The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show

What does it take to move a healthcare idea from paper to product, and from product to public market success? Greg Downey has lived it and built the playbook along the way.In this episode of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Greg Downey, Managing Director of Purim Ventures, for a rare behind-the-scenes conversation that explores what it really takes to scale innovation inside one of the most complex industries in the world.Over the past 25 years, Greg has helped startups, growth-stage companies, and even publicly traded firms unlock over $550M in private financings, generate hundreds of millions in revenue, and build companies that actually work for patients, for physicians, and for investors. His journey has included executive roles at J&J, exits to GHX, category-defining work at OrthoPediatrics, and the creation of Capital Mastermind, a system that has helped entrepreneurs secure more than $1B in term sheets.What makes Greg’s story different isn’t just the track record; it’s the way he navigates with conviction, pattern recognition, and deep operational rigor across commercialization, capital strategy, and market access.What you’ll get in this episode:* The story of how Greg hacked his way into Johnson & Johnson’s top ranks by creating his own marketing materials and accidentally triggering a national rollout* A powerful lens on how to scale without blowing up infrastructure — and why “going national” too early can kill your company* The NoInk story: how a small mobile software startup from Indiana ended up supplying the world’s leading med device companies* Real talk on the emotional aftermath of exits...what founders aren’t prepared for, and why IPOs don’t always deliver what they promise* How family offices differ from venture capital and why most founders overlook them completely* What it means to truly de-risk early-stage deals from an operator’s lens (hint: it’s not just about the pitch deck)* Why Greg has dedicated a significant part of his career to helping veterans get access to cutting-edge medical innovations, and what’s still broken in the VA system* Greg also shares the values driving his work today, from mentoring his own daughters into financially independent entrepreneurs, to rethinking the next generation of education through apprenticeship and hands-on learning.Timestamps:00:00 - Welcome and intro04:30 - Greg’s first “hacked” success at Johnson & Johnson08:00 - Lessons from scaling too fast10:30 - Selling software before it existed (the NoInk story)15:00 - Exit regret and emotional realities20:00 - Why capital is a team sport25:00 - Debunking the myths of family offices29:00 - Innovation in the VA and serving veterans33:00 - Greg’s due diligence engine39:00 - Legacy, mentorship, and what comes next🎧 Listen, take notes, and let it challenge how you think about innovation in healthcare.🛎 Subscribe for weekly conversations with leaders shaping the future of healthcare through action, not just ideas.🔗 Visit: https://www.purimventures.com🔗 Connect with Greg Downey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greg-downey-2605212/📌 Drop a comment below: What part of Greg's story resonated with you most?#AHIShow #MichaelStamatinos #HealthcareInnovation #VentureCapital #StartupWisdom #GregDowney #AccessGame #Founders #FamilyOffices #PurimVentures #CapitalMastermindAbout 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 does it take to redesign one of healthcare’s most broken and overlooked processes without asking clinicians to do more?In this powerful episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, Michael Stamatinos sits down with Lindsay Joseph, CPA and former hospital CFO turned startup founder, to unpack the human, operational, and cultural realities behind care transitions and what it takes to fix them.Lindsay spent years on the inside, leading financial and operational turnarounds at some of the most complex health systems in America. From advising large systems at PwC to walking the halls of a Level 1 trauma center in Detroit as CFO, she’s lived the pressure, the broken handoffs, and the burnout.Now, she’s building BedConnect, a stealth-mode health tech company rooted in a simple premise: streamline post-acute transitions without adding more work to the people already stretched thin.You’ll discover:* Why Detroit was more than a hometown...it was a proving ground* How she earned trust as a CFO by rounding with charge nurses and teaching Excel shortcuts* The difference between cutting costs and building long-term sustainability* What scarcity vs. growth mindsets look like in real-world hospital leadership* Why point-solution fatigue is real and how BedConnect breaks that mold* Her surprising pivot into entrepreneurship, and the nonprofit detour that helped her get clear on her purpose* How her team co-built the product with frontline clinicians, not in a vacuumLindsay brings the discipline of a CPA, the heart of a caregiver, and the lens of a seasoned operator who still picks up the phone when friends say, “My father-in-law ended up in the wrong facility. Can you help?”This episode is about operational clarity, authentic leadership, and building with integrity.If you’re a healthcare executive, innovator, operator, or just someone who believes we can do better by patients and providers, don’t miss this conversation.🎧 Listen, take notes, and let it challenge how you think about innovation in healthcare.🛎 Subscribe for weekly conversations with leaders shaping the future of healthcare through action, not just ideas.🔗 Follow BedConnect: https://bedconnect.health🔗 Connect with Lindsay Joseph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindsay-a-joseph📌 Drop a comment below: What part of Lindsay’s story resonated with you most?#AHIShow #MichaelStamatinos #LindsayJoseph #BedConnect #CareTransitions #HealthTech #WomenInHealthTech #Leadership #InnovationInHealthcare #PostAcuteCare #PatientExperience #CFOtoFounderAbout 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/

In this powerful episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos welcomes Dr. April Joy Damian, a national voice in health equity, systems transformation, and trauma-informed care.Dr. Damian currently serves as Vice President and Director of the Weitzman Institute, a national research, education, and policy center focused on advancing primary care innovation for underserved communities. She is also a Senior Scholar for Health Equity at AcademyHealth and holds a faculty position at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.The conversation weaves together Dr. Damian’s personal story and professional expertise—tracing a path from her upbringing as the daughter of immigrants in San Francisco to her national policy leadership today. With clarity and compassion, she explores the human cost of system failures, the power of community-rooted research, and the tension between statistical significance and lived experience.Viewers will hear Dr. Damian share:*A personal account of how her father’s struggles with mental health and isolation first sparked her interest in public health and systemic inequity*A transformative moment during the Freddie Gray uprising in Baltimore that reframed her view on the urgency of research-to-policy translation*How she led trauma-informed training across Baltimore's city workforce, culminating in a citywide policy mandate inspired by her doctoral work*A powerful story about a 10-week youth resilience program, where restorative justice and mindfulness helped create unexpected community among students from very different backgrounds*How the Weitzman Institute currently supports over 40,000 healthcare professionals at 1,200 health centers, reaching more than 2 million patients across the U.S., Puerto Rico, and Guam*Her experience in national policy-making rooms and why creating space for community voices is essential—not just symbolic*The most misunderstood aspects of health equity and why systems, not just individuals, must be held accountableChapters00:00 – Introduction02:00 – Growing up in San Francisco and early influences06:00 – From Berkeley to Hopkins: academic formation and turning points10:00 – Trauma-informed systems and the Baltimore uprising15:00 – Youth healing, restorative justice, and unexpected belonging21:00 – The national footprint and philosophy of the Weitzman Institute26:00 – Bridging silos: research, education, policy, and clinical practice32:00 – What really happens in policy-shaping rooms36:00 – Leading with values: faith, community, and resilience41:00 – A closing reflection on grief, therapy, and legacyAbout Dr. April Joy DamianDr. Damian is a psychiatric epidemiologist and nationally recognized expert in health equity, social determinants of health, and mixed-methods research. She previously held leadership roles at the National Quality Forum, co-led the NIH RECOVER Initiative’s Health Equity Workgroup, and has been appointed to the National Academies’ Board on Children, Youth, and Families. She is a Truman Scholar, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation award recipient, and an unwavering advocate for system-level change grounded in community voice.🔗 Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/apriljoydamian/🌐 Learn more: https://www.weitzmaninstitute.org/About 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 your child’s prescription had a one in three chance of containing an error?That is the reality in the United States today, and most parents have no idea.In this powerful episode of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Dr. Jena Quinn, PharmD, BCPPS and Lyle Mioduszewski, RN, the co-founders of Perfecting Peds. Together, they are on a mission to fix one of healthcare’s most overlooked problems: pediatric medication management.Jena and Lyle share the alarming truth that there are only 1,700 board-certified pediatric pharmacists in the entire country. This shortage means that most children’s prescriptions are filled without the specialist oversight that could catch dosing errors, dangerous drug interactions, or outdated treatment plans. The result is that kids are often treated like “small adults” in a system that was never designed for them.In this episode, you will learn:* Why innovation in pediatrics has lagged behind Medicare Advantage and senior care* How Perfecting Peds embeds pediatric pharmacists directly into care teams to improve safety and outcomes* The statistic from a national study that validated their mission* The role of technology in closing the gap and scaling expertise to more children* Patient stories, including how one child went from 100 seizures a day to seizure-free in six months* How a single hospital’s belief in their vision helped them prove their impact and growThis is not just a discussion about a startup. It is a front-row look at how proximity, listening, and relentless focus on the patient can spark change where the system has been silent for decades.If you are a parent, a healthcare professional, or someone who believes innovation should reach every corner of care, not just the most profitable ones, this episode will challenge and inspire you.📌 Learn more about Perfecting Peds:Website: https://perfectingpeds.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/perfectingpedsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/perfectingpeds#Pediatrics #HealthcareInnovation #Pharmacy #MedicationSafety #AdvancingHealthcareInnovationThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

This might be the most hopeful conversation of the year.In this episode of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Sarah Elizabeth Ippel, the visionary Founder and Executive Director of the Academy for Global Citizenship and the Cultivate Collective.At just 23 years old, Sarah Elizabeth biked to the Chicago Board of Education with a 400-page proposal and a vision that many called unrealistic. She wasn’t looking to improve the system—she came to reimagine it from the ground up.What emerged is the Academy for Global Citizenship, a public K through 8 school on the Southwest side of Chicago that doesn’t just teach students—it nourishes them. Students harvest vegetables in school gardens, eat farm-to-table meals, practice mindfulness, and learn core subjects through the lens of climate justice, global citizenship, and regenerative design.But her work extends far beyond the school walls.Sarah Elizabeth also founded Cultivate Collective, a six-acre net-positive community campus that integrates early childhood education, pediatric care, green job training, behavioral health, urban agriculture, teaching kitchens, and food access. Every element is built on a single foundational truth: community is medicine.In this wide-ranging conversation, Michael and Sarah Elizabeth explore:0:00 - The origin story: a bike helmet, a bold charter, and a vision6:18 - Lessons from visiting over 100 schools around the world10:34 - How trust was earned long before any data proved it16:16 - A story of an AGC graduate now shaping global finance21:01 - What it feels like to walk into Cultivate Collective for the first time25:54 - Partnering with experts across health, food, and education29:30 - Why AGC chose open-source innovation over replication35:23 - The rituals Sarah Elizabeth uses to stay grounded through adversity37:26 - How listeners can experience the work firsthand or support its growthViewers will hear how:* Sarah Elizabeth built an ecosystem of trust in a place where trust doesn’t come easy* She scaled a model that blends education, health, food, and economic opportunity* Public schools can lead innovation and treat equity as infrastructure* Culture, love, and audacity can be designed into the very architecture of a communityMichael Stamatinos, known for drawing out the heart behind innovation, guides this conversation with curiosity, depth, and clarity. Whether you work in healthcare, education, economic development, or policy...or simply believe we’re capable of better systems, this story is an invitation to rethink what’s possible.To learn more or get involved:Academy for Global Citizenship – https://agcchicago.orgCultivate Collective – https://cultivate-collective.orgIf this conversation moves you, do not keep it to yourself. Share it. Comment. Bring the story to someone who needs to hear what’s possible when vision meets commitment.Subscribe to The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show for more conversations with real leaders building the future of access and equity from the ground up.#AccessMatters #HealthcareInnovation #PublicHealth #EducationInnovation #CultivateCollective #CommunityHealth #LeadershipInAction #SystemChange #healthcareinnovation The Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

In this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Rachel Kern, Senior Vice President at First Trust Capital Partners, for a candid and compelling conversation that explores the real dynamics of venture capital, healthcare innovation, and what it takes to build companies that endure.Rachel brings a rare blend of academic curiosity, operational insight, and straight-shooting practicality to the world of healthcare investing. With a background in history, international relations, and economics, Rachel approaches venture capital as a long game rooted in pattern recognition, strategic empathy, and the ability to distinguish signal from noise in a sector full of hype.This episode goes beyond the pitch decks and capital raises. Together, Michael and Rachel explore the hard truths no one talks about; the founders who aren't the right fit to scale their own companies, the innovations that die not because they're wrong but because the system refuses to adapt, and the deeply human side of being a venture investor in a field where decisions have real-world consequences for patients and providers alike.Topics covered include:* How studying history gave Rachel an edge in identifying market patterns and avoiding strategic pitfalls* The red flags investors spot in the first five minutes of a pitch—and the constructive friction that makes founders worth backing* The emotional and professional complexity of navigating founder transitions* Why great companies sometimes fail simply because they’re too early for the system they’re trying to change* The difference between performative lists and real structural progress for women in venture capital* The evolving role of investors in supporting lonely, overwhelmed founders through the "Death Valley" stage of early growth* The importance of community and interconnectivity across portfolio companies* Rachel’s long-term investment theses on Medicaid innovation, consumer-centric models of care, and value-based infrastructure* Her take on AI in healthcare...what’s real, what’s noise, and where the industry should proceed with cautionWhat she would tell her 20-year-old self about curiosity, failure, and building a career that aligns with purposeRachel also opens up about her own mentors, her dream side hustle curating music for television, and what she wants her legacy in venture capital to be; less about deals, and more about the founders she’s empowered to create real impact in healthcare.This episode is required listening for healthcare founders, early-stage investors, operators navigating transformation, and anyone who wants an unfiltered look at how decisions are really made behind closed doors.To learn more about Rachel and First Trust Capital Partners, visit:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-kern-3530a526First Trust Capital Partners: https://www.ftcp.comThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

On this episode of the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos welcomes Dr. Navin Goyal, MD, a trained anesthesiologist who left the comfort of clinical medicine to become an entrepreneur, founder, and investor who is helping shape the future of healthcare innovation through purpose-driven capital.Dr. Goyal is the co-founder of LOUD Capital, an alternative investment firm that blends traditional venture capital with a human-centered, values-first approach. The firm backs people, not just business plans, and is known for supporting mission-driven founders who often operate outside of the spotlight but are solving real-world problems at scale.In this episode, Dr. Goyal shares the story of how he transitioned from the OR to the boardroom, what it took to walk away from a stable career, and why that choice was never about escape, it was about alignment. He talks openly about the uncertainty, the fear, and the excitement that come with building something from scratch, especially as a clinician with no formal business background.Michael and Navin explore the deeper emotional and strategic dimensions of early-stage investing, including the power of belief, the importance of surrounding founders with the right operational support, and the role values play when companies face tough quarters. Dr. Goyal unpacks how he thinks about pattern recognition, why he avoids chasing hype, and how being based in the Midwest has helped him uncover overlooked but exceptional founders.The conversation also dives into Dr. Goyal’s identity as an underdog. He explains what fuels him, why he believes people with good hearts should reach positions of influence, and what still feels unfinished in his journey. Along the way, he shares hard-earned lessons from failed partnerships, fundraising setbacks, and the inner work required to keep showing up with integrity.Whether you're a founder, a physician exploring new paths, or someone who cares about building systems that work for people, this episode offers a blueprint for what it looks like to lead with clarity, invest with empathy, and build something that lasts.What to expect:* Why leaving medicine was an act of alignment, not rebellion* How LOUD Capital redefines value creation by supporting founders beyond the check* The underestimated role of emotional support and belief in early-stage investing* Lessons from setbacks, stalled relationships, and capital-raising challenges* Why more physicians should become investors* What drives Dr. Goyal’s work, and what he hopes to leave behindTo learn more about Dr. Navin Goyal and the work happening at LOUD Capital, visit www.loud.vc. There, you'll find insights into how the firm is backing early-stage companies that blend profit with purpose, along with resources for founders, investors, and future leaders who believe business can be a force for good.You can also follow Dr. Goyal on LinkedIn for thoughtful reflections on leadership, investing, and building systems that truly serve people.https://www.linkedin.com/in/navingoyalmd/This is more than venture capital, it’s a movement built around people, belief, and long-term impact.Subscribe to the AHI Show to hear more real conversations with the leaders, builders, and believers shaping the future of healthcare, on their terms.Timestamps00:00 – Welcome and Introduction02:15 – The Moment That Made Leaving Medicine Inevitable06:45 – Launching LOUD Capital and Building with Values11:20 – Capital vs. Belief: What Founders Really Need15:45 – Breaking the Traditional VC Mold20:10 – Navigating Rough Quarters with Empathy24:30 – What Setbacks Teach You That Wins Cannot27:15 – The Underdog Lens and Leadership at Scale29:40 – What Still Feels Unfinished31:00 – Final Reflections and TakeawaysThe Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

In this powerful and wide-ranging conversation, Michael Stamatinos welcomes Dr. Trisha Henwood, Chief Clinical Officer at Jefferson Health, to the Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show for a masterclass in clinical leadership, system transformation, and values-driven innovation.With responsibility for the clinical operations of a 32-hospital system, Dr. Henwood is pioneering what clinical excellence looks like in a world shaped by complexity, constrained resources, and the need for rapid yet thoughtful change. Her leadership has been tested and proven in the most demanding environments, including Jefferson’s nationally recognized OnPoint program and her global health work responding to Ebola and COVID-19.This episode explores how to scale innovation with intention, design sustainable systems of care, and lead teams through uncertainty with clarity, conviction, and compassion. Michael and Dr. Henwood dive deep into the operating system behind high-performing health organizations and what it takes to build a culture that thrives, even under pressure.In this episode, you’ll learn:* What it truly means to lead through crisis, and why composure is more effective than control* How Jefferson Health operationalizes resiliency engineering across teams and functions* Why understanding a problem deeply is the first step in driving sustainable innovation* How working in resource-limited global environments shaped Dr. Henwood’s approach to care delivery in the U.S.* What makes innovation "implementation ready" and how to recognize the right time to scale* The importance of interdisciplinary teams, and how trust and relationship equity accelerate progress* A thoughtful take on whether dashboards, strategic retreats, and leadership books are useful or distractions* Practical advice Dr. Henwood gives to rising leaders, especially those feeling overwhelmed or uncertain about their pathDr. Henwood also shares how parenting, mentorship, and years of front-line experience have shaped her ability to lead complex systems with grace and precision. This is a conversation grounded in both global perspective and deep operational expertise.Whether you are a health system executive, policy leader, clinician, or innovator working to improve the future of care, this conversation is rich with insight and grounded wisdom.Timestamps0:00 – Welcome and introduction2:40 – Early global health work and pivotal moments5:45 – Innovating with limited resources10:00 – Creating consistency while honoring local nuance13:30 – Resiliency engineering at Jefferson Health20:00 – Leading through challenge and staying composed24:00 – Designing for sustainability and system-wide change32:00 – Overrated or underrated: leadership tools and strategies35:30 – The evolving role of mentorship38:00 – Closing thoughts and where to learn moreIf this conversation resonates, consider:Clicking the Like button to support the showSubscribing so you never miss an episodeSharing this episode with colleagues or peers leading change in healthcareThank you for being part of this community. Together, we’re advancing healthcare by amplifying the voices of those who are doing the work with purpose and integrity.The Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

In this episode of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Shara Cohen, JD, CEO of Carallel, for a candid and deeply resonant conversation about a topic that is far too often overlooked: caregiving.For more than two decades, Shara has been at the forefront of efforts to redesign how healthcare organizations support people, not just patients, but the often invisible network of caregivers who are instrumental to achieving better health outcomes. Shara brings a unique blend of operational insight and personal mission to her work. Today, she leads Carallel, a company purpose-built to support caregivers with empathy, guidance, and the tools they need to navigate the complexity of healthcare.This episode is an exploration of what it means to center innovation around real human experiences. It’s a look into why caregivers are not just adjunct players in the system, but rather a hidden workforce that has been overlooked, undervalued, and under-resourced for far too long. Shara argues that caregiving is not just a personal responsibility; it’s a structural force that, if activated intentionally, can move the needle on equity, access, resilience, and ultimately, performance.Together, Michael and Shara unpack difficult truths: how healthcare often pays lip service to the role of caregivers without meaningfully supporting them, how executives themselves often hide their own caregiving struggles, and how this gap is costing the system more than it realizes...financially, emotionally, and clinically. They discuss how Carallel is building the scaffolding for a different kind of healthcare experience, one where personalized support for caregivers is not a luxury, but an essential layer of care delivery.Key themes in this episode include:* The emotional labor of caregiving and why it deserves recognition as a core part of care delivery* Why patient engagement strategies fall short without addressing the ecosystem surrounding the patient* How caregivers are the original remote patient monitors—present, attuned, and often the first to notice early signals of decline* The cultural shift required among health plans and health systems to stop assigning responsibility to caregivers and start enabling them* The economic rationale for investing in caregiver support—and the missed opportunity for plans and providers who fail to act* What Shara has learned about leadership, trust, and quiet influence after two decades of impact across startups and global enterprisesThroughout the conversation, Shara’s insights reflect the lived experience of someone who has both built systems and walked beside people struggling to navigate them. Her leadership is grounded, informed by a deep personal mission, and committed to reshaping healthcare in ways that truly matter.Whether you’re a health plan executive, clinician, caregiver, or someone trying to create change from inside the system, this conversation will challenge you to think differently about what innovation really looks like and who it’s for.If the conversation resonated, don’t let it end here. Share the episode. Start a dialogue inside your organization. Reach out to someone you know who might be carrying the invisible load of caregiving and ask: How can I help?Healthcare innovation begins with presence, and presence begins with listening.To follow Carallel’s work, learn more, or get in touch with Shara and her team, visit www.carallel.com Connect with Shara on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shara-cohen/To stay up to date with new episodes of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, subscribe and follow host Michael Stamatinos on LinkedIn and YouTube.This platform is not just about content; it’s about building a community of leaders committed to access, equity, and meaningful change.The Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/

In this episode of The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show, host Michael Stamatinos sits down with Dr. Joshua Tamayo-Sarver, ER physician, PhD in epidemiology, and VP of Innovation at Inflect Health, for a deep and refreshing conversation at the intersection of clinical care, technology, and entrepreneurial grit.Dr. Tamayo-Sarver is not just a practicing emergency physician with a PhD in epidemiology. He’s also the Vice President of Innovation at Inflect Health, the innovation arm of Vituity, which supports over 700 hospitals across the United States. From clinical settings to startup boards, from patent filings to patient care, Josh is one of those few people who genuinely operates across every layer of healthcare, technical, clinical, operational, and strategic.In this conversation, you’ll get a seat at the table with someone who’s not theorizing from the sidelines, but actively building and deploying solutions in high-stakes environments.Highlights from this episode include:* How a 16-year-old coding a billing tool ended up becoming one of healthcare’s most respected clinician-innovators* What it means to live in two worlds, emergency medicine and long-horizon innovation, and how they inform each other* The cautionary tale of a highly accurate cardiac prediction algorithm that failed because it didn’t fit physician workflow* Why the secret to scalable innovation isn’t more tech, it’s smarter integration into natural clinical decision-making* The inside story of building a new ambient documentation system that reached 75–80% adoption without onboarding* How Josh thinks about partnering with startups, identifying "bleeding neck" problems, and deciding when to build vs. buy* Tactical advice for frontline clinicians who want to innovate but aren’t data scientists, coders, or venture-backed foundersJosh also shares the emotional story of a patient he saved as a newborn, and encountered again 10 years later. It's a powerful reminder of why the hard work of transformation is worth doing.If you’ve ever struggled to bridge the gap between vision and execution in healthcare, this episode offers a masterclass in how to do it with empathy, rigor, and meaningful scale.Connect and Learn More:Learn about Inflect Health: https://inflect.healthLearn about Vituity: https://www.vituity.comConnect with Dr. Joshua Tamayo-Sarver on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-tamayo-sarver-md-phdAbout the Show:Hosted by Michael Stamatinos, The Advancing Healthcare Innovation Show features intimate conversations with healthcare leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and changemakers who are rewriting the rules of what's possible. Our goal is to create a platform for real, nuanced dialogue—where stories of transformation, failure, and progress can be shared for the benefit of a wider community.If this episode sparked something for you, please consider sharing it with a clinician, founder, or executive who’s pushing for change. These conversations are meant to move beyond the echo chamber, and your support helps make that happen.To stay up to date on future episodes, make sure to subscribe and turn on notifications.The Advancing Healthcare Innovation 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. Find out more about how we are building bridges within healthcare. Join our group, Advancing Healthcare Innovation Forum on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/groups/7056196/