The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show

What if the communities healthcare calls "hard to reach" aren't hard to reach at all? What if we're the ones getting it wrong?That's a question Dr. Melissa Gutierrez-Kapheim, PhD, Director of Health Equity Research at the Sinai Urban Health Institute in Chicago, has spent much of her career exploring.In this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Dr. Gutierrez-Kapheim to explore what it really takes to build trust in healthcare, improve access to care, and bring meaningful innovation into underserved communities.Melissa shares a story from early in her career when a community health worker returned from a home visit without the research data she was supposed to collect. What initially felt like a failure became one of the most important lessons of Melissa's career.They also explore a troubling reality in healthcare innovation: sometimes the very technologies designed to improve care can actually make health disparities worse.And then there's the research that every parent, educator, and community leader needs to hear.Melissa's team found that 60% of teenage girls surveyed across Chicago reported loneliness. What the girls shared about social media, human connection, and the importance of having a trusted adult in their lives may surprise you.This conversation goes beyond healthcare research. It's about listening to people, earning trust, and remembering who we're actually trying to help.IN THIS EPISODE:Why "hard-to-reach populations" may be the wrong way to think about healthcare accessThe critical difference between trust and institutional trustworthinessHow community health workers improve care by meeting people where they areWhy community engagement must be an ongoing relationshipHow healthcare innovation and AI can unintentionally widen health disparitiesThe importance of bringing clinical trials into underserved communitiesWhat new research reveals about loneliness, social media, and teenage mental healthWhy trusted adults outside the family can make a meaningful difference in young people's livesCHAPTERS00:00 Introduction: Are communities really hard to reach?03:06 Where the "hard to reach" problem begins05:57 Trust vs. trustworthiness in healthcare08:25 How inequality affects trust in health systems10:09 Building relationships within communities11:40 The community health worker who changed Melissa's perspective15:17 Why social support matters as much as medical care17:47 What went wrong recruiting girls for a Chicago study20:35 Community engagement means showing up for others22:46 Inverse equity: When innovation makes disparities worse25:10 Will AI widen the healthcare access gap?26:04 Bringing clinical trials to underserved communities28:57 The loneliness crisis among teenage girls30:01 Why 60% of Chicago girls reported loneliness31:11 Social media, loneliness, and emotional well-being32:34 Why trusted adults outside the family matter34:08 Human connection vs. the algorithm35:49 Inside the Sinai Urban Health Institute37:39 Why Melissa returned to Sinai Chicago38:50 Closing thoughts and final takeawaysABOUT OUR GUESTDr. Melissa Gutierrez-Kapheim is the Director of Health Equity Research at the Sinai Urban Health Institute (SUHI), the research arm of Sinai Chicago. Her work focuses on community-engaged research, health equity, social epidemiology, loneliness, and the relationships between neighborhoods, social connection, and health outcomes.Learn more about Sinai Urban Health Institute:https://www.sinaichicago.org/📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Why do promising healthcare startups struggle to bring their innovations to patients? And what separates founders who make real progress from those who get stuck?On this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Megan Kane, Executive Director of Rellia Health, to explore what it really takes to build and grow a medical device or digital health company.Megan has spent much of her career navigating FDA regulations, quality management, and the complexities of bringing healthcare technology to market. Today, she's helping entrepreneurs overcome those same challenges through a growing network of 81 founders and more than 250 advisors.Her journey into entrepreneurship wasn't exactly planned. What started with an invitation to judge a healthcare hackathon eventually led her to build an organization focused on helping founders turn promising ideas into measurable progress.In this conversation, we explore:* Why FDA regulation doesn't have to be the enemy of healthcare innovation* Common mistakes medical device and digital health startups make* How founders can approach regulatory strategy and clinical validation* The importance of mentorship, relationships, and access to the right people* Why startup accelerators need to focus on outcomes, not just advice* How Rellia Health is helping founders navigate the path from concept to commercializationRellia Health: https://www.relliahealth.com/aboutWhat great healthcare founders and leaders have in commonOne of the most interesting stories Megan shares involves a simple introduction between a telehealth founder and a rural healthcare network. That connection helped launch a pilot program and eventually inspired something much bigger.It's a reminder that sometimes the right relationship can move an idea forward faster than months of planning.Whether you're building a healthcare startup, investing in medical technology, working in digital health, or helping bring innovation into health systems, there's plenty to take away from this conversation.Chapters: 00:00 Why Great Healthcare Innovations Struggle03:23 Megan Kane's Journey Into Healthcare05:34 From Microbiology to FDA Regulatory Strategy07:02 Understanding Medical Device Regulations08:08 Common Misconceptions About the FDA09:37 Discovering the Healthcare Startup Ecosystem12:04 How One Introduction Launched a Telehealth Pilot13:52 The Unexpected Journey to Founding Relia Health15:38 Helping 81 Healthcare Founders Make Progress17:32 What Makes Relia Health Different19:28 Lessons Learned Building a Healthcare Startup21:58 The Future of Relia Health23:38 What Great Healthcare Founders Do Differently25:14 The Leadership Lesson Every Founder Needs26:56 Advice for the Next Generation of Healthcare Innovators28:00 Final Thoughts and Closing📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

What if a clinical trial wasn’t a last resort, but a chance to access tomorrow’s medicine today?Dr. Jad Chahoud, Chief Scientific and Innovation Officer at Orlando Health Cancer Institute, joins the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show for a conversation about the rapidly changing future of cancer care, clinical trials, precision medicine, immunotherapy and patient access.For Dr. Chahoud, clinical research isn’t separate from cancer care. It is part of cancer care.In this episode, Dr. Chahoud shares how he evaluates experimental therapies, why geography and insurance can still determine access to cutting-edge cancer treatment, and what health systems need to build if they want clinical trials to reach more patients closer to home.The conversation also gets deeply personal.Dr. Chahoud shares the story of deciding as a child in Lebanon that he would become a physician in America, the chance encounter that led him toward oncology, and what it feels like to sit across from a patient and tell them they have Stage IV cancer.He also explains why he has never accepted the idea that oncologists need to emotionally detach from their patients.And near the end of the conversation, Dr. Chahoud tells the remarkable story of a 37-year-old patient who arrived for a clinical trial with only weeks to live. Three years later, that patient is alive and in complete response.This is a conversation about cancer research and innovation, and ultimately about something much bigger: giving patients more options, more access and more time.CHAPTERS00:00 – Clinical trials as access to tomorrow’s medicine04:46 – Why clinical trials belong in everyday cancer care07:36 – A childhood dream of becoming a doctor in America08:43 – The moment that led Dr. Chahoud to oncology11:38 – Taking on a rare cancer few researchers were studying15:44 – The emotional weight of being an oncologist18:23 – What it feels like to deliver difficult news to a patient20:55 – What’s happening in cancer treatment that most people don’t know24:52 – How many patients never know another treatment option exists?26:48 – Geography, insurance and access to advanced cancer care28:31 – How Dr. Chahoud evaluates a clinical trial32:29 – Building a better clinical trials engine34:16 – Why expanding clinical trials across health systems is so difficult35:24 – Following the work at Orlando Health Cancer Institute36:50 – Lightning round37:22 – The cancer trial Dr. Chahoud is watching closely39:12 – If he weren’t an oncologist, what would he be?39:36 – The patient given weeks to live who is alive three years later42:04 – Innovation, access and hope📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Why do some promising healthcare startups scale while others never make it out of the starting blocks?In this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Warren Templeton, Managing Director at Health 2047, and Jill Miranda, Strategic Consultant at Health 2047, to unpack what it really takes to build, fund and scale a healthcare company.Health 2047 was founded with backing from the American Medical Association to bring clinical insight and entrepreneurship together.And building in healthcare is hard.A founder can have great science and a compelling product and still face regulatory risk, technology risk, fundraising pressure and healthcare sales cycles that can stretch 18 to 24 months.Warren and Jill share what Health 2047 has learned working alongside founders, why understanding the problem matters more than falling in love with the solution, and why the first customer can become one of the most important relationships a healthcare company ever builds.The conversation also explores:• What Health 2047 looks for in healthcare founders• Why some healthcare startups fail• The difference between a “vitamin” and a true “painkiller”• What founders underestimate about selling into health systems• Why trust and relationships matter when scaling• How AI could change the economics of building a startup• Where women's health innovation and investment are headed• Why coachability and adaptability separate foundersFor healthcare founders, investors, clinicians and health system leaders, this is a candid look at what happens after the idea.Because having a great idea in healthcare is one thing. Building something that survives long enough to matter is another.📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Melissa Lederer has seen thousands of startups.After enough reps, you start to see the patterns.Why some founders make it. Why others struggle. Why great technology alone isn’t enough. And why trying to build a healthcare company by yourself can become a major liability.Melissa has had an unusual front-row seat to all of it.She was part of the founding team at 1871, helped build MATTER’s healthcare innovation community, and today serves as Chief Experience Officer at mHUB, where entrepreneurs are building medical devices, hard tech, and physical products.In this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Melissa and Michael Stamatinos get into what she has learned from watching founders up close.They talk about what mHUB looks for before investing, why coachability matters, the danger of single-founder companies, what separates great founders from great storytellers, and why access to the right people can completely change a company’s trajectory.They also get into something that may surprise people.Hardware is getting interesting again.After years of venture dollars pouring into software, Melissa believes the combination of AI, compute, medical technology, and physical products is changing the equation. In her words, “hardware is the moat.”And the Midwest may have more of the ingredients needed to win that race than people realize.This conversation is about founders. It’s also about something bigger: what happens when you intentionally build environments where talented people, capital, industry, mentors, and opportunity collide.Because innovation rarely happens alone.If you’re building in healthcare, investing in early-stage companies, or trying to understand what separates promising ideas from companies that actually make it, this episode is worth your time.Learn more about mHub: https://mhub.org/Timestamps: 00:00 – Welcome to the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show04:18 – Meet Melissa Lederer04:52 – From Flint, Michigan to the innovation world08:58 – Building 1871 from the ground up11:17 – What people don’t see about building innovation ecosystems14:26 – Why healthcare led to MATTER16:42 – The founders Melissa still thinks about18:10 – Inside mHUB: What Melissa looks for20:15 – Why founders struggle to ask for help22:23 – What mHUB looks for before investing25:12 – The patterns you see after thousands of startups27:34 – Great technology vs. a great storyteller28:45 – Why building physical products is different31:04 – Why Melissa is bullish on the Midwest35:02 – Access, impact and building something bigger than yourself37:18 – How to get involved with mHUB38:17 – Rapid fire: The most underrated founder quality39:40 – Closing thoughts📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Every medical breakthrough begins with a clinical trial. Yet for millions of patients, participating in one has never really been an option.Only 12% of U.S. hospitals are currently equipped to run clinical trials, leaving most patients dependent on where they live, where they receive care, and whether they can travel to one of the relatively few centers offering research.Heather Grey believes we’ve been asking the wrong question.Instead of asking how we get more patients to clinical trials, what if we brought clinical trials to the patients?In Episode 200 of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Heather Grey, CEO and co-founder of Elixir Trials, to explore her effort to rethink how clinical research reaches patients, physicians, community hospitals, and underserved health systems.Heather has spent more than 15 years working across clinical trials, pharmaceutical partnerships, and healthcare. The idea behind Elixir Trials came into focus during a dinner with the leadership team of a safety net hospital struggling just to make nursing payroll.The hospital wanted to participate in clinical research. The patients were there. The physicians were there.What they didn’t have was the money, people, technology, regulatory infrastructure, and operational support required to build a clinical trial program.Heather saw a problem worth solving.Elixir Trials is building a model designed to turn community hospitals into research-ready sites without forcing each organization to recreate the infrastructure of a major academic medical center.The conversation goes well beyond clinical trials.Heather shares the unlikely path that took her from kindergarten teacher and single mother to pharmaceutical sales, clinical research executive, and eventually founder and CEO. She talks about the grandmother who taught her that nobody else gets to decide what she is capable of, why building LEGO helps her think through difficult problems, and why she never set out to become an entrepreneur.Michael and Heather also unpack two of the biggest bottlenecks in clinical research today: patient enrollment and patient adherence.When participating in a trial means repeatedly traveling hours away from home, leaving the physician you trust, and adding appointments while already dealing with a serious illness, access becomes more than a logistical problem.It becomes a human one.In this episode:00:00 – Welcome to Episode 200 of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show04:24 – Why Heather builds LEGO when she gets stuck07:05 – What Heather was like as a kid08:01 – The grandmother who shaped how Heather sees possibility11:17 – From kindergarten teacher and single mom to healthcare14:52 – The problem Heather could no longer ignore15:07 – Why only 12% of U.S. hospitals can offer clinical trials17:13 – The dinner that became the origin story of Elixir Trials20:59 – Using philanthropy to expand clinical trial access22:45 – Leaving a successful career to build something new24:13 – Where the traditional clinical trial model breaks down26:46 – Building Elixir Trials like a LEGO set27:42 – The two biggest bottlenecks in clinical research29:21 – Why bringing trials closer to patients matters31:26 – Technology vs. trust: which is harder to build?34:12 – How becoming CEO changed Heather’s view of leadership36:37 – Where AI can actually improve clinical research40:05 – A message for community hospitals considering research41:26 – Where to follow Heather and Elixir Trials42:09 – Lightning roundLearn more about Elixir Trials: elixirtrials.com📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Every health system seems to be investing in AI.The bigger question is whether they’re actually building the foundation to use it.In E199 of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Dr. Justin Norden, CEO and co-founder of Qualified Health, to talk about what happens when healthcare moves beyond experimenting with AI and starts building it into the way the organization actually operates.Justin brings an unusual perspective to the conversation. He’s a physician, computer scientist, former Apple team member, venture capitalist, healthcare AI entrepreneur and, yes, a three-time world champion in ultimate frisbee.Their conversation gets into one of the biggest challenges facing health systems right now: AI tools are multiplying faster than many organizations can integrate, govern and measure them.Justin explains why Qualified Health approaches the problem from the infrastructure level, creating a common foundation that can support use cases across revenue cycle, clinical care, operations and the workforce instead of continually adding another disconnected solution.They also dig into:• Why trust may be the most important currency in healthcare AI• What health system leaders should look for when evaluating AI companies• Why customer outcomes matter more than AI marketing• How one health system generated significant financial impact in less than six months• Using AI to identify gaps in guideline-driven patient care• Why healthcare AI requires infrastructure, governance and measurable outcomes• How AI could change health system margins, workforce and operations• Why Justin believes health systems could soon begin separating into two very different groups• What happens when AI stops being a “project” and becomes part of how a health system operatesTimestamps: 00:00 – Why Health Systems Are Losing Control of AI03:16 – Meet Dr. Justin Norden03:26 – From World Champion Athlete to Healthcare AI05:22 – Why Medicine + Computer Science08:41 – The Trust Problem in Healthcare AI11:20 – What Qualified Health Actually Does14:16 – How AI Created $15M in Health System Impact18:00 – How Health Systems Can Separate AI Hype From Reality21:07 – Why Customer Results Matter More Than Marketing22:38 – What Healthcare Could Look Like in Five Years26:08 – AI Can’t Just Be Another ProjectJustin also shares why some of the healthcare problems that interest him most aren't things medicine doesn't know how to solve.They're the things we already know how to solve, yet patients still fall through the cracks.That may be where AI ultimately creates some of its greatest value.If you work in healthcare leadership, digital health, AI, clinical operations, or health system innovation, this is a conversation worth hearing.📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

What happens when $50 billion is put toward transforming rural healthcare?The money may be available. The need is certainly there. But Sunny Lu Williams believes the real question is whether rural communities will have a meaningful voice in deciding what transformation actually looks like.In Episode 197 of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Sunny Lu Williams, President of TechServe Corporation, to explore the future of rural healthcare, community-based access, population health, and the Rural Health Transformation Program.Sunny’s story begins long before healthcare.Her grandmother immigrated to the United States from Taiwan, learned English, and started TechServe in 1992. Three generations later, Sunny is leading the family business and pushing it into an entirely different chapter.Their conversation explores why schools, faith-based organizations, community groups, and local leaders may become critical pieces of the healthcare infrastructure in rural America.Sunny also explains why simply putting more money into the existing healthcare system may not create transformation.The bigger challenge is making sure rural communities have a seat at the table.In this conversation:• How Sunny became the third generation of her family to lead TechServe• What she learned about leadership from watching another family business• Why TechServe moved from traditional IT into population health• Why schools can become a powerful front door to healthcare• How StatWatch supports community health, case management, and patient monitoring• What happened when nearly $20 million in contracted federal awards were rescinded• Why data and measurable outcomes matter when funding disappears• The opportunity behind the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program• Why governance may be one of the biggest barriers facing rural communities• The connection between rural health and economic development• Why transformation has to be built with communities, not simply delivered to them• Sunny’s vision for community-based healthcare access five years from nowOne idea from Sunny captures much of the conversation:“You can only be strategic on the outcomes.”This episode is about rural healthcare, but it’s also about something bigger: who gets a voice when systems are redesigned, where healthcare actually happens, and what it takes to build something that lasts.If you care about rural health, population health, healthcare access, community health, health innovation, or the future of healthcare delivery, this conversation is worth your time.Timestamps: 03:51 Why Rural Healthcare Transformation Matters04:26 The Immigrant Story Behind TechServe08:15 Becoming the Third Generation to Lead the Family Business11:00 Changing the Culture of a Family Business12:07 Why TechServe Moved Into Healthcare13:10 Schools as a Front Door to Healthcare16:09 How StatWatch Works17:23 Bringing Healthcare Into the Community21:01 Measuring the Impact of Community Health22:00 When Nearly $20 Million in Federal Funding Disappeared25:32 Why Outcomes Matter More Than Intent26:57 The $50 Billion Rural Health Transformation Opportunity28:48 Where TechServe Fits Into Rural Health Transformation30:57 What Could Keep Rural Communities From the Funding31:15 The Governance Problem No One Talks About35:00 What TechServe Actually Does Today36:42 Lightning Round39:40 What Rural Healthcare Could Look Like in Five Years41:46 Closing Thoughts📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

He was bleeding through his shirt, called six doctors' offices, and not one of them picked up. That single moment — not a whiteboard session, not a pitch deck — is why Oakkar Oakkar built Keona Health.Oakkar is the CEO of Keona Health, an AI engineer, a surfer, and a jiu-jitsu dad who's spent over a decade trying to fix the most overlooked part of healthcare: what happens before you ever see a doctor. In this conversation, we get into why patient access is a 23-million-pathway problem, why most "AI wrapper" tools fail patients at the exact moment it matters most, and what surfing and jiu-jitsu taught him about building through years of "we thought this would take way less time than it did."If you've ever been stuck on hold, transferred five times, or repeated your symptoms to four different people — this episode is for you.🕐 TIMESTAMPS00:00 – Introduction: Why access is where healthcare actually starts04:14 – What surfing taught Oakkar about patience, chaos, and control07:56 – The origin story: how Keona Health actually started14:16 – "We thought it'd take a few years." Reality: 3-4x longer.19:00 – What "access" actually means (and why we've watered the word down)20:15 – The 23 million pathways problem in primary care22:40 – Where healthcare is getting AI wrong right now25:06 – Hallucination, handoffs, and why "ChatGPT wrappers" fail in healthcare31:42 – The moment Oakkar questioned everything34:11 – The AI "renaissance" — why it feels like starting the company over37:00 – What building Keona taught him about people, not machines40:15 – Advice for founders staring down a problem that feels too bigLearn more about Keona Health: https://keonahealth.com/Follow Oakkar: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oakkar/📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

Bryan Hunt, CFA, General Partner at Relevance Ventures, joins host Michael Stamatinos on the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show to break down what two decades of grilling CEOs on Wall Street taught him about spotting the founders who are built to last, why he'd rather back a missionary than a mercenary, and how a $6-psychiatrist startup grew to 800 in five years by solving access instead of chasing headlines.For over twenty years, Bryan Hunt sat on the other side of the table from CEOs, founders, and leadership teams as one of Wall Street's top-ranked analysts at Wells Fargo Securities, asking the question that actually matters: is this a great story, or is this a great business? He's since moved to the other side of that table entirely, investing in healthcare, medical technology, and wellness companies through Relevance Ventures.In this episode, Bryan and Michael get into the framework Bryan uses to separate missionaries from mercenaries, the origin story behind Talkiatry, a telepsychiatry company that scaled from six psychiatrists to 800 in five years after its founder couldn't get access to his own mental health care, and the investing mistake that made background checks a permanent part of Relevance's process. Bryan also shares the founder story behind Chobani, why nearly half of early-stage venture bets fail, and the economics behind why preventative medicine may be the biggest untapped opportunity left in American healthcare.⏱ TIMESTAMPS0:00 — Introduction: Who is Bryan Hunt and what is Relevance Ventures?3:57 — Two decades on Wall Street: what 20 years of grilling CEOs teaches you6:42 — Missionaries vs. mercenaries: the filter Bryan uses to evaluate every founder9:15 — Inside Talkiatry: from 6 psychiatrists to 800 in five years15:31 — Spotting an exceptional CEO: obvious immediately, or does it take time?19:40 — Visionary or just confident? The difference between conviction and delusion23:23 — The founder story behind Chobani, and what made him a missionary24:36 — The investment mistake that changed Relevance's process for good31:37 — Reading the exit: when it's time for a founder to sell34:26 — Why preventative medicine might be healthcare's biggest missed opportunityIn This Episode→ How Bryan Hunt spent 20+ years as one of Wall Street's top-ranked analysts before becoming a venture investor→ The "missionaries vs. mercenaries" filter Relevance Ventures uses to evaluate every founder→ The real story behind Talkiatry's growth from 6 psychiatrists to 800 in five years→ Why Relevance Ventures started running background checks on founders, and what changed their mind→ The economics of preventative care, and why every dollar spent there returns $5.60 later in life→ What separates a true visionary from someone who's simply confident and wrongLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-hunt-cfa-17677087/Website: https://www.relevanceventures.com/📣 LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBEAbout the ShowThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show is hosted by Michael Stamatinos, a nationally recognized connector, strategist, and advocate for innovation with purpose. Each week, Michael interviews healthcare leaders who are driving meaningful change—highlighting stories of access, resilience, equity, and transformation.The AHI Show started with the idea of wanting to highlight stories of what healthcare innovation truly looks like in action. Our mission, highlight real people who are really innovating within healthcare. Guests include healthcare entrepreneurs, providers, payers, and professionals from the investment community. We showcase little wins as well as valuable lessons learned from setbacks through these interviews. The real innovators in healthcare are often the ones in the trenches doing the work with razor-sharp focus. We find these innovators and bring their stories to light. 🔗 Michael’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelstamo🎧 Subscribe for more episodes that move beyond theory and into the heart of what’s really possible in healthcare.Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/