Empowered Patient Podcast

Kevin Caldwell, CEO, President, and Co-Founder of Ossium Health, discusses the opportunities for regenerative stem-cell therapies and the challenges of obtaining bone marrow from donors for bone marrow transplants.  Ossium Health is collecting bone marrow from healthy, young donors and utilizing a cryopreservation process that enables long-term storage and on-demand availability of these cells. Ongoing clinical trials using allogeneic bone-marrow-derived cells to treat patients with acute leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome are showing promising results. Kevin explains, "Our mission is to improve the health, longevity, and vitality of human beings through bioengineering. We believe that regenerative therapeutics, which involve cell and gene therapies that can permanently and positively improve human biology, will be fundamental to the prevention of disease and the preservation of health as we age. One of the most powerful tools we have in achieving this goal is engineering the immune system. And in particu

Ann Bilyew, Executive VP of Health and Group General Manager at WebMD Ignite, works with hospitals, health systems, and payers to provide technology that builds trust, reduces administrative burdens on providers, and personalizes engagements with patients and members. While AI-powered solutions are showing great promise, challenges arise in deploying new technologies due to legacy infrastructure, interoperability issues, and the need to balance innovation with potential risks and costs. A strong foundation of high-quality, clinically reviewed content is key to the ability to provide accurate information on demand. Ann explains, "We work with hospitals, health systems, payers, and essentially everybody involved in the provision or payment support in healthcare. And we work with 90% of US-based hospitals and health systems and about an equal percentage of all of the top payers in the United States." "I'd say one of the key themes that we hear time and time again across all of our clients and all of our partner

Greg Farnum, Senior VP and General Manager at Audacious Inquiry, a PointClickCare company, brings expertise in health information exchange, public health, and health IT policy. Audacious is using AI to reduce administrative burdens and improve clinical workflows, facilitating data exchange, enhancing decision-making, and providing a better patient experience. Working with the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy and other federal and state agencies, Audacious is developing tools to summarize lengthy test results, generate educational materials, and suggest relevant responses to public inquiries. Greg explains, "We have a full-stack engineering team, a managed services team, expertise in health IT policy and regulation, health IT standards, public health, and now artificial intelligence. So we work with ASTP (Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy), which is also known as the old ONCCDC, plus a bunch of other federal and state agencies, HIEs, and public health. We are part of PointClickCare, a leadin

Dr. Abe Delpassand, Founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board at RadioMedix, is concentrated on the development of radiopharmaceuticals for cancer diagnosis and treatment. Advancements in handling radioactive materials and increased availability have enabled the growth of the use of alpha-emitting and beta-emitting radioisotopes in treating cancers that have been resistant to other therapies. Alpha-emitting radioisotopes are particularly interesting because they can cause double-strand DNA damage in cancer cells, making the probability of cancer recurrence much less likely. Abe explains, "Just a brief introduction related to what radiopharmaceuticals are. These are drugs that have three parts, basically. One part is the radioactive material. The second part is what we call a ligand. It's like a vehicle that takes the radioactive material to the target that we have. And there is a third component, which is like a chain attaching the radioisotope to the ligand. Radiopharmaceuticals qualify as a form of therapy b

Kurt Lunkwitz, Chief Operating Officer at ProRx Pharma, describes the role compound pharmacies play in filling gaps when certain drugs are in short supply and providing personalized medications for patients. Compound pharmacies offer a wide range of customized formulations and delivery methods to meet the specific needs of patients, particularly in the areas of functional and preventative medicines. These pharmacies are enabling a shift towards precision medicine and individualized care, responding to the market demand for alternative and preferred formulations of medications.  Kurt explains, "There's primary clientele and then there's secondary clientele. Our primary clientele includes a host of prescribers, medical clinics, and could be telemedicine-type companies, and med spas. There are tens of thousands of these types of practitioner offices across the country, and it's a wide and booming industry as it relates to functional medicine, alternative medicine, or as we like to refer to it, preventative care

Amanda Wiggins is CEO of cGP Lab, a New Zealand-based company that is commercializing cycline Glycine Proline, cGP, a dipeptide molecule that helps regulate blood vessel formation. The Lab is pursuing a medical food regulatory pathway to bring its cGP-based products to the market for the dietary management of peripheral neuropathy and other vascular complications of type 2 diabetes and is exploring the potential for Parkinson's disease and other dementias. The Lab sources cGP from a combination of New Zealand blackcurrant and beef bone collagen using a proprietary manufacturing process. Amanda explains, "The cGP Lab is a relatively new company. We were formed in 2020, and our mission is really to commercialize a really interesting dipeptide molecule called cycline Glycine Proline, or cGP for short. Although we're new to commercializing it, there's quite a huge body of evidence that sits behind where we've got today. Our Chief Science Officer, Dr. Jian Guan, has researched cGP for around 30 years. It's her li

Dan Nardi, the CEO of Reimagine Care, is using a technology-enabled platform to support cancer patients and clinicians to extend care beyond the clinic and address the unique challenges of cancer treatments. The evolving landscape of cancer therapies and rise of oral and subcutaneous methods of delivering drug has increased the need for remote patient support and medication management. The use of AI and digital tools provide significant opportunities to help triage patient questions and reports of side effects to provide necessary, timely support from clinicians. Dan explains, "At Reimagine Care, we focus on helping to support providers as they are providing care for patients going through cancer treatment. We built an on-demand cancer care platform that combines technology and an oncology-trained clinical care team. Then we partner with our providers, our oncologists around the country, to help them extend the really great care that they provide for patients in the clinic. We help them extend that and suppor

Dr. Eden Miller is an osteopathic board-certified family practitioner, a type 1 diabetic, and Founder of the nonprofit organization Diabetes Nation. The guidelines for injection technique have not been updated in 10 years, and poor injection can lead to improper medication absorption and other complications. The recently released FITTER Forward Guidelines address established approaches for clinicians and patients to improve injection practices, especially for those using injectable therapies such as insulin or GLP-1 agonists.  This initiative was brought together by embecta, which worked with Dr. Miller and other experts to revise the guidelines. Eden explains, "So the FITTER Forward Guidelines are taking the concept of injection technique and injection instruction, and giving it a fresh new look, a new peering back into something that many of us as clinicians kind of feel that we have nailed down. But what we have found with looking into communicating with patients, how to do injections, and how to maximize

Dr. Jay Anders, Chief Medical Officer at Medicomp Systems, discusses the issue of dirty data — inaccurate and inconsistent medical data — and its origins, as well as how technology can be used to maintain correct health records. These kinds of errors can lead to incorrect diagnoses, inappropriate treatment, and negative consequences for patients, providers, and payers. AI and other technologies are being leveraged to help identify and flag inconsistencies, providing stakeholders with the tools to prioritize accuracy over efficiency.  Jay explains, "What we do at Medicomp is a clinical knowledge engine with a knowledge graph that's built in that helps clinicians document, sort data, and clean up data. That engine was developed 46 years ago, and it's been done over again in different iterations for those 46 years. We're now incorporating new technologies inside of it to make it more efficient. But we handle medical data in documentation, presentation, and cleanup."   "Well, dirty data has been around since phy

Doug Ryan, CEO of Arineta, describes the advancements in cardiac CT imaging technology and how their ultra-fast scanning is revealing more accurate and higher-quality imaging of the heart. Using wide-area coverage and deep learning image reconstruction, the Arineta platform can detect arterial occlusions and coronary plaque buildup, which is a significant risk factor for sudden cardiac events and is often missed when relying solely on calcium scoring. The development of a mobile cardiac CT scanning unit is improving access to this technology, particularly in rural and underserved areas. Doug explains, "What you're trying to do is to stop the most complex organ inside the human body. The human heart translates, rotates, and beats somewhere between 60 and 100 beats per minute. So you really need advanced CT technology that comprises a great many areas, but the most important things are coverage speed and the ability to reconstruct it very quickly." "You're using advanced algorithms like our DLIR, our deep lear

Kory Daniels, Chief Information Security Officer at Trustwave,  highlights the unique cybersecurity challenges facing the healthcare industry, particularly in this environment of funding constraints and the increasing sophistication of cyberattacks. Healthcare data is highly valuable to cybercriminals, who can use it for ransomware attacks, identity and insurance fraud, and other nefarious purposes. AI can be part of both the attack and the solution, helping to build in more cyber resilience and awareness about vulnerabilities. Kory explains, "Healthcare is a prime target for cyberattacks for a very fundamental reason. When human lives are at risk due to a criminal objective—which is to make money—they view organizations where human lives are at risk as a greater potential and opportunity. Facilitation of ransomware payments: Ransomware is one of the largest tactics that criminals use to achieve financial gain, but it's not the only tactic they use to achieve financial gain. So, they're looking to exploit th

Matt Brown, VP of Telehealth at Advisory Services at CHG Healthcare, discusses the current state and future of telehealth, including the rapid adoption during the COVID-19 pandemic, the role of technology and AI in enhancing telehealth experiences, and how telehealth can help address physician and nurse burnout. Improved internet access, mobile device usage, and consumer preferences for convenience have driven the increasing telehealth usage for initial visits, follow-up appointments, and chronic care management.   Matt explains, "We are the nation's largest staffing agency. So, we're actually the founders of what's known as the locum tenens marketplace. CHG has been a pioneer in bringing physician services into remote and rural locations across the United States for the past four years. And over the last 10 years or so, we've continued to innovate on top of that physician-led experience and started to bring technology operations, as well as consulting services and telehealth, into the marketplace. So think

Dr. Chuck Link is the Executive Chairman of Syncromune, a company developing a novel immunotherapy approach for solid tumors by delivering the therapy into the tumor and surrounding lymph nodes to stimulate a systemic immune response. Their complex drug has four different components with varying levels of activity that activate the immune system and counteract immune suppression. This in situ immunotherapy technology, SYNC-T, was tested in a phase 1 trial for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, which showed high response rates and a favorable safety profile with low rates of serious side effects and minimal autoimmune toxicity.   Chuck explains, "So, SYNC-T is a technology in which you put a needle directly into a tumor that can be done by a urologist in the prostate cancer situation, or by an interventional radiologist. That needle then the tip of it freezes, and does a freeze fracture. Think of a Coke bottle rupturing like in the freezer. And what that does is release the antigens from that pat

David Sontag, CEO and Co-Founder of Layer Health, describes the environment of chart reviews in healthcare and how AI and large language models can be used to analyze a patient's medical record to extract key clinical details. Applying natural language processing to medical records has been challenging due to the complexity of the language and the longitudinal nature of the data. This large language approach from Layer can enhance clinical decision-making, quality measurement, regulatory compliance, and patient outcomes. David explains, "Every patient will have experienced a chart review at some point. Whether it's when they've come home from a medical visit and go to their electronic medical record to look at the notes written by their providers. Or it's been experienced in the patient room, in the doctor’s room, watching a clinician review the past medical records to try to get a better context of what's going on with that patient, so that's from the patient’s perspective." "The same thing happens everywher

Alexandra Paul is the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at Accolade, a company that provides comprehensive healthcare for its members by integrating digital health solutions and leveraging AI. The company focuses on addressing the healthcare needs of underserved communities, such as truck drivers, and provides 24/7/365 access to virtual care. The Experience Store and WayFinding navigator utilizes AI and large language models to deliver real-time, chat-based guidance and personalized treatment options based on plan benefits.   Alexandra explains, "What's really important for us is ensuring that we are targeting the right buyer who can help us really get in front of members to help them navigate a complex healthcare experience. Our core foundation is being the one place to go for health and care. And so, whether that's through a health plan offering or whether that's through an employer benefit offering, we've truly become kind of that front door experience and what we call WayFinding, which is our AI-p

Julio Martinez-Clark, Co-Founder and CEO of Bioaccess, a Latin American MedTech CRO that works with US-based medtech and biopharma startups to conduct their first-in-human trials outside the US to accelerate development and recruitment. Data from overseas clinical trials conducted to international standards is considered valid and can support conversations with investors, strategic partners, and the FDA. Drawing on resources in the Balkans, Latin America, and Australia, clinical trials can get faster approvals, more easily recruit patients, and benefit those living in the communities where clinical trials are conducted.   Julio explains, "The mission is to accelerate global clinical trials, and the type of clients is mostly us. Occasionally, we have European clients, but they're mostly San Francisco-based, Boston-based, San Diego-based, Minnesota-based, or Boston-based companies that are looking to execute a first-in-human clinical study outside of the United States. And for many reasons, Latin America is an

Nicole Clark, Co-Founder and CEO of the Adult and Pediatric Institute for Health and Wellness, a comprehensive, personalized psychiatric practice that takes a holistic approach to mental health, looking at the interconnection of physical, cognitive, and emotional health. Nicole has two daughters with autism, which has informed the Institute's focus on serving the autism community, especially in these times of changes in the definition of autism spectrum disorder. Services include psychiatric and autism evaluations, medication management, education, and early intervention for children and adults and their family members.  Nicole explains, "We're a comprehensive psychiatric practice, and we're kind of unique in that we have fully blended behavioral and mental health therapy. We see an individual as a whole person. They're not just one piece of their identity. They have multiple pieces of their identity. And so we don't like to only focus on a singular issue. We like to look at the person as a whole, and so we

Bob Roda, President and CEO of HemoSonics, highlights the current blood shortage and the challenges of patient blood management to minimize the need for transfusions. The HemoSonics Quanta Analyzer technology utilizes ultrasound to measure blood viscosity, providing real-time information on the patient's coagulation status and enabling clinicians to make more informed decisions about blood product administration. This approach can be applied in the operating room, emergency rooms, and hospital laboratories to improve patient outcomes and yield cost savings for the healthcare system.  Bob explains, "As a company, we are very centered and focused on helping to shape human healthcare moving forward. Specifically, as it relates to coagulation management, we have a technology that is about five years old, and in layman's terms, it helps to identify what is going on with your blood in terms of coagulation, intraoperatively, and in near real-time. So what does that mean? It means that it is an aid for clinicians as

Dr. David Carmouche, Chief Clinical Transformation Officer at Lumeris, is addressing the primary care shortage by providing a platform that supports primary care physicians in managing a broader patient population and delivering better health outcomes. The Lumeris platform, Tom, is an AI-powered virtual assistant that can interact with patients, provide chronic disease management, education and support, and coordinate care on behalf of providers. Tom can improve efficiency, reduce clinician burnout, and provide more convenient and personalized experiences for patients.  David explains, "And so, they built the company, Lumeris, as a commercialization arm of their relationship to empower other primary care physicians to manage populations and deliver better health outcomes at a lower cost. And so for the last 12 years or so, Lumaris has been partnering largely with large medical groups and health systems to help them manage populations, Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial populations, and helping drive high per

Jeff Bennett, Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at Modivcare, is addressing and expanding supportive care services to provide transportation, personal care services, and remote patient monitoring. A lack of transportation leads to missed appointments and therapies, necessitating a coordinated approach to support vulnerable populations. Modivcare utilizes remote sensors and AI to enhance human engagement and coordination, and is designed to be both preventative and predictive, keeping patients healthy and out of the hospital.  Jeff explains, "Modivcare works on behalf of health plans, states, and risk-based entities. We provide supportive care services that meet the needs and address the needs of patients. One of those services is transportation, so non-emergency medical transportation. We also provide personal care services, which support members with activities of daily living, like bathing, meal preparation, and such. And then finally, I lead the monitoring organization, which provides services to moni