Med Tech Gurus

Hosted by Tom Hickey

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Episodes

346

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Jun 2026

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About the show

Med Tech Gurus is a podcast dedicated to helping medical device executives stay on the leading edge of their industry. Whether you're looking to grow your sales team, commercialize new devices, set up national accounts, or improve your clinical performances, this podcast is designed to help. Each episode features an interview with a thought leader or practitioner, discussing topics like: sales force, innovation, patient outcomes, emerging technologies, supply chain, group purchasing organizations, device launches, value analysis, biotech, and more.

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60 recent

June 10, 202644 min

Why Most Radiology AI Fails

AI can detect lung nodules in milliseconds—so why hasn't radiology been transformed? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we sit down with Khan Siddiqui, radiologist, serial entrepreneur, and CEO of HOPPR, to unpack why most AI tools in medical imaging struggle to survive beyond pilot studies. Dr. Siddiqui explains that detection isn't the real problem—workflow is. As imaging volumes surge and radiologist shortages intensify, AI must deliver measurable ROI in time savings, reporting efficiency, and reduced cognitive load. Tools that add clicks or increase reading time simply won't scale. We explore HOPPR's AI-native platform, which accelerates model development, enables local fine-tuning, and integrates AI directly into existing clinical workflows. Khan also shares powerful lessons on fundraising, identifying "hair-on-fire" customers, building A-player teams, and scaling innovation responsibly in regulated healthcare environments. If you care about AI in healthcare, radiology innovation, or moving from hype to real-world adoption, this episode delivers practical insight from one of the field's pioneers.

June 3, 202639 min

Rewriting the Rules of Pediatric Lumbar Puncture

What if one of pediatrics' most common emergency procedures hasn't meaningfully evolved in over a century? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we sit down with Bob Cooper, CEO of SMoLTAP, to explore how a simple but powerful positioning innovation is transforming infant lumbar punctures. For decades, pediatric spinal taps have relied on manual restraint, inconsistent positioning, and high failure rates—often leading to repeat attempts, unnecessary hospital admissions, and increased stress for clinicians and families. SMoLTAP's positioning cradle stabilizes infants in a consistent seated posture, improving first-stick success rates, reducing procedural time, and minimizing the need for sedation. Bob shares the origin story—from a frustrating clinical moment at Brown University to adoption in over 100 hospitals—and dives into the realities of pediatric medical device commercialization. We explore specialty distribution strategies, navigating value analysis committees, building ROI calculators, and scaling capital-efficiently in a challenging healthcare market. This episode is a powerful example of how human-centered design, operational insight, and disciplined execution can change the standard of care.

May 27, 202629 min

The Human Side of MedTech Innovation

Why do so many MedTech innovations fail to gain traction—even when the technology works exactly as designed? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we're joined by Erin Rollenhagen, Founder and CEO of People-Friendly Tech, UX strategist, and author of Love at First Launch. With experience leading over 200 successful technology launches across healthcare and other regulated industries, Erin brings a unique perspective on what truly drives product adoption. Erin explains why usability and emotional connection often matter more than features alone—and why success depends on how both clinicians and patients feel when interacting with new technology. We explore how companies can preserve the original vision behind their innovations while navigating compliance, scaling challenges, and evolving market demands. From designing onboarding experiences that build trust to using AI thoughtfully without overwhelming users, Erin shares how MedTech leaders can create solutions that align with real-world workflows and deliver meaningful outcomes. If you're a founder, executive, or investor looking to improve clinical adoption and scale innovation without losing the magic of your original idea, this episode offers practical insights into building technology people actually want to use.

May 20, 202631 min

Fixing the Hidden Bottleneck in Healthcare

Why do hospitals invest millions in clinical innovation—yet still struggle to move patients down the hall? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we sit down with Dr. David Crabb, emergency physician and CEO of Rovex, to explore one of healthcare's most overlooked operational challenges: patient transport. Drawing on his dual experience in frontline emergency medicine and clinical informatics, Dr. Crabb shares how delays in moving patients between departments can quietly impact throughput, staff workload, and ultimately patient outcomes. At Rovex, Dr. Crabb is leading the development of an autonomous mobile robot designed to attach to standard hospital stretchers—safely transporting patients while reducing delays, minimizing staff injuries, and helping clinicians work at the top of their license. We discuss how physical AI and robotics are moving beyond the digital world to address real-world inefficiencies inside hospitals. From building trust in AI-driven systems to navigating adoption challenges in complex care environments, this episode explores what it takes to introduce an entirely new category of medical technology—and why solving logistical problems may be the key to unlocking better care delivery.

May 13, 202643 min

The Product Adoption Lie: Why Great MedTech Fails to Scale

Why do so many breakthrough MedTech products fail — even when the technology works? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we're joined by Holley Miller, Founder and President of Grey Matter Marketing and one of the most direct, no-nonsense voices in healthcare commercialization today. With nearly three decades in life sciences — from the early days of surgical robotics to advising CEOs, boards, and investors — Holley has helped create more than $4.5 billion in enterprise value by doing one thing differently: designing adoption before launch. Holley is the architect of what she calls the Product Adoption Lie — the dangerous belief that better products automatically win. In this conversation, she explains why most launches fail not because the product is weak, but because the market was never taught to change its beliefs or behavior. We explore why adoption must be engineered, how category design replaces traditional go-to-market playbooks, and why alignment across clinical, regulatory, and commercial teams is essential to changing the standard of care. If you're a founder, executive, or investor trying to scale innovation — not just launch a product — this episode delivers a hard truth and a clear roadmap for building something the market can't ignore.

May 6, 202640 min

When Every Minute Is Critical: Scaling AI to Save Stroke Patients

What if frontline clinicians everywhere had instant access to expert-level stroke imaging — no matter where a patient arrives? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we're joined by Michalis Papadakis, CEO and Co-Founder of Brainomix, an Oxford University spin-out using AI to transform how stroke is diagnosed and treated. With a background in neuroscience from Imperial College London, UCL, and the University of Oxford, Michalis built Brainomix with a singular mission: ensure patients don't miss out on life-saving stroke treatments due to delays or lack of imaging expertise. Under his leadership, Brainomix developed Brainomix 360 Stroke, the world's first fully automated AI imaging suite for stroke care — now deployed in more than 30 countries, backed by 50+ clinical publications, and processing patient scans in minutes with results delivered in under sixty seconds. In this conversation, we explore how starting with a true clinical unmet need, relentless evidence generation, and seamless workflow integration enabled Brainomix to scale globally and materially improve patient outcomes. If you care about AI in healthcare, stroke innovation, clinical adoption, or scaling medtech from academia to enterprise, this is a blueprint worth hearing.

April 29, 202628 min

From Signal to Scale: Turning MedTech Data into Growth

Why do so many great MedTech products stall after launch — even when the data is there? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we're joined by Amy Brouhle, Vice President of Strategic Business Development at S2N Health. A former emergency department nurse turned commercialization leader, Amy brings more than 20 years of experience spanning clinical care, GPO strategy, national accounts, and MedTech growth. Her career includes senior roles at Vizient, Hillrom, and GE Healthcare, giving her a rare, end-to-end view of how innovation actually gets adopted — or stuck. At S2N Health, Amy helps MedTech companies cut through the noise of fragmented data and turn insight into action. We explore why most organizations don't have a data problem — they have an insight problem — and how aligning sales, marketing, and strategy around the right signals can unlock utilization, accelerate adoption, and improve investor confidence. From GPO dynamics and channel strategy to AI-powered targeting, territory planning, and go-to-market execution, Amy shares practical lessons every founder and commercial leader needs to hear. If you're trying to translate innovation into revenue and scale, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.

April 22, 202640 min

From Acute Care to Continuous Care

Why has healthcare resisted digital transformation longer than almost any other industry? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we're joined by Mariano García-Valiño, four-time entrepreneur, digital health innovator, and CEO of AXENYA—recently named one of the world's best digital health companies by Newsweek. Mariano has built, scaled, and exited billion-dollar healthcare companies by combining technology, data, and human-centered design to tackle chronic disease at scale. Mariano is also the author of Inedible, where he argues that modern healthcare is still built for acute illness, not the chronic conditions driving today's costs and outcomes. In this conversation, we explore why software alone isn't enough, how AI and continuous care models unlock real impact, and what it actually takes to scale health tech in complex, regulated markets. From leadership and entrepreneurship to AI-enabled care delivery, Mariano shares hard-earned lessons on building companies with both scale and purpose. If you care about digital health, healthcare transformation, or meaningful innovation, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.

April 15, 202631 min

Beating the Clock: Rethinking Brain Tumor Care

What if the most dangerous part of brain tumor treatment isn't the surgery… but the wait that comes after it? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we sit down with Dr. Michael Garcia, Chief Medical Officer and Head of Clinical Development at GT Medical Technologies, and one of the leading voices reshaping how we treat brain tumors. Dr. Garcia leads the clinical strategy behind GammaTile® — an implantable, bioabsorbable device that delivers targeted radiation from inside the brain immediately after surgery, eliminating the dangerous 3–6 week delay where tumors often begin to grow back. Under his leadership, GT Medical has reported powerful interim clinical data showing GammaTile can reduce the risk of recurrence or death by more than 50% compared to standard of care — with no increase in safety concerns. Today, more than 150 leading cancer centers are using this technology, changing not only outcomes, but something equally important: patient experience. Less anxiety. Fewer treatment delays. Fewer logistical burdens. More hope. Dr. Garcia shares the science, the strategy, and the deeply personal mission behind this innovation — along with insights on clinical trial design, multidisciplinary collaboration, and building medtech that truly serves patients. If you care about oncology, neurosurgery, innovation with purpose, or patient-centered design, this is a conversation you won't want to miss.

April 8, 202640 min

Stickers That Can Save Lives: The Future of MicroWearable Health Monitoring

What happens when rocket-science precision meets frontline healthcare? In this episode of Med Tech Gurus, we sit down with Professor Mark Kendall, Founder & CEO of WearOptimo and one of the world's most visionary biomedical innovators. A former rocket scientist turned medtech pioneer, Mark has already transformed vaccine delivery with groundbreaking platforms like PowderJet and Vaxxas. Now, he's doing it again — this time with a revolutionary micro-wearable sensor designed to pull high-fidelity biosignals directly from the skin without painful needles or invasive hardware. Mark explains how WearOptimo's sticker-like microneedle patch, built using cutting-edge manufacturing techniques that scale to tens of millions of units, is redefining what wearables can do. The first target? Hydration monitoring — solving a problem so widespread it quietly reduces life expectancy and affects elite athletes, surgical outcomes, and everyday health. From scalable manufacturing and AI-enabled biomarker intelligence, to building elite teams and navigating fundraising, Mark delivers powerful lessons on innovation, leadership, and building technologies that truly matter. If you're passionate about the future of wearable medicine, platform technology, and designing solutions that actually reach the real world, this conversation is one you won't want to miss.