare, #SurgicalRecovery dimerhealth.com Listen to the podcast here  

Dr. David Feldman is the Chief Medical Officer at Dimer Health, a virtual care medical practice designed to improve patient outcomes during the critical 1-3 days following hospital discharge, outpatient surgery, or emergency room visits.  The company addresses the gap in post-acute care between hospital care and primary care follow-up by proactive monitoring, medication management, and pain control. Inspired by the hospitalist model, Dimer is defining a transitionist model that is tailored to each patient's needs and home environment, intervening early on minor complications to reduce emergency room revisits and hospital readmissions.  David explains, "Dimer Health is a health tech company. It's a medical practice deliberately built to better serve patients after any post-acute care event. And what I mean by that is patients go to the emergency room and are discharged, patients are admitted to the hospital and are discharged, maybe they have surgery. And it's in those first 1 to 3 days after that when the trajectory of their recovery is really determined. As an emergency room physician, I see a lot of those complications that come in. A couple of our founders were also emergency room providers, and so we wanted to be deliberate about building a medical practice, a virtual care medical practice that fits right into that window to prevent those patients from coming back to the hospital." "And I think a good example of that is a very realistic scenario: a patient has joint replacement surgery, and it's a couple of days later. Their pain medications are changing. Maybe they're transitioning to different types of pain medications, or they're just starting to utilize their pain medications. They're adjusting to new mobility issues. Maybe they're learning different kinds of injections or blood thinners. They're not sleeping well. Families are trying to help, and there are just changes to their home life that occur because of the procedure that happened. And when you're outside the four walls of the hospital, it's sometimes difficult to understand what's normal post-op healing and what's more concerning than that." #DimerHealth #JointReplacement, #PostAcuteCare, #PatientSafety #HospitalReadmissions, #PostDischargeCare, #SurgicalRecovery dimerhealth.com Download the transcript here  

Sharon Blank, CEO of RxTran, highlights the value of certified translations of prescription dosing instructions in 26 languages to ensure that limited-English-proficient patients can understand dosing and medication risks.  The organization works with pharmacies to deliver translations created by native-speaking pharmacists rather than by automated systems or untrained interpreters. As this LEP population grows, RxTran advocates for standardized, human-verified translation practices to ensure healthcare access and patient safety across all populations. Sharon explains, "So RxTran's mission is to provide certified translation of the dosing instructions on prescription labels and ensure that LEP patients have the ability to understand their dosing instructions. And our primary clients include both small individual pharmacies as well as large chains." "Truthfully, everybody needs the exact same standard of care, whether you are proficient in English or not. And we always say that good enough is not good enough. So it is our belief that you absolutely must have the translated SIGS be done by a pharmacist who is native in the language into which it's being translated. And then be stored in a bank. So it's not pre-written text dosing instructions. It is from a data bank of certified translations." "So, right now, there are sort of three real issues in that situation. And the dangerous outcomes include the patient won't take the medication because they're fearful. Or they take the wrong dose or at the wrong time. And what we hear time and time again is that they rely on an untrained relative, neighbor, or friend to translate. And all of these just really potentially cause great harm." #RxTran #PatientSafety #HealthEquity #Pharmacy #LimitedEnglishProficiency #LEPpatients #MedicationSafety #LanguageAccess #HealthcareInnovation #PatientAdvocacy #HealthcareInnovation #EmpoweredPatient #MedicationAdherence #PharmacyInnovation #WomenInHealthTech #HealthTech RxTran.com Listen to the podcast here

Sharon Blank, CEO of RxTran, highlights the value of certified translations of prescription dosing instructions in 26 languages to ensure that limited-English-proficient patients can understand dosing and medication risks.  The organization works with pharmacies to deliver translations created by native-speaking pharmacists rather than by automated systems or untrained interpreters. As this LEP population grows, RxTran advocates for standardized, human-verified translation practices to ensure healthcare access and patient safety across all populations. Sharon explains, "So RxTran's mission is to provide certified translation of the dosing instructions on prescription labels and ensure that LEP patients have the ability to understand their dosing instructions. And our primary clients include both small individual pharmacies as well as large chains." "Truthfully, everybody needs the exact same standard of care, whether you are proficient in English or not. And we always say that good enough is not good enough. So it is our belief that you absolutely must have the translated SIGS be done by a pharmacist who is native in the language into which it's being translated. And then be stored in a bank. So it's not pre-written text dosing instructions. It is from a data bank of certified translations." "So, right now, there are sort of three real issues in that situation. And the dangerous outcomes include the patient won't take the medication because they're fearful. Or they take the wrong dose or at the wrong time. And what we hear time and time again is that they rely on an untrained relative, neighbor, or friend to translate. And all of these just really potentially cause great harm." #RxTran #PatientSafety #HealthEquity #Pharmacy #LimitedEnglishProficiency #LEPpatients #MedicationSafety #LanguageAccess #HealthcareInnovation #PatientAdvocacy #HealthcareInnovation #EmpoweredPatient #MedicationAdherence #PharmacyInnovation #WomenInHealthTech #HealthTech RxTran.com Download the transcript here

Craig Ahrens is the CEO of Worki, a healthcare workforce management platform that aggregates fragmented HR records by unifying disparate data sources and deploying AI agents to streamline workflows. To address anxieties, the focus needs to be on reducing administrative burdens through intelligent scheduling, not on eliminating jobs. Transparency is key for employees in this integration of legacy systems with AI-powered tools, so that healthcare organizations can improve resource allocation, enhance retention, and improve patient care while maintaining human oversight.       Craig explains, "Worki is solving the fragmentation tax that is plaguing the HR and workforce components of the healthcare industry. And when I say the fragmentation tax, what I'm talking about is that within healthcare, there are a number of legacy systems and non-legacy systems, meaning just spreadsheets and pieces of paper that are part of the HR workforce picture. These are leading to what I call visibility gaps or blind spots, as well as high administrative friction or burden for frontline clinical workers."   "So the ability to manage the workers, the ability to engage them, the ability to efficiently deploy AI in a meaningful way through a combination of data, has been hampered. And what we do is we solve for that by unifying that fragmented information and then putting it into action around key HR workforce roles. Specifically, we start with usually access scheduling roles as well as career amplification roles." "What I mean by clear career amplification could be retention, could be upskilling in the face of the evolution of work around how AI is impacting their tasks associated with their roles. We're basically helping organizations, particularly healthcare organizations, address these fundamental fragmentation issues and then activate in a way that empowers HR to solve for the evolution of work." #Worki #HealthcareWorkforce #AIinHealthcare #WorkforceInnovation #HealthcareOperations #HealthcareTechnology #FutureOfHealthcare #Healthcare #Nursing #HealthcareHR #WorkforceManagement #HealthIT #Staffing #Upskilling #PatientCare #DigitalTransformation worki.us Listen to the podcast here

Craig Ahrens is the CEO of Worki, a healthcare workforce management platform that aggregates fragmented HR records by unifying disparate data sources and deploying AI agents to streamline workflows. To address anxieties, the focus needs to be on reducing administrative burdens through intelligent scheduling, not on eliminating jobs. Transparency is key for employees in this integration of legacy systems with AI-powered tools, so that healthcare organizations can improve resource allocation, enhance retention, and improve patient care while maintaining human oversight.       Craig explains, "Worki is solving the fragmentation tax that is plaguing the HR and workforce components of the healthcare industry. And when I say the fragmentation tax, what I'm talking about is that within healthcare, there are a number of legacy systems and non-legacy systems, meaning just spreadsheets and pieces of paper that are part of the HR workforce picture. These are leading to what I call visibility gaps or blind spots, as well as high administrative friction or burden for frontline clinical workers."   "So the ability to manage the workers, the ability to engage them, the ability to efficiently deploy AI in a meaningful way through a combination of data, has been hampered. And what we do is we solve for that by unifying that fragmented information and then putting it into action around key HR workforce roles. Specifically, we start with usually access scheduling roles as well as career amplification roles." "What I mean by clear career amplification could be retention, could be upskilling in the face of the evolution of work around how AI is impacting their tasks associated with their roles. We're basically helping organizations, particularly healthcare organizations, address these fundamental fragmentation issues and then activate in a way that empowers HR to solve for the evolution of work." #Worki #HealthcareWorkforce #AIinHealthcare #WorkforceInnovation #HealthcareOperations #HealthcareTechnology #FutureOfHealthcare #Healthcare #Nursing #HealthcareHR #WorkforceManagement #HealthIT #Staffing #Upskilling #PatientCare #DigitalTransformation worki.us Download the transcript here

Sonia Garcia, Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer at Amae Health, an integrated care company specializing in the treatment of severe mental illness that operates community-oriented clinics to deliver comprehensive psychiatry-led care. They provide continuity of care across multiple acuity levels, recognizing these conditions require long-term management. Amae is also advancing psychiatric care through research and partnerships by deploying wearables for health monitoring and investigating biomarkers and pharmacogenomics to improve treatment outcomes. Sonia explains, "Amae Health is an integrated care company that exists to treat the most complex mentally ill. So those that are suffering from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder. And we do so through these community-oriented clinics that deliver comprehensive care that's psychiatry-led, but also incorporates therapy, primary care, social services, peer support specialists, dieticians for a lot of nutrition guidance, and health coaching. Then clinic care coordinators manage all the in-between things that need to happen to get somebody back on track and living a healthy, stable life."   "Another core pillar within the company that I'll just add is getting into technical research and innovation, with lots of work we can do to uncover what is causing this, what interventions we can deploy. How can we partner with others in the ecosystem, whether that's pharma or life sciences, to advance psychiatric care and see if we can get towards putting many of these conditions into remission?" #AmaeHealth #MentalHealthCare #SevereMentalIllness #IntegratedCare #MetabolicPsychiatry #Schizophrenia #BipolarDisorder #ValueBasedCare #ContinuityOfCare #HealthcareInnovation #Psychiatry amaehealth.com Listen to the podcast here

Sonia Garcia, Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer at Amae Health, an integrated care company specializing in the treatment of severe mental illness that operates community-oriented clinics to deliver comprehensive psychiatry-led care. They provide continuity of care across multiple acuity levels, recognizing these conditions require long-term management. Amae is also advancing psychiatric care through research and partnerships by deploying wearables for health monitoring and investigating biomarkers and pharmacogenomics to improve treatment outcomes. Sonia explains, "Amae Health is an integrated care company that exists to treat the most complex mentally ill. So those that are suffering from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder. And we do so through these community-oriented clinics that deliver comprehensive care that's psychiatry-led, but also incorporates therapy, primary care, social services, peer support specialists, dieticians for a lot of nutrition guidance, and health coaching. Then clinic care coordinators manage all the in-between things that need to happen to get somebody back on track and living a healthy, stable life."   "Another core pillar within the company that I'll just add is getting into technical research and innovation, with lots of work we can do to uncover what is causing this, what interventions we can deploy. How can we partner with others in the ecosystem, whether that's pharma or life sciences, to advance psychiatric care and see if we can get towards putting many of these conditions into remission?" #AmaeHealth #MentalHealthCare #SevereMentalIllness #IntegratedCare #MetabolicPsychiatry #Schizophrenia #BipolarDisorder #ValueBasedCare #ContinuityOfCare #HealthcareInnovation #Psychiatry amaehealth.com Download the transcript here

Sarah Lowe, Global Clinical Operations Director at XVIVO, develops technologies to preserve, assess, and transport organs for transplantation. With advanced assessment of donor lungs, the mission is to evaluate marginal organs better to address the critical challenge that only 2 out of 10 available lungs are currently accepted for transplant. With their first in-house ex vivo lung perfusion program, the goal is to increase organ utilization and expand access to transplants. Sarah explains, "At XVIVO, our vision really is that nobody should die waiting for a new organ. As a company, we develop technologies that allow our clinicians to preserve, assess, and transport organs. So, in doing so, we're able to be part of the solution by helping increase the number of organs available for transplantation. In my role at XVIVO, I get to work closely with clinical teams and partners to support the implementation of our technologies and their programs, not only in the US but around the world. So really everything that we do is centered around helping more patients receive those lifesaving transplants."   "So this collaboration is so incredibly important, not only for XVIVO. I think for the transplant community as a whole, it brings advanced lung assessment directly into the organ recovery process. XVIVO lung perfusion- you'll hear me say EVLP. It is placed into the workflow at the organ procurement organization level rather than in a separate step later in transplantation." "So Indiana Donor Network, I'll call it IDN, is the first organ recovery organization in the US that has an in-house lung perfusion program. And through this partnership, IDN can assess donor lungs using EVLP before transplantation decisions are finalized. So for us, it does matter for a few reasons. And I think it's important to emphasize that two in 10 lungs are transplanted, which means that 80% of them are declined." #XVIVO #OrganTransplantation #HealthcareInnovation #MedTech #PatientOutcomes #TransplantMedicine #LungTransplant #EVLP #OrganDonation #TransplantInnovation #IndianaDonorNetwork #PerfusionSolution #HealthcareInnovation #OPO #PatientCare XVIVOgroup.com Listen to the podcast here

Sarah Lowe, Global Clinical Operations Director at XVIVO, develops technologies to preserve, assess, and transport organs for transplantation. With advanced assessment of donor lungs, the mission is to evaluate marginal organs better to address the critical challenge that only 2 out of 10 available lungs are currently accepted for transplant. With their first in-house ex vivo lung perfusion program, the goal is to increase organ utilization and expand access to transplants. Sarah explains, "At XVIVO, our vision really is that nobody should die waiting for a new organ. As a company, we develop technologies that allow our clinicians to preserve, assess, and transport organs. So, in doing so, we're able to be part of the solution by helping increase the number of organs available for transplantation. In my role at XVIVO, I get to work closely with clinical teams and partners to support the implementation of our technologies and their programs, not only in the US but around the world. So really everything that we do is centered around helping more patients receive those lifesaving transplants."   "So this collaboration is so incredibly important, not only for XVIVO. I think for the transplant community as a whole, it brings advanced lung assessment directly into the organ recovery process. XVIVO lung perfusion- you'll hear me say EVLP. It is placed into the workflow at the organ procurement organization level rather than in a separate step later in transplantation." "So Indiana Donor Network, I'll call it IDN, is the first organ recovery organization in the US that has an in-house lung perfusion program. And through this partnership, IDN can assess donor lungs using EVLP before transplantation decisions are finalized. So for us, it does matter for a few reasons. And I think it's important to emphasize that two in 10 lungs are transplanted, which means that 80% of them are declined." #XVIVO #OrganTransplantation #HealthcareInnovation #MedTech #PatientOutcomes #TransplantMedicine #LungTransplant #EVLP #OrganDonation #TransplantInnovation #IndianaDonorNetwork #PerfusionSolution #HealthcareInnovation #OPO #PatientCare XVIVOgroup.com Download the transcript here

Vin Singh, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Bullfrog AI, is applying proprietary AI technology to drug development, with a focus on drug target discovery and phase three clinical trials. The company's platform is derived from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab and is designed to pinpoint drug targets, identify the root causes of disease, and match patients to appropriate treatments based on genetic profiles. Bullfrog AI aims to reduce clinical trial timelines, improve success rates, identify more accurate biomarkers, and improve patient outcomes. Vin explains, "We are in the AI innovator category, and we're applying our proprietary platform to the challenges that exist in the world of drug development for pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Primarily our focus is on the first and the last stage of that process. So the first stage is what you call drug target discovery. So when you take a medication, it targets something in your body. So we're trying to identify novel targets that we believe are the root cause of certain diseases. And then we are also focused on the final stage, which is phase three clinical trials. That's where we have our experience. And that's obviously a very critical and pivotal point in the process and the final stage of a long 10- to 15-year, one- to two-billion-dollar drug development process."   "You need to have the right tool for a certain problem and then data, and they go together. I think on the data side, getting access to rich, deep data sets is critical. And fortunately, the cost to generate that type of data has come down pretty significantly over the past, say, 10 years. So now, for example, we have a project where we have brain data, and it's the type of data where you can really make discoveries and insights and so forth. And so that's a really critical part of this process. The other part is: what tool do you have, and what problem are you trying to solve? Our technology is unique. I'd say most companies use technology that comes from NVIDIA and AWS. So they're all kind of using the same tools from the same toolbox." "Our technology comes from Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab, which is a world-renowned institution. We have IP around our platform, and we've continued to innovate over the years. It definitely has unique capabilities, and it is specifically designed for the types of problems that exist in drug development." #BullFrogAI $BFRG, #AI, #AIinBiotech, #MachineLearning, #DrugDevelopment #AIinHealthcare #PrecisionMedicine #Neuropsychiatry #Oncology #DigitalHealth #ClinicalTrials #Biomarkers #bfLEAP bullfrogai.com Listen to the podcast here

Vin Singh, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Bullfrog AI, is applying proprietary AI technology to drug development, with a focus on drug target discovery and phase three clinical trials. The company's platform is derived from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab and is designed to pinpoint drug targets, identify the root causes of disease, and match patients to appropriate treatments based on genetic profiles. Bullfrog AI aims to reduce clinical trial timelines, improve success rates, identify more accurate biomarkers, and improve patient outcomes. Vin explains, "We are in the AI innovator category, and we're applying our proprietary platform to the challenges that exist in the world of drug development for pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Primarily our focus is on the first and the last stage of that process. So the first stage is what you call drug target discovery. So when you take a medication, it targets something in your body. So we're trying to identify novel targets that we believe are the root cause of certain diseases. And then we are also focused on the final stage, which is phase three clinical trials. That's where we have our experience. And that's obviously a very critical and pivotal point in the process and the final stage of a long 10- to 15-year, one- to two-billion-dollar drug development process."   "You need to have the right tool for a certain problem and then data, and they go together. I think on the data side, getting access to rich, deep data sets is critical. And fortunately, the cost to generate that type of data has come down pretty significantly over the past, say, 10 years. So now, for example, we have a project where we have brain data, and it's the type of data where you can really make discoveries and insights and so forth. And so that's a really critical part of this process. The other part is: what tool do you have, and what problem are you trying to solve? Our technology is unique. I'd say most companies use technology that comes from NVIDIA and AWS. So they're all kind of using the same tools from the same toolbox." "Our technology comes from Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab, which is a world-renowned institution. We have IP around our platform, and we've continued to innovate over the years. It definitely has unique capabilities, and it is specifically designed for the types of problems that exist in drug development." #BullFrogAI $BFRG, #AI, #AIinBiotech, #MachineLearning, #DrugDevelopment #AIinHealthcare #PrecisionMedicine #Neuropsychiatry #Oncology #DigitalHealth #ClinicalTrials #Biomarkers #bfLEAP bullfrogai.com Download the transcript here

Dr. Greg Carroll, emergency physician and Co-Founder and CEO of ClinNEXUS,  a data-first healthcare company addressing social drivers of health in underserved communities by breaking down data silos. Integrating clinical information with social, behavioral, and environmental factors and using AI to augment human care coordinators enables them to identify patient needs proactively and provide personalized support.  The model emphasizes building trust through in-person engagement while leveraging digital tools to enhance the care manager's ability to process complex data and deliver real-time insights. Greg explains, "We're a data-first company that is focused on improving healthcare outcomes for underserved communities. That's pretty broad. But if you think about traditional healthcare, especially in the United States, if you look at 20% of patients or individuals driving about 80% of costs in healthcare. And traditional healthcare has not been able to really put a dent in this over time. And really the reason is that traditional healthcare has not addressed the true drivers of people's health, especially in underserved communities."   "Traditional healthcare has not done a good job of addressing those non-clinical issues, and it's done an even worse job of orchestrating and ensuring that across all those dimensions, we're addressing people's health. And so, in terms of the mission, it's about breaking down the silos in people's care and in the data available to those who support them. Making sure we're looking at all dimensions of people's health and helping them navigate to live happier, healthier lives, especially for communities facing many of the challenges I've mentioned."  #ClinNEXUS #HealthcareInnovation #PopulationHealth #SocialDriversOfHealth #CareCoordination #AIinHealthcare #Medicaid #ValueBasedCare  clinNexus.com Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Greg Carroll, emergency physician and Co-Founder and CEO of ClinNEXUS,  a data-first healthcare company addressing social drivers of health in underserved communities by breaking down data silos. Integrating clinical information with social, behavioral, and environmental factors and using AI to augment human care coordinators enables them to identify patient needs proactively and provide personalized support.  The model emphasizes building trust through in-person engagement while leveraging digital tools to enhance the care manager's ability to process complex data and deliver real-time insights. Greg explains, "We're a data-first company that is focused on improving healthcare outcomes for underserved communities. That's pretty broad. But if you think about traditional healthcare, especially in the United States, if you look at 20% of patients or individuals driving about 80% of costs in healthcare. And traditional healthcare has not been able to really put a dent in this over time. And really the reason is that traditional healthcare has not addressed the true drivers of people's health, especially in underserved communities."   "Traditional healthcare has not done a good job of addressing those non-clinical issues, and it's done an even worse job of orchestrating and ensuring that across all those dimensions, we're addressing people's health. And so, in terms of the mission, it's about breaking down the silos in people's care and in the data available to those who support them. Making sure we're looking at all dimensions of people's health and helping them navigate to live happier, healthier lives, especially for communities facing many of the challenges I've mentioned."  #ClinNEXUS #HealthcareInnovation #PopulationHealth #SocialDriversOfHealth #CareCoordination #AIinHealthcare #Medicaid #ValueBasedCare  clinNexus.com Download the transcript here

Susan Wood, CEO of VIDA, develops AI-driven imaging-based biomarkers that quantitatively measure biological processes and disease states using imaging modalities such as CT, MRI, PET, and ultrasound. Unlike traditional visual image analysis, VIDA's technology extracts approximately 25,000 measurements per imaging timepoint, enabling detection of therapeutic responses at the sub-millimeter level. This convergence of advanced scanner technology, high-quality imaging data, and AI-powered analysis represents a significant new frontier in precision medicine and drug development. Susan explains, "I'll start with what VIDA brings in. Our background has been the development and validation of AI-driven imaging-based biomarkers. I'll start by defining a biomarker, specifically an imaging-based biomarker. It's a quantitative measurement derived from an imaging modality. An imaging modality can be a CT scan, an MRI, a PET scan, or an ultrasound, and the measurement reflects a biological process, a disease state, or a response to therapy. VIDA's formation was focused on the production and validation of those imaging-based biomarkers and on incorporating them into provider-based clinical workflows as well as clinical trial or drug development workflows." "I would say that in general, traditionally radiology has relied on radiologic images, those imaging modalities have been read visually. And if you read an image visually, there's just a fraction of information that you can get from those images versus reading them with these AI-generated processes. So there's less than 1% of that image you'll be able to understand the extent and the complexity of the measurements that image can offer. We read, or we combine that visual reading with a highly quantitative process. So for each imaging time point, we'll measure 25,000 measurements per imaging time point. Obviously that's well beyond what a human eye could do just from an efficiency standpoint, but certainly from a precision standpoint, they wouldn't be able to measure that level of precision in the imaging by an eyeball alone." #VIDA #AI #DigitalBiomarkers #MedicalImaging #Radiology #ClinicalTrials #DrugDevelopment #PrecisionMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #RespiratoryCare vidalung.ai Listen to the podcast here

Susan Wood, CEO of VIDA, develops AI-driven imaging-based biomarkers that quantitatively measure biological processes and disease states using imaging modalities such as CT, MRI, PET, and ultrasound. Unlike traditional visual image analysis, VIDA's technology extracts approximately 25,000 measurements per imaging timepoint, enabling detection of therapeutic responses at the sub-millimeter level. This convergence of advanced scanner technology, high-quality imaging data, and AI-powered analysis represents a significant new frontier in precision medicine and drug development. Susan explains, "I'll start with what VIDA brings in. Our background has been the development and validation of AI-driven imaging-based biomarkers. I'll start by defining a biomarker, specifically an imaging-based biomarker. It's a quantitative measurement derived from an imaging modality. An imaging modality can be a CT scan, an MRI, a PET scan, or an ultrasound, and the measurement reflects a biological process, a disease state, or a response to therapy. VIDA's formation was focused on the production and validation of those imaging-based biomarkers and on incorporating them into provider-based clinical workflows as well as clinical trial or drug development workflows." "I would say that in general, traditionally radiology has relied on radiologic images, those imaging modalities have been read visually. And if you read an image visually, there's just a fraction of information that you can get from those images versus reading them with these AI-generated processes. So there's less than 1% of that image you'll be able to understand the extent and the complexity of the measurements that image can offer. We read, or we combine that visual reading with a highly quantitative process. So for each imaging time point, we'll measure 25,000 measurements per imaging time point. Obviously that's well beyond what a human eye could do just from an efficiency standpoint, but certainly from a precision standpoint, they wouldn't be able to measure that level of precision in the imaging by an eyeball alone." #VIDA #AI #DigitalBiomarkers #MedicalImaging #Radiology #ClinicalTrials #DrugDevelopment #PrecisionMedicine #HealthcareInnovation #RespiratoryCare vidalung.ai Download the transcript here

Luis Voloch, Co-Founder and CEO of Jimini Health, focuses on mental health through the Sage platform, which provides continuous AI support for patients while keeping clinicians informed and in control. The approach addresses the problem of patients turning to general-purpose AI for behavioral health support by offering a HIPAA-compliant, purpose-built alternative with proper safeguards and clinician supervision. The platform improves patient adherence to therapy and provides valuable information about progress between appointments, which is particularly important in mental health care where outcomes are non-linear and diagnostic precision is limited. Luis explains, "Right now, the AI healthcare environment is, I'd say, largely split when it comes to clinical AI between largely clinician-facing and back-office capabilities. So things like AI scribes and RCM tools and clinician coaching tools and products like that on one hand, with on the other hand, things that are primarily for patients. You may see things on the app store that are like AI therapists or products that are standalone for patients. And where Jimini stands is really as unifying both of these, where the core thesis for the company is that the right way to help patients and to build helpful clinical AI products is by integrating with the clinician as well, where the clinician has the ability to oversee what the AI is doing and to guide what the AI is doing."   "The company's belief is that we need to build purpose-built AIs for mental health that are HIPAA-compliant and safe, with all the right guardrails. And most importantly, where clinicians are in the loop and where the clinicians can oversee and guide what the AI is doing." "We primarily work with large behavioral health provider organizations interested in improving the quality of care they deliver. One specific big opportunity we bring is bridging the time between sessions so that patients have additional support. The core of the product is what we call Sage. Sage is an app that engages with patients in various ways, with the guidance of the clinician, so that Sage knows what is happening in the therapy sessions or whatever other appointments the patient is having. It is then able to follow the clinical priorities of the clinician when the clinician is not there, and Sage supports these patients on a daily basis." #JiminiHealth #MentalHealth #DigitalHealth #BehavioralHealth #AIinHealthcare #PatientEngagement #CareAdherence #Telehealth #HealthTech #AI #MentalHealth #PatientSafety jiminihealth.com Listen to the podcast here

Luis Voloch, Co-Founder and CEO of Jimini Health, focuses on mental health through the Sage platform, which provides continuous AI support for patients while keeping clinicians informed and in control. The approach addresses the problem of patients turning to general-purpose AI for behavioral health support by offering a HIPAA-compliant, purpose-built alternative with proper safeguards and clinician supervision. The platform improves patient adherence to therapy and provides valuable information about progress between appointments, which is particularly important in mental health care where outcomes are non-linear and diagnostic precision is limited. Luis explains, "Right now, the AI healthcare environment is, I'd say, largely split when it comes to clinical AI between largely clinician-facing and back-office capabilities. So things like AI scribes and RCM tools and clinician coaching tools and products like that on one hand, with on the other hand, things that are primarily for patients. You may see things on the app store that are like AI therapists or products that are standalone for patients. And where Jimini stands is really as unifying both of these, where the core thesis for the company is that the right way to help patients and to build helpful clinical AI products is by integrating with the clinician as well, where the clinician has the ability to oversee what the AI is doing and to guide what the AI is doing."   "The company's belief is that we need to build purpose-built AIs for mental health that are HIPAA-compliant and safe, with all the right guardrails. And most importantly, where clinicians are in the loop and where the clinicians can oversee and guide what the AI is doing." "We primarily work with large behavioral health provider organizations interested in improving the quality of care they deliver. One specific big opportunity we bring is bridging the time between sessions so that patients have additional support. The core of the product is what we call Sage. Sage is an app that engages with patients in various ways, with the guidance of the clinician, so that Sage knows what is happening in the therapy sessions or whatever other appointments the patient is having. It is then able to follow the clinical priorities of the clinician when the clinician is not there, and Sage supports these patients on a daily basis." #JiminiHealth #MentalHealth #DigitalHealth #BehavioralHealth #AIinHealthcare #PatientEngagement #CareAdherence #Telehealth #HealthTech #AI #MentalHealth #PatientSafety jiminihealth.com Download the transcript here

Lew Bender, Founder and CEO of Intensity Therapeutics, has developed a novel approach to treating solid tumors through direct intratumoral injection of existing chemotherapy drugs. The company uses a proprietary formulation containing a special molecule that makes water-based drugs soluble in fatty tissue, allowing cisplatin and vinblastine to penetrate tumor cells effectively. Beyond direct killing of cancer cells, the approach triggers an immunological response that trains the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells throughout the body, including metastatic tumors that were not directly injected. Lew explains, "We're injecting directly into the tumors, and we have identified a formulation that allows for water-based drugs to become soluble in fat and water. Effectively, a tumor is fat and water. And while it has been tried before to inject water into fat, I helped to develop a chemistry that allows for water-based products to be absorbed by fatty tissue like tumors." "We are injecting our formulation, which is a special molecule called SHAO, that makes things soluble in fat and water, and two very well-known potent anti-cancer agents, cisplatin and vinblastine, that are able to kill cancers when they get into the cancer cells. So we dose based on the size of the tumor, check into the tumors, and the tumors in an immunological way. So what does that mean? It means that as the tumor cells die, they create chemicals that allow for the influx and recognition of the immune cells that this is not a good entity to be in the body." "We are killing the cancer with the drug, but at the same time training the immune system on the tumors so that the immune system can recognize the cancer as not self and attack the cancer in a more precise way." #IntensityTherapeutics $INTS  #CancerResearch #Oncology #Biotech #CancerCare  #ClinicalTrials #BreastCancer #TargetedOncology #IntratumoralInjection #OncologyInnovation #ImmunoOncology #IntratumoralTherapy #SolidTumors #TNBC #Sarcoma #HealthcareProfessionals intensitytherapeutics.com Listen to the podcast here

Lew Bender, Founder and CEO of Intensity Therapeutics, has developed a novel approach to treating solid tumors through direct intratumoral injection of existing chemotherapy drugs. The company uses a proprietary formulation containing a special molecule that makes water-based drugs soluble in fatty tissue, allowing cisplatin and vinblastine to penetrate tumor cells effectively. Beyond direct killing of cancer cells, the approach triggers an immunological response that trains the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells throughout the body, including metastatic tumors that were not directly injected. Lew explains, "We're injecting directly into the tumors, and we have identified a formulation that allows for water-based drugs to become soluble in fat and water. Effectively, a tumor is fat and water. And while it has been tried before to inject water into fat, I helped to develop a chemistry that allows for water-based products to be absorbed by fatty tissue like tumors." "We are injecting our formulation, which is a special molecule called SHAO, that makes things soluble in fat and water, and two very well-known potent anti-cancer agents, cisplatin and vinblastine, that are able to kill cancers when they get into the cancer cells. So we dose based on the size of the tumor, check into the tumors, and the tumors in an immunological way. So what does that mean? It means that as the tumor cells die, they create chemicals that allow for the influx and recognition of the immune cells that this is not a good entity to be in the body." "We are killing the cancer with the drug, but at the same time training the immune system on the tumors so that the immune system can recognize the cancer as not self and attack the cancer in a more precise way." #IntensityTherapeutics $INTS  #CancerResearch #Oncology #Biotech #CancerCare  #ClinicalTrials #BreastCancer #TargetedOncology #IntratumoralInjection #OncologyInnovation #ImmunoOncology #IntratumoralTherapy #SolidTumors #TNBC #Sarcoma #HealthcareProfessionals intensitytherapeutics.com Download the transcript here

Dr. Erin Palm, medical lead at Infinitus, specializes in agentic AI for healthcare, leveraging voice technology to facilitate actions and execute tasks on behalf of providers, payers, and patients to coordinate administrative functions and patient-facing applications. These agents can handle appointment booking, medication inquiries, and emergency triage within an environment with rigorous quality controls and guardrails to mitigate  AI errors. The platform supports seven languages, adapts communication to technical levels, and integrates with patient systems to maintain clinical consistency and regulatory compliance. Erin explains, "We focus on agentic communications for healthcare, which means building AI agents that can have conversations and execute on tasks on behalf of patients, pharmaceutical manufacturers, providers, and health plans. And our thesis in all this is that the care exists. It's the coordination layer that sometimes falls short and fails patients, and Infinitus makes sure that that care arrives."   "It's a reality that we're holding AI to a different standard than we hold humans performing the same tasks. That said, I actually see it as an opportunity to improve quality across the board. And I think it's reasonable to hold AI to a higher standard. And we measure those things closely using continuous evaluations of agent performance even before we put them into production. And then once they're live with patients, we continue to closely monitor their performance."  "We have benchmarks that show improved performance on tasks versus human agents doing some of those same tasks, such as appointment booking. That said, we know that generative AI DRs make mistakes and it predicts things that don't end up being true. And we call those hallucinations. In the clinical world, we like to call them confabulations. It tends to be more clinically correct." #Infinitus #AIinHealthcare #VoiceAI #DigitalHealth #HealthIT #PriorAuth #PatientAccess #HealthcareInnovation #AgenticAI #PatientSafety #HealthcareAutomation infinitus.ai Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Erin Palm, medical lead at Infinitus, specializes in agentic AI for healthcare, leveraging voice technology to facilitate actions and execute tasks on behalf of providers, payers, and patients to coordinate administrative functions and patient-facing applications. These agents can handle appointment booking, medication inquiries, and emergency triage within an environment with rigorous quality controls and guardrails to mitigate  AI errors. The platform supports seven languages, adapts communication to technical levels, and integrates with patient systems to maintain clinical consistency and regulatory compliance. Erin explains, "We focus on agentic communications for healthcare, which means building AI agents that can have conversations and execute on tasks on behalf of patients, pharmaceutical manufacturers, providers, and health plans. And our thesis in all this is that the care exists. It's the coordination layer that sometimes falls short and fails patients, and Infinitus makes sure that that care arrives."   "It's a reality that we're holding AI to a different standard than we hold humans performing the same tasks. That said, I actually see it as an opportunity to improve quality across the board. And I think it's reasonable to hold AI to a higher standard. And we measure those things closely using continuous evaluations of agent performance even before we put them into production. And then once they're live with patients, we continue to closely monitor their performance."  "We have benchmarks that show improved performance on tasks versus human agents doing some of those same tasks, such as appointment booking. That said, we know that generative AI DRs make mistakes and it predicts things that don't end up being true. And we call those hallucinations. In the clinical world, we like to call them confabulations. It tends to be more clinically correct." #Infinitus #AIinHealthcare #VoiceAI #DigitalHealth #HealthIT #PriorAuth #PatientAccess #HealthcareInnovation #AgenticAI #PatientSafety #HealthcareAutomation infinitus.ai Download the transcript here

Jimmy Chang, Chairman and CEO of TaiMed Biologics,  is approaching critical unmet needs in HIV care, particularly for aging patients with comorbidities who face risks from drug-drug interactions with multiple medications. The company is advancing the next-generation antibodies designed for bimonthly injections and an alternative to daily oral medications, while minimizing enzymatic metabolism and associated drug interactions. While successful treatments for HIV have shifted the focus from survival to quality of life and managing a chronic condition, new challenges have emerged to ensure patient convenience and adherence.  Jimmy explains, "TaiMed is a biotech company based in Taiwan. Our focus is to develop innovative product for the HIV. And actually, over the years we have developed the first CD4-directed antibody for HIV treatment, and the product was approved in the US. And today we are currently focusing on developing the CD4-targeting antibody in a combination for long-acting HIV treatment."   "So in today's world, HIV therapies, HIV patients, or the people living with HIV, the field is HIV as a chronic disease. The patient can live longer and healthier just like everybody else. However, it requires dedication and commitment to medication because there's no cure today. HIV, the virus keeps mutating. So if the disease is not under control, this could be problematic, and basically one day the patient may run into a situation where most of the drugs do not work for the patient." "So in the earlier days, the innovations or the medications were mainly trying to have the virus under control, with the focus of the medications. And so nowadays, because people living with HIV actually have a very good health condition, just like typical individuals live longer and healthier. So this comorbidity, or we call it the polypharmacy drug-drug interaction, is really the challenge that the physicians or patients have to face every day. And with our innovations, we believe we have the opportunity to offer another innovative medication to specifically address those challenges." #TaiMed #HIVCare #LongActingTherapies #AntibodyTherapeutics #CD4 #Polypharmacy #InfectiousDiseases #TaiMedBiologics #EmpoweredPatient #HealthcareInnovation taimedbiologics.com Listen to the podcast here 

Jimmy Chang, Chairman and CEO of TaiMed Biologics,  is approaching critical unmet needs in HIV care, particularly for aging patients with comorbidities who face risks from drug-drug interactions with multiple medications. The company is advancing the next-generation antibodies designed for bimonthly injections and an alternative to daily oral medications, while minimizing enzymatic metabolism and associated drug interactions. While successful treatments for HIV have shifted the focus from survival to quality of life and managing a chronic condition, new challenges have emerged to ensure patient convenience and adherence.  Jimmy explains, "TaiMed is a biotech company based in Taiwan. Our focus is to develop innovative product for the HIV. And actually, over the years we have developed the first CD4-directed antibody for HIV treatment, and the product was approved in the US. And today we are currently focusing on developing the CD4-targeting antibody in a combination for long-acting HIV treatment."   "So in today's world, HIV therapies, HIV patients, or the people living with HIV, the field is HIV as a chronic disease. The patient can live longer and healthier just like everybody else. However, it requires dedication and commitment to medication because there's no cure today. HIV, the virus keeps mutating. So if the disease is not under control, this could be problematic, and basically one day the patient may run into a situation where most of the drugs do not work for the patient." "So in the earlier days, the innovations or the medications were mainly trying to have the virus under control, with the focus of the medications. And so nowadays, because people living with HIV actually have a very good health condition, just like typical individuals live longer and healthier. So this comorbidity, or we call it the polypharmacy drug-drug interaction, is really the challenge that the physicians or patients have to face every day. And with our innovations, we believe we have the opportunity to offer another innovative medication to specifically address those challenges." #TaiMed #HIVCare #LongActingTherapies #AntibodyTherapeutics #CD4 #Polypharmacy #InfectiousDiseases #TaiMedBiologics #EmpoweredPatient #HealthcareInnovation taimedbiologics.com Download the transcript here 

Dr. Katherine Hockman, Director of the Division of Hospital Medicine at NYU Langone Health, and Dilshad Marolia, System Director of Hospitals and Regulatory and Policy Management at NYU Langone Health, are co-leaders of the Patient Experience Book Club for the hospital employees.  Operating since 2012, the program has grown from six books to 12 books per year, with sessions offered in-person and virtually to reach across the entire health system and, in addition, hosts pop-up sessions with visiting authors. The club helps break down departmental silos within the hospital, fostering connections among employees by creating a safe space for intellectual and emotional engagement while helping to combat workplace burnout. Katherine explains, "So my feeling is the Patient Experience Book Club is so much more than just a club where we read books and talk about them. It's really become a community of individuals who get together and share their experience in caring for some of our sickest patients. And it's also become a great venue for the faculty and staff to get to know each other a lot better and to share some of their vulnerabilities. And Dilshad and I, we've really taken it in many, many different directions. So we started off just reading six books a year, and now we're doing 12 books a year and two sessions a month, one in person and one on video for people who are in all parts of our system who can't make it in person."   Dilshad elaborates, "But now also as a community of 53,000 people in our own health system and part of the wider community of New York City and New York State even, how do we view our communities and ourselves, and what books are transforming us, and what are we taking away from each experience? And the level of intellectual engagement is one thing, but there's a high, high level of emotional engagement that I think is rare to find in the workplace to create these safe spaces where you have a vehicle, and I'll use that word, through which you can have a discussion about a very pointed topic beyond, say, an academic journal." #NYULangone #Bookclub #PatientExperience #HumanityinHealthcare #HealthcareLeadership #EmpathyInHealthcare #BurnoutPrevention #HospitalCulture #MedicalHumanities  nyulangonehealth.org Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Katherine Hockman, Director of the Division of Hospital Medicine at NYU Langone Health, and Dilshad Marolia, System Director of Hospitals and Regulatory and Policy Management at NYU Langone Health, are co-leaders of the Patient Experience Book Club for the hospital employees.  Operating since 2012, the program has grown from six books to 12 books per year, with sessions offered in-person and virtually to reach across the entire health system and, in addition, hosts pop-up sessions with visiting authors. The club helps break down departmental silos within the hospital, fostering connections among employees by creating a safe space for intellectual and emotional engagement while helping to combat workplace burnout. Katherine explains, "So my feeling is the Patient Experience Book Club is so much more than just a club where we read books and talk about them. It's really become a community of individuals who get together and share their experience in caring for some of our sickest patients. And it's also become a great venue for the faculty and staff to get to know each other a lot better and to share some of their vulnerabilities. And Dilshad and I, we've really taken it in many, many different directions. So we started off just reading six books a year, and now we're doing 12 books a year and two sessions a month, one in person and one on video for people who are in all parts of our system who can't make it in person."   Dilshad elaborates, "But now also as a community of 53,000 people in our own health system and part of the wider community of New York City and New York State even, how do we view our communities and ourselves, and what books are transforming us, and what are we taking away from each experience? And the level of intellectual engagement is one thing, but there's a high, high level of emotional engagement that I think is rare to find in the workplace to create these safe spaces where you have a vehicle, and I'll use that word, through which you can have a discussion about a very pointed topic beyond, say, an academic journal." #NYULangone #Bookclub #PatientExperience #HumanityinHealthcare #HealthcareLeadership #EmpathyInHealthcare #BurnoutPrevention #HospitalCulture #MedicalHumanities nyulangonehealth.org Download the transcript here

David Schummers, CEO of Apella, uses ambient AI technology, primarily audio- and video-based computer vision, to collect accurate operational data in real time to improve hospital management.  With a key emphasis on operating room scheduling and resource management, this solution replaces manually entered data, which is often inaccurate and entered into the system late. The Apella platform helps hospitals optimize existing OR capacity and efficiency, reduces errors and documentation burden on nurses, provides accurate live operational information, and delivers economic benefits.   David explains, "Apella is focused on using modern technologies to improve the operations of the hospital. If you consider the contribution of hospital operations to our overall healthcare spending, it's about a third of every dollar spent in healthcare is spent on running hospitals, which is a pretty significant contribution. And depending where you were, unfortunately, a lot of that expense is wasted."  "So Apella has built a system for ambient detection that is able to improve the throughput of hospitals and improve the efficiency of hospitals. So that's what we're focused on. The product that we're working on right now is focused on the operating room, which is the largest revenue and expense driver of those health systems that we just talked about."   "So operating rooms are scheduled and managed using data that is entered into the electronic health record. And so the electronic health record was designed to capture all of the patient records and make them available and interoperable. It really wasn't designed as an operational system. As a result, the captured data is limited in several ways. The first way is that it is not always accurate because it's manually entered. What we've found is that about 5% of manually entered data points relate to the scheduling of surgeries and other procedures."  #Apella #HealthcareInnovation #OperatingRoom #AmbientAI #Perioperative #HospitalOperations #Nursing #DigitalHealth #EmpoweredPatient #AmbientAI #ORManagement #OREfficiency #PatientAccess #NursingStaffingCrisis  #HealthcareAI #PerioperativeCare #SurgicalInnovation #OROptimization #PatientOutcomes #EmpoweredPatient #NursingStaffingCrisis #HealthcareAI Apella.io Listen to the podcast here

Nate Stasko, CEO of Vast Therapeutics, is developing a novel nitric oxide-releasing therapy to treat chronic respiratory diseases, particularly fibrosis bronchiectasis, which is frequently misdiagnosed as asthma or COPD. Their lead drug candidate is a dual-mechanism therapy that is delivered to the lungs via a nebulizer to target both infection and inflammation with the potential to eradicate pathogens rather than just suppressing them. This approach, in early trials, is showing excellent tolerability and eliminates the need for chronic antibiotic use, which carries the risks of toxicity and contributes to antibiotic resistance.  Nate explains, "At Vast Therapeutics, our main idea and goal as a company is to come up with better solutions for the 500 million people worldwide who suffer from chronic respiratory disease. And there is a new disease getting a lot of attention that we're targeting with our lead program called bronchiectasis, and it's often been misdiagnosed as asthma or COPD. And now over a million patients in the US are being diagnosed with bronchiectasis. And the whole campaign is to teach physicians and the whole medical community to suspect this disease over some of these other misdiagnosed diseases."  "Traditionally, patients have been managed with either antibiotics to calm down the infection, but you know the problems of chronic antibiotic use- the liver toxicity, kidney toxicity, and hearing loss associated with long-term antibiotic use are just bad for these patients. Not to mention we have the global problem of antibiotic resistance. And so giving a 52-week course of therapy of antibiotics is less than ideal. And then recently, just last year, there's some hope for these patients where there was a new drug approved called brensocatib, which was the first drug ever approved for bronchiectasis by the FDA. And so now it targets the inflammation." "Having the ability to target two mechanisms of action would be the best therapy. And that's actually what Vast is developing. We're using the body's own ability to make and produce nitric oxide, which is a miracle molecule. And we're delivering nitric oxide back to these patients to target both the infection and inflammation at the same time and improve the overall standard of care for these patients."  #VastTherapeutics #Bronchiectasis #Pulmonology #NitricOxide #RespiratoryMedicine #AntimicrobialResistance #ALX1#ChronicLungDisease #HealthcareInnovation #ClinicalTrials vasttherapeutics.com Listen to the podcast here

Nate Stasko, CEO of Vast Therapeutics, is developing a novel nitric oxide-releasing therapy to treat chronic respiratory diseases, particularly fibrosis bronchiectasis, which is frequently misdiagnosed as asthma or COPD. Their lead drug candidate is a dual-mechanism therapy that is delivered to the lungs via a nebulizer to target both infection and inflammation with the potential to eradicate pathogens rather than just suppressing them. This approach, in early trials, is showing excellent tolerability and eliminates the need for chronic antibiotic use, which carries the risks of toxicity and contributes to antibiotic resistance.  Nate explains, "At Vast Therapeutics, our main idea and goal as a company is to come up with better solutions for the 500 million people worldwide who suffer from chronic respiratory disease. And there is a new disease getting a lot of attention that we're targeting with our lead program called bronchiectasis, and it's often been misdiagnosed as asthma or COPD. And now over a million patients in the US are being diagnosed with bronchiectasis. And the whole campaign is to teach physicians and the whole medical community to suspect this disease over some of these other misdiagnosed diseases."  "Traditionally, patients have been managed with either antibiotics to calm down the infection, but you know the problems of chronic antibiotic use- the liver toxicity, kidney toxicity, and hearing loss associated with long-term antibiotic use are just bad for these patients. Not to mention we have the global problem of antibiotic resistance. And so giving a 52-week course of therapy of antibiotics is less than ideal. And then recently, just last year, there's some hope for these patients where there was a new drug approved called brensocatib, which was the first drug ever approved for bronchiectasis by the FDA. And so now it targets the inflammation." "Having the ability to target two mechanisms of action would be the best therapy. And that's actually what Vast is developing. We're using the body's own ability to make and produce nitric oxide, which is a miracle molecule. And we're delivering nitric oxide back to these patients to target both the infection and inflammation at the same time and improve the overall standard of care for these patients."  #VastTherapeutics #Bronchiectasis #Pulmonology #NitricOxide #RespiratoryMedicine #AntimicrobialResistance #ALX1#ChronicLungDisease #HealthcareInnovation #ClinicalTrials vasttherapeutics.com Download the transcript here

Dr. Scott Walter is Director of Technology Transfer and Transition for the 59th Medical Wing of the Defense Health Agency located in San Antonio, Texas. The development of freeze-dried blood is a ground-breaking technology aimed at enabling medics to administer lifesaving blood transfusions at the point of injury. Scott highlights the logistical challenges of current blood products such as short shelf life, blood matching, and the need for cold storage, which this new technology would overcome. One of his current missions is to launch a prize competition to accelerate research, development, and commercialization of this technology, shifting the financial risk from the government to industry and expanding the uses of this product to dramatically improve survival rates and reduce long-term complications.   Scott explains, "Donated blood is very perishable lasting only about six weeks from the date of collection, and it must be maintained just above freezing until it's needed. And then it has to be warmed to body temperature before it can be infused. That makes it really difficult to impossible for medics to carry blood products with them when they're treating patients in remote austere locations like battlefields, for example."   "Well, the key is that freeze-drying enables the donated blood components to be collected, stored, and stockpiled for years after collection. The freeze-dried blood products can be carried by EMS units and medics. Then, once reconstituted, it can be given anywhere without the need for refrigeration." #TraumaCare #EmergencyMedicine #PrehospitalCare #CriticalCare #TransfusionMedicine #MilitaryMedicine #Innovation #FreezeDriedBlood #PatientOutcomes #GlobalHealth DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this podcast transcript are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Defense Health Agency, Department of War, nor the U.S. Government. Find out more about the prize competition Listen to the podcast here

Dr. Scott Walter is Director of Technology Transfer and Transition for the 59th Medical Wing of the Defense Health Agency located in San Antonio, Texas. The development of freeze-dried blood is a ground-breaking technology aimed at enabling medics to administer lifesaving blood transfusions at the point of injury. Scott highlights the logistical challenges of current blood products such as short shelf life, blood matching, and the need for cold storage, which this new technology would overcome. One of his current missions is to launch a prize competition to accelerate research, development, and commercialization of this technology, shifting the financial risk from the government to industry and expanding the uses of this product to dramatically improve survival rates and reduce long-term complications.   Scott explains, "Donated blood is very perishable lasting only about six weeks from the date of collection, and it must be maintained just above freezing until it's needed. And then it has to be warmed to body temperature before it can be infused. That makes it really difficult to impossible for medics to carry blood products with them when they're treating patients in remote austere locations like battlefields, for example."   "Well, the key is that freeze-drying enables the donated blood components to be collected, stored, and stockpiled for years after collection. The freeze-dried blood products can be carried by EMS units and medics. Then, once reconstituted, it can be given anywhere without the need for refrigeration." #TraumaCare #EmergencyMedicine #PrehospitalCare #CriticalCare #TransfusionMedicine #MilitaryMedicine #Innovation #FreezeDriedBlood #PatientOutcomes #GlobalHealth DISCLAIMER: The views expressed in this podcast transcript are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Defense Health Agency, Department of War, nor the U.S. Government. Find out more about the competition Download the transcript here

Dr. Panicos Shangaris is from King's College London, where he is a senior clinical lecturer and consultant in maternal and fetal medicine.  He discusses the treatment options for sickle cell disease, an inherited blood condition, and his work on the Pericles project, which aims to treat it before birth. In-utero gene therapy offers a third option for parents of an affected fetus alongside postnatal treatment or pregnancy termination. Panicos emphasizes key advantages of fetal therapy within the first 16 weeks of gestation, the need to address ethical concerns, and ensuring the safety of both the mother and fetus during the procedure.  Panicos explains, "So sickle cell disease is an inherited condition that affects the blood and the molecule in the red cell, which is basically the red blood cell that carries oxygen. So what happens is the red cell has a biconcave shape, and for people who have sickle cell disease, that biconcave shape is lost, and the erythrocyte red cells are sickle-shaped. So because of that, the sickle-shaped red cells have difficulty going through small capillaries and small vessels. They can cause strokes, they can cause pain because they block the blood flow to the small capillaries." "Yes, so the cause is because of an abnormal gene, which basically makes the hemoglobin, the molecule that carries oxygen around the different organs and around the body, instead of there being a problem in the genetic code, if I can put it like that. And that's why the erythrocyte, the red cells, have an abnormal shape. Very well-known what's causing it: a genetic problem." "So Pericles stands for prenatal therapy for Sickle Cell Disease. And what we are trying to achieve is to offer a third option to people who might carry a fetus affected by sickle cell disease. At the moment, the two options are stopping the pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or having an affected fetus and an unaffected baby and sick postnatal care. So our aim is to offer a third option, which is correcting the disease inside the womb so that the parents have a healthy baby. So correct the gene while the baby is inside the womb. And this is the main aim of the project." #KingsCollegeLondon #KCLResearch #GeneTherapy #PrenatalCare #Hematology #Genomics #EmpoweredPatient #PERICLES #SickleCellDisease #SickleCellAwareness #PreconceptionCare #BeforePregnancy #PregnancyPlanning #CarrierScreening #GeneticCounselling #ReproductiveChoices #PrenatalDiagnosis #PrenatalTherapy #InUteroTherapy #GeneEditing #StemCellTherapy #FetalMedicine #MaternalFetalMedicine #HighRiskPregnancy #IVFJourney #PGTM #PatientVoice #PatientEmpowerment #SharedDecisionMaking #HealthEquity #PrecisionMedicine #PersonalisedMedicine #FutureOfMedicine  kcl.ac.uk Listen to the podcast here 

Dr. Panicos Shangaris is from King's College London, where he is a senior clinical lecturer and consultant in maternal and fetal medicine.  He discusses the treatment options for sickle cell disease, an inherited blood condition, and his work on the Pericles project, which aims to treat it before birth. In-utero gene therapy offers a third option for parents of an affected fetus alongside postnatal treatment or pregnancy termination. Panicos emphasizes key advantages of fetal therapy within the first 16 weeks of gestation, the need to address ethical concerns, and ensuring the safety of both the mother and fetus during the procedure.  Panicos explains, "So sickle cell disease is an inherited condition that affects the blood and the molecule in the red cell, which is basically the red blood cell that carries oxygen. So what happens is the red cell has a biconcave shape, and for people who have sickle cell disease, that biconcave shape is lost, and the erythrocyte red cells are sickle-shaped. So because of that, the sickle-shaped red cells have difficulty going through small capillaries and small vessels. They can cause strokes, they can cause pain because they block the blood flow to the small capillaries." "Yes, so the cause is because of an abnormal gene, which basically makes the hemoglobin, the molecule that carries oxygen around the different organs and around the body, instead of there being a problem in the genetic code, if I can put it like that. And that's why the erythrocyte, the red cells, have an abnormal shape. Very well-known what's causing it: a genetic problem." "So Pericles stands for prenatal therapy for Sickle Cell Disease. And what we are trying to achieve is to offer a third option to people who might carry a fetus affected by sickle cell disease. At the moment, the two options are stopping the pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or having an affected fetus and an unaffected baby and sick postnatal care. So our aim is to offer a third option, which is correcting the disease inside the womb so that the parents have a healthy baby. So correct the gene while the baby is inside the womb. And this is the main aim of the project." #KingsCollegeLondon #KCLResearch #GeneTherapy #PrenatalCare #Hematology #Genomics #EmpoweredPatient #PERICLES #SickleCellDisease #SickleCellAwareness #PreconceptionCare #BeforePregnancy #PregnancyPlanning #CarrierScreening #GeneticCounselling #ReproductiveChoices #PrenatalDiagnosis #PrenatalTherapy #InUteroTherapy #GeneEditing #StemCellTherapy #FetalMedicine #MaternalFetalMedicine #HighRiskPregnancy #IVFJourney #PGTM #PatientVoice #PatientEmpowerment #SharedDecisionMaking #HealthEquity #PrecisionMedicine #PersonalisedMedicine #FutureOfMedicine  kcl.ac.uk Download the transcript here