Leadership Through a Crisis: James Hereford of Fairview Health

Not all internships are created equally. Minnetronix Medical — a medical device contract manufacturer — has had its internship program in place for decades, but the pandemic shifted the way the company approaches its internships. Students who work for Minnetronix end up getting valuable hands-on experience, impactful mentorships, and the ability to explore what they're most passionate.

On this week's episode of the Medical Alley Podcast, Carolyn Baldus of Minnetronix Medical joins to share more about how the company's internship program has evolved over the years, and shares success stories of its program — including receiving over 800 applications for 30 positions.

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Dr. Pearce McCarty has been an orthopedic surgeon for over 15 years, but he more recently he has scratched an entrepreneurial itch. In 2020, Pearce co-founded DOCSI, a platform that helps optimize preference card uses among physicians and surgeons.

On this week's Medical Alley Podcast, Pearce joins our Frank Jaskulke in studio to share more about how DOCSI is helping drive efficiency and lower costs in procedural environments for hospitals and ASCs. He also discusses the importance of partnerships and details how DOCSI has partnered with Allina Health during the development of its platform.

To learn more about DOCSI, go to docsihealth.com.

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Since it began in 2008, the University of Minnesota's Medical Valuation Laboratory has worked on nearly 500 projects. The lab conducts assessments of medical device innovations and draws in students from various schools at the U of M — including law students, MBA students, medical students and more. This approach helps professionals evaluate their products before going to market.

On this week's episode of the Medical Alley Podcast, Jessica Haupt and Steve Parente from the University of Minnesota join to share more about the Medical Valuation Lab, discuss a bit about the Medical Industry Leadership Institute at the U of M, and more.

To learn more about the valuation lab, go to z.umn.edu/vallab.

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Scott Nelson has spent a good portion of his career in the medtech space. As a serial entrepreneur, he has helped start a number of different medtech companies. His latest venture, FastWave Medical, is developing intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) systems for treatment of arterial calcification.

On this week's Medical Alley Podcast, Scott joins more to share about what makes FastWave Medical unique in the IVL space, discusses some insights he's gained throughout his career as a startup founder, talks about his longevity in the podcast space with his media company Medsider, and much more.

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Mental health concerns have been on the rise for kids and teens, and Bend Health was founded with the goal of addressing those concerns. Monika Roots, MD, FAPA, built on her experience as a child and adolescent psychiatrist to co-found Bend Health with her husband Kurt. Bend Health offers a family-based digital mental health platform to help children by involving their village in the care.

Monika joined this week's Medical Alley Podcast to share more about Bend Health's family systems approach, discusses how AI has helped shape Bend Health's platform, offers her view of the future of family mental health care, and much more.

To learn more about Bend Health, go to bendhealth.com.

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Envoy Medical is a pioneer in the world of hearing health. The Medical Alley-based company has been around for 30 years and is doing truly innovative work with its fully-implantable devices used to treat hearing loss. Brent Lucas fell in love with Envoy Medical as an intern years ago and is now the company's CEO. He joined us in studio this week to share more about what makes Envoy unique.

Tune in to this week's episode to learn more about what makes Envoy Medical's implantable technology different from a traditional hearing aid, the lessons Brent has learned after the company went public, the challenge of finding a pathway to reimbursement, and much more.

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As one of the founders of Minute Clinic, Steve Pontius knows a thing or two about successfully starting and running an innovative healthcare company. After CVS purchased Minute Clinic in 2006, Steve has gone on to work for a few different companies. His latest, HealtheMed, is helping break down barriers to healthcare access for the Medicaid waivered population in Minnesota.

Steve joined in studio for this episode of the Medical Alley Podcast to share more about how HealtheMed is using its digital system to provide in-home care for Medicaid waivered patients through case managers. He also shares about the plans for growth for HealtheMed, the company's partnership with fellow Medical Alley member Accra, and how some of his lessons learned from founding Minute Clinic have helped with the work he's now doing at HealtheMed.

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Poor sleep has plenty of side effects — especially if it's a result of sleep apnea. It can range from more minor consequences such as feeling tired all the time to more major long-term implications like heart attacks. That's why treating sleep issues early is so important, and it's why ADVENT has continued to grow from a single clinic in Milwaukee in 2004 to 18 locations in the United States, including four here in Medical Alley.

Dr. Madan Kandula co-founded ADVENT with his wife 20 years ago and serves as the company's CEO. He recently was in the Twin Cities to celebrate the opening of ADVENT's new Maple Grove location, and he stopped by the Medical Alley studio for this week's podcast episode to share more about the importance of treating sleep and breathing issues. Dr. Kandula shares more about ADVENT's growth and discusses the company's focus on The Breathing Triangle® in treating patients.

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Mental health continues to be a focus for many healthcare providers throughout Medical Alley, and Allina Health is no different. It's something that Allina President and CEO Lisa Shannon cares deeply about, and is helping lead the organization's efforts to create more access to mental healthcare for its patients.

On this week's episode of the Medical Alley Podcast, Lisa Shannon talks with Medical Alley President and CEO Bobbie Dressen about her assessment of the state of mental health in the United States. Lisa, a Medical Alley board member, also discusses the challenges of the mental health workforce pipeline, and shares how she takes care of her own mental health amid the stress of running one of the largest health systems in Minnesota.

Listen now and be sure to subscribe to the Medical Alley Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.

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Benjamin Zander is the conductor of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and is the co-author of "The Art of Possibility." He has also a gifted speaker who had spoken to audiences around the world about leadership and awakening possibility in others. Benjamin will be the keynote speaker at the upcoming Medical Alley Summit on Feb. 8 at the Four Seasons in Minneapolis. Prior to his arrival to Minnesota, Benjamin joined the Medical Alley Podcast to chat with our President and CEO, Bobbie Dressen, about his love of music and the lessons he's learned as a conductor that can be used by any leader to inspire others.

Tune into this week's episode to hear how Benjamin discovered an early love of music as a child in England, what continues to drive Benjamin's passion for classical music, and get a sneak peek at what he'll be talking about during his speech at the Medical Alley Summit.

To register for the Summit, go to medicalalley.org/events. Learn more about Benjamin at his website, benjaminzander.org.

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