Building the Data Foundation for Healthcare AI with Jeff Thomas, SVP and Chief Technology Officer at Sentara Health

The future of medtech is built by the people who keep moving ideas from concept to care. In this episode, Tom Salemi, editorial leader, podcast host, and longtime medtech community builder behind DeviceTalks, shares how his path from community journalism eventually led him into healthcare reporting, medical devices, conferences, and podcasting. He reflects on discovering purpose in serving industry communities and launching DeviceTalks Weekly during the pandemic to keep conversations going when in-person events stopped. Tom also discusses the importance of continuing to move forward during career pivots and uncertain moments that require people to bet on themselves. He explains why DeviceTalks focuses on the people behind medical innovation and shares his excitement about advances in neuromodulation, stroke care, clot removal, and surgical robotics. Tune in to hear how community, persistence, and purposeful storytelling continue to move medtech forward. Resources: Connect with and follow Tom Salemi on LinkedIn. Explore the Device Talks website!

Navigating SSI and SSDI benefits is often overwhelming, time-consuming, and difficult to manage, especially for individuals already dealing with health, financial, and life challenges. In this episode, Lauren Fusco, Director of Partnerships at Mindset Care, shares how Mindset Care is addressing these barriers with end-to-end, person-centered support that guides individuals through every step of the process. By combining technology with human expertise, Mindset helps streamline applications, improve approval outcomes, and reduce the burden on individuals and care teams alike. Through partnerships with providers, payers, and community organizations, they’re turning disability benefits into a critical gateway for broader care, stability, and improved quality of life. Tune in to hear how a more human, connected, and tech-enabled approach is helping people access the benefits they deserve! Resources: Connect with and follow Lauren Fusco on ⁠LinkedIn⁠. Follow Mindset on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and explore their ⁠website⁠.

Bridging the gaps in care through secure communication.  In this episode, Therasa Bell, President and Co-founder of Kno2, talks about connecting the entire continuum of healthcare providers, including overlooked groups such as post-acute and behavioral health. She discusses building a national healthcare infrastructure and developing a Trust Accord that goes beyond baseline regulatory requirements. Finally, Therasa explains their provider's first business model, designed to ensure that the last stop for care is protected and integrated. This episode explores the mission of democratizing healthcare communication by building a secure and scalable national infrastructure rooted in a unique trust model.  Tune in to break down the barriers of healthcare communication!  Resources: Connect with and follow Therasa Bell on LinkedIn.  Follow No.2 on LinkedIn and explore their Website.  Visit the Outcomes Rocket website for more insights.

Strong medtech innovation is not just about building great technology. It is about solving a real market problem, proving product-market fit, and creating a path to sustainable growth. In this episode, Darcy Bachert, CEO at Prolucid Technologies, joins Saul Marquez at the MedTech Innovator Radar Forum to discuss how medtech companies can bring promising technologies to market. Darcy shares how Prolucid supports organizations across the medical and nuclear sectors, with a strong emphasis on imaging and diagnostics. He reflects on the strength of the MedTech Innovator ecosystem and the momentum of companies progressing through the program with impactful innovations. Darcy also explains that today’s funding environment demands more than IP and regulatory progress; investors want real-world, market-ready, and monetizable solutions. Tune in and learn why medtech companies need to stay close to customers while building technologies that can truly succeed. Resources: Connect with and follow Darcy Bachert on LinkedIn. Follow Prolucid Technologies on LinkedIn and explore their website here.

What if the real power of AI in healthcare isn’t the technology itself, but how we apply it responsibly and intentionally? In this episode, Ajoy Ranga, Chief Digital Officer of Healthcare at UST Global, and Ashok Chennuru, Chief Data & Digital AI Transformation Officer at the Digital Platforms and Artificial Intelligence Office at Elevance Health/Carelon, discuss how their partnership between UST and Elevance Health is leveraging AI, data, and digital transformation to improve healthcare outcomes and consumer experience. They emphasize that scaling AI responsibly requires strong governance, human oversight, and a clear stance against using AI to deny care. Both highlight that high-quality, actionable data is foundational, but must be practical, cost-effective, and usable even when imperfect. Ultimately, they stress that success in healthcare innovation comes from starting with user experience, rapidly prototyping solutions, and fostering a mindset of continuous learning and experimentation. Tune in to hear how Elevance Health and UST are balancing innovation with responsibility to unlock AI’s true potential in healthcare! Resources: Connect with and follow Ajoy Ranga on LinkedIn. Follow UST Global on LinkedIn and visit their website! Connect with and follow Ashok Chennuru on LinkedIn. Follow Elevance Health on LinkedIn and visit their website!

Healthcare innovation is at its best when it takes on hard problems with curiosity, humility, and a clear-eyed focus on impact. In this episode, Betsabeh Madani-Hermann, Global Head of Research at Philips, shares how complexity drives her passion for healthcare innovation. As the first female head of research in the company’s 135-year history, she leads breakthrough technologies and global partnerships to simplify care and scale impact. She explains how Philips’ innovation DNA helps move ideas from early exploration to real-world application. Betsabeh also highlights the use of pre-mortems to anticipate risks and emphasizes that the future of healthcare will be shaped by more than AI, including robotics, imaging, and human curiosity. Tune in and learn why the best innovations come from staying curious, solving difficult problems, and preparing honestly for what could go wrong.  Resources: Connect with and follow Betsabeh Madani-Hermann on LinkedIn. Follow Philips on LinkedIn and explore their website!

Virtual care is no longer just about access. It is now becoming the infrastructure layer that helps health systems reduce fragmentation, strengthen workplace safety, and scale digital care more intelligently. In this episode, Tammy Cress, Senior Vice President of Clinical Solutions and Innovation at Teladoc Health, discusses how health systems can move beyond fragmented telehealth strategies and start building more sustainable, integrated models of digital care. She explains how Teladoc is layering responsible AI onto its virtual care infrastructure through its Clarity solution, which helps sense, synthesize, and route the right information to the right care team member at the right time. Tammy also shares why workplace safety is one of the most urgent and practical use cases for these tools, how fragmented digital investments continue to drain staff and budgets, and why strategy, governance, and thoughtful alignment matter more than ever as organizations move from pilots to scalable transformation. Tune in and learn how health systems can rethink virtual care and AI adoption in ways that are more proactive, sustainable, and grounded in what truly matters! Resources: Connect with Tammy Cress on LinkedIn. Follow Teladoc Health on LinkedIn and visit their website!

Healthcare organizations cannot afford to chase every new technology trend without first building the foundation to make those tools effective, scalable, and financially sustainable. In this episode, Jeff Thomas, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Sentara Health, discusses how his team is approaching cloud transformation, AI readiness, and cost management across a vertically integrated payer-provider organization. He explains why technology decisions must ultimately support better care delivery, how tech debt continues to slow innovation, and why data accessibility is the real prerequisite for meaningful AI adoption. Jeff also shares how Sentara has reduced system sprawl, flattened infrastructure costs while growing, and built a more resilient technology environment that supports both operational efficiency and clinician presence. He closes by emphasizing a point many leaders overlook: no technology transformation succeeds without strong change management. Tune in and learn how healthcare leaders can build a smarter, more disciplined path to innovation without losing sight of the people they serve! Resources: Connect with and follow Jeff Thomas on LinkedIn. Follow Sentarah Health on LinkedIn and visit their website!

Some of the most meaningful healthcare innovations start with a deeply personal problem and the determination to make care more dignified. In this episode, Alli Truttmann, founder and CEO of Wicked Technologies, shares how a personal caregiving experience led her to pivot from lifestyle products into medical device innovation. Inspired by her grandmother’s end-of-life journey, she identified critical gaps in incontinence care and set out to create solutions that improve dignity, sleep quality, and caregiver awareness. She discusses the company’s evolution into healthcare, highlighting the Wicked Smart Pad, which detects small amounts of moisture and alerts caregivers in senior living environments. Alli also reflects on her experience with MedTech Innovator and how its network and support have helped shape her journey as a first-time device founder. Tune in to learn how personal experience, smart product design, and the right medtech network can help bring more dignity and innovation to care. Resources: Connect with and follow Alli Truttmann on LinkedIn. Follow Wicked Technologies on LinkedIn and explore their website here.

In pharma, the brands that win don't wait for the market to define them. They define themselves through clear, early, and evolving positioning. In this episode, Lumanity's Natalie Thovmasian (Vice President) and Liv Yates (Managing Consultant) make the case that brand positioning isn't a launch checkbox; it's a strategic driver across the entire product lifecycle. Their core argument: shape positioning early, before clinical data lands, by anchoring a bold vision in a target product profile, real customer needs, and where the market is heading next. Natalie and Liv unpack why strong positioning works as a mental shortcut for buyers, demanding clarity, differentiation, and emotional resonance to cut through the noise of a data-saturated category. And because markets shift, positioning has to be revisited and refined continuously to stay relevant, consistent, and commercially sharp. A few things you'll take away: Why positioning belongs in early development, not just launch planning How a target product profile anchors a bold, differentiated vision What separates positioning that resonates from positioning that gets ignored How to evolve positioning as the clinical and competitive landscape shifts If you're building or scaling a pharma brand, this conversation is essential listening. Resources: Connect with and follow Natalie Thovmasian on LinkedIn. Connect with and follow Liv Yates on LinkedIn. Learn more about this series we're doing with Lumanity here: https://lumanity.com/commercialization-podcasts/