The Pulse by Wharton Digital Health

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Kevin Dedner, Hurdle Health, on cultural humility in mental healthcare Jul 26, 2022

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In this episode, we sat down with Kevin Dedner, Founder & CEO of Hurdle Health. Based in Washington D.C, Hurdle Health provides culturally intentional teletherapy to eliminate barriers that make it harder for people of color to get mental healthcare. Hurdle Health raised $5M in seed funding, led by Point 406 Ventures and Seae Ventures. F-Prime also participated in the round. We discussed: -Kevin’s personal struggles with finding culturally responsive mental healthcare as the motivation for founding Hurdle. -Hurdle’s emphasis on training its therapists in cultural humility to provide more efficacious mental healthcare for low to moderate-acuity patients. -How minority founders must build a solid business plan instead of only following a vision and nurture mentor relationships to raise capital and overcome systemic barriers for launching successful companies.

Josh Hix, Season Health, on making "food as medicine" accessible Jul 11, 2022

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In this episode, we connected with Josh Hix, Co-Founder and CEO of Season Health. Season Health is a platform that connects members with healthy meal ideas and grocery options to help members and providers manage chronic conditions.

Chris Altchek, Cadence, on delivering care outside of the four walls of the hospital Jul 07, 2022

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In this episode, I sat down with Chris Altchek, CEO and Founder of Cadence. Founded in 2019, Cadence is a health tech platform that combines personalized clinical care with a breakthrough technology platform. With this Cadence offers consistent care for people managing chronic conditions, such as congestive heart failure, type 2 diabetes, hypertension and COPD, from the comfort of their home. Cadence recently raised a $100M Series B round, putting its latest valuation at $1 billion.

Jerrica Kirkley, Plume, on rebuilding the trans healthcare experience Jun 27, 2022

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Our guest on this episode is Dr. Jerrica Kirkley, co-founder & Chief Medical Officer of Plume. Plume delivers gender-affirming care via telehealth for trans and non-binary individuals, currently operating in 41 states. Plume provides hormone-replacement therapy, such as estrogen and testosterone, as well as letters of support for gender-affirming surgery or changing name or gender markers for its patients. Jerrica and her cofounder, Plume CEO Dr. Matthew Wetschler, raised a $14M series A round of funding last year Craft Ventures. In this episode, Jerrica and I discussed: (1) her journey to starting Plume, (2) her experience as a patient and provider of gender-affirming care, and (3) the current anti-trans political climate and Plume’s role as an advocate for the trans and nonbinary community.

Kelsey Mellard, Sitka, on solving the specialty care access problem May 26, 2022

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Our guest on this episode is Kelsey Mellard, founder & CEO of Sitka, a virtual specialty consultation company facilitating primary care and specialty communication via video consults, also known as eConsults or "curbside consults". Sitka and their virtual specialty provider network, Sitka Medical Associates, work with payers, provider groups and accountable care organizations to improve access to specialty care while avoiding unnecessary specialist costs. Last year, Sitka raised a $14M series A round of funding led by Venrock. In this episode, Kelsey and I discussed: (1) her journey to starting Sitka and how her time in the public sector has impacted her career (2) how Sitka closes the specialty access gap by removing scheduling inefficiencies and virtually connecting PCPs and specialists, and (3) her experience as an early-stage founder, including how she navigated taking parental leave as a Series A CEO

Dr. Somi Javaid, HerMD, on expanding access to female sexual health May 17, 2022

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In this episode, we chatted with Dr. Somi Javaid, Founder & Chief Medical Officer of HerMD. Dr. Somi Javaid is a board-certified OBGYN and pioneer in the women’s sexual healthcare space. She founded HerMD, a female-forward, insurance-based women’s healthcare center to help educate, advocate for, and empower women to take control of their health care. Recently, HerMD raised $10 Million in their Series A fundraise to bring their unique healthcare model to women across the US. JAZZ Ventures led the Series A round. We discussed: -Watching her mother struggle to receive the care she needed and experiencing personal job dissatisfaction and burnout led Dr. Somi Javaid to found HerMD, a clinic specializing in menopause and female sexual health, designed to empower both patients and clinicians to create a positive care experience. -The importance of promoting access to innovative therapies treating menopause and female sexual health disorders through insurance reimbursement, opening physical locations in “flyover” states, and championing education and patient advocacy. -The rise of female healthcare-focused startups is likely to persist in conjunction with more VC funding, with opportunities for consolidation and collaboration across brands.

Isabelle Kenyon, CEO & Founder of Calibrate, on a new standard of care for managing metabolic health May 09, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, I sat down with Isabelle Kenyon, CEO and Founder of Calibrate. Founded in 2020, Calibrate is a metabolic health company on a mission to change the way the world treats weight. In August of 2021, Calibrate raised a $100M Series B round led by Founders Fund and Tiger Global. Since then, the company has hired hundreds of new employees and onboarded thousands of new patients, released its first Results Report, and geared up to launch its first enterprise clients. Isabelle and I discuss: 1) Isabelle’s own interactions with the healthcare system and why these experiences led her to commit to spending her career building a better, more consumer-centric system, 2) Why Calibrate’s emphasis on metabolic health represents a paradigm shift in how we treat weight loss and obesity, 3) Calibrate’s clinical model that combines medication, a holistic curriculum guided by synchronous 1:1 video coaching, and community, 4) The company’s plans to expand access to treatment through enterprise partnerships, and 5) Isabelle’s focus on developing both her own and her company’s self-awareness as Calibrate’s leader.

Kristina Saffran and Erin Parks, Co-Founders of Equip, on redefining the eating disorder narrative Apr 11, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, I sat down with the co-founders of Equip, Kristina Saffran and Erin Parks, PhD. Equip provides virtual, evidence-based eating disorder treatment and has expanded rapidly over the last few years. In February 2022, it raised a $58 million Series B funding round from The Chernin Group, Tiger Capital, General Catalyst, and other existing investors. Erin, Kristina, and I discuss: 1) how they met and why starting a company together was the right move, 2) what's happening in a person's body and mind when they have an eating disorder, 3) Equip's family-based treatment model and the company's holistic approach to defining access, 4) why virtual care works well for eating disorder treatment, and 5) lessons that Erin and Kristina have learned from each other as co-founders and their advice on navigating the co-founder experience.

V Bento, SWORD Health, on precision musculoskeletal (MSK) care through AI Apr 05, 2022

Show notes

In this episode, we sat down with Virgílio “V” Bento, Founder & CEO of SWORD Health. SWORD Health aims to bring world-class musculoskeletal (MSK) care to patients around the world by connecting members with physical therapists and digital therapists through a member app that combines sensor technology with telemedicine to prevent, relieve, and accelerate the healing of acute conditions, chronic pain, and post-surgical recovery. SWORD Health raised $163M in their latest Series D round led by Sapphire Ventures. This latest fundraising round brings SWORD’s valuation at $2B. We discussed Drawing inspiration for the genesis of SWORD Health after V’s brother got into a car accident and could not access the high quality physical therapy he needed for a speedy recovery. Delivering precision care through AI that generates personalized care plans for each patient with the guidance of physical therapists. How SWORD Health’s proven clinical model, created to address MSK-related issues, could target other conditions in the future.

Frank Cheung, Cerebrae, on building tools to accelerate participation in value-based care Mar 17, 2022

Show notes

This episode’s guest is Frank Cheung, CEO and Co-Founder of Cerebrae, a startup that aims to accelerate the adoption of value-based care (VBC) by helping providers and payers measure, forecast, and validate the financial ROI of emerging approaches to patient care. Through this work, they aim to radically simplify the process of commercializing value-based care delivery. They are backed by several investors, including StepStone, Fika, Susa, TenOneTen, AME Cloud Ventures, Knollwood, Route 66, and SaaS Venture Capital.

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