Empowered Patient Podcast

Rachna Patel MD, known as the medical marijuana doctor, talks about why she is pursuing the use of cannabis in her medical practice and shares her insights about how marijuana can be used to alleviate physical and emotional pain, which patients are most likely to be helped by a medical marijuana treatment plan, advantages of cannabis over opioids, and who should use THC and CBD with caution.  @DrRachnaPatel DrRachnaPatel.com

Ron Chabot, CEO, Addicts Like Me and Director of Business Development, Interventional Protocol Solution shares his own compelling journey from a stellar career in telemedicine to addiction and jail time to rehab that has brought him to developing the technology platform for the AddictsLike.Me support group and community with a focus on addressing multiple needs of those addicted to opioids and other substances.  Ron is creating a platform for addicts to connect with other addicts with access to critical and non-critical resources while developing protocols for doctors focused on addiction. @BostonBiolife AddictsLike.me Interventional Protocol Solution BostonBiolife  

Larry Wagner, National Development Manager, CAREstream America talks about using their PRO-NOX nitrous oxide and oxygen solution to relax patients and allow them to inhale the gas on demand. From plastic surgery to regenerative medicine using nitrous oxide in procedures for pain management is between sedation and anesthesia and is seen as an analgesia that is generally safe for patients as well as the doctors who are administering the gas. CAREstream America Boston Biolife

Cory Kidd PhD Founder and CEO Catalia Health has been exploring the use of robots and artificial intelligence for improving healthcare for over 20 years.  He and his team have taken on the challenge of figuring out why people don't stay with a drug regimen for chronic conditions.  Using the robot Mabu, they are able to personalize the interaction with patients to encourage healthier habits and gather data about barriers to adherence. @CoryK  @CataliaHealth #robot #AI #Heartfailure Catalia Health  

Marty Driscoll, CEO of Spring Bank Pharmaceuticals, discusses treatments for the hepatitis B virus, a disease suffered by 250 million people globally who are chronically infected with the hepatitis B virus. Marty talks about what a functional cure for chronically infected patients means, and what Spring Bank is doing to help those affected. Spring Bank is developing a new oral drug named inarigivir that is a selective immunomodulator/encapsidation inhibitor. Inarigivir could become a key component of a future safe and simple combination treatment in an effort to substantially increase functional cure rates for patients with chronic hepatitis B and reduce their need for daily drugs. @springbankpharm #HBV #HepatitisB  #Functionalcure #inarigivir Spring Bank Pharmaceuticals  

Michelle Niedziela, PhD, Scientific Director, HCD Research reveals the testing that pharmaceutical companies engage in to insure that tv and print ads reach their target audience.  For over 20 years, HCD has been conducting research with health care professionals, patients, and caregivers using traditional market research as well as applied neuroscience tools to test engagement, understanding, and use of words and images to offer hope as well as information.  It all comes down to helping pharmaceuticals develop emotional appeal and helping patients and doctors remember the name of the drug. @HCDNeuroscience #neuromarketing  #consumer #mrx HCD Research

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a method of noninvasive neuromodulation being used to treat depression. Joe Perekupka, VP of Sales Operations at Brainsway discusses their proprietary deep TMS (dTMS) technology which is able to affect areas of the brain previously unreachable by standard TMS. The Brainsway Helmet is a device approved for treatment of the many Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) patients who have failed at least one drug-based regimen. Joe discusses the reality of MDD, the significance of dTMS technology, and the benefit it brings to those who are seeking remission from MDD.  @Brainsway #depression #MDD  #mentalhealth #NAMI #mentalhealthawareness  #depressionawareness   #depressionisreal Brainsway.com

Joe Krieger, President, Boston Biolife shines light on the robust world of regenerative medicine.  He describes how many of the medical breakthroughs have come about because experts in diverse disciplines came together to figure out how to help the body heal itself.  One key driver has been advances in sports medicine where efforts have been made to avoid surgery and replacement of body parts.  Joe and his team run training programs for scientists, technology and healthcare providers to drive advances in stem cell therapies and biologics.     @Biolife Biolife.com

Graham Dodge, Co-Founder and CEO, Sickweather is part detective and part entrepreneur.  He and his team are harvesting real time data from social media to identify early warning signs of the outbreak of the flu or allergy season.  Using this social surveillance along with other reported health related and historical data, Sickweather is informing individuals about their risk of getting an infectious disease based on their physical location.  The question is does this kind of information change behavior or just make people nervous.  The pharmaceutical companies are also using this data to inform about ad buys and promotions. @Sickweather Sickweather.com

Patients with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (NCFBE), a progressive pulmonary disease, currently have no treatment options in the US. Nancy Pecota, CFO of Aradigm Corporation, discusses NCFBE and what Aradigm is doing to help these patients and possibly others who have an un-diagnosed condition . Their inhalable drug Linhaliq™ is currently on the fast track for FDA approval for NCFBE. Nancy discusses Aradigm’s progress to provide an effective treatment option and prevent future infections in these patients. #bronchiectasis #NCFBE  #Linhaliq  #Aradigm  #pulmonarydisease Aradigm.com  

Raj Oswal, Founder, O.Connect is enthusiastic about the potential of an event app to not only provide an online version of the conference program but also to encourage networking and sharing on social media while also providing access to speakers and presentations.  With an expertise in developing apps for the scientific community, Raj is particularly interested in breaking down the barriers that separate researchers from the business side of the healthcare industry so that all get the most out of time spent at events. #DigiMed17 @OConnectApp OConnectApp.com

David Herzberg PhD, associate professor of history, SUNY- University at Buffalo reminds us that opioid addiction is not a new phenomenon and in fact there have been waves of addiction to sedatives, stimulants and pain killers over the last 150 years.  David points out how we often view physical dependency on a drug versus drug addiction with racial and economic bias.  He also warns that history tells us that the current opioid epidemic most likely will continue until we better address real pain and suffering of all patients. DavidHerzberg.com #opiodcrisis

Vision impairment is a major factor contributing to loss of independent living for otherwise healthy seniors. Dr. Jason Slakter, M.D. leading expert ophthalmologist and CEO of Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. explains how wet age-related macular degeneration (wet-AMD) affects the eye, genetic and environmental factors for developing wet-AMD, and measures that can be taken to delay the onset of the disease. Dr. Slakter also talks about advances in treatments and the promise of a new eye drop that is being tested in clinical trials. @OhrPharma OhrPharmaceutical.com #MacularDegeneration #AMD #wetAMD #EyeDisease #Ophthalmology #medicine #eyeinfo

Arsen Marsoobian also known as Papa Soob has written a soon to be published book A Heartbeat Away/ Are You Ready?  We talk about some of the key elements of being ready for the end of life by being satisfied with relationships and reconciliation with friends and family so there are no regrets.  We also talk about what kinds of legacies people can leave and taking control over the narrative about how we are remembered. Don't Die A Heartbeat Away  

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is more common than the Zika virus, yet few people know about the irreversible birth defects congenital CMV infection can cause. Jeff Baxter, CEO of VBI Vaccines, talks about the risks CMV poses to pregnant women and their unborn babies. Currently, there is no way to prevent contracting CMV during pregnancy and the irreversible birth defects that can result. Thankfully, VBI Vaccines is currently developing a vaccine to prevent CMV. If successful, this could be given to all adolescent-aged young women as a preventive measure. @VBIVaccines VBIVaccines.com #CMV   #congenitalCMV   #CMVawareness #vaccine   #CMVinfection   #stopCMV VB  

Nathan Price, Associate Director, Institute for Systems Biology reminds us that biology is still a data poor science though it is changing with advancements in technology and genomics.  Nathan is working on the Pioneer 100 Project to build personal dense data clouds to help researchers design better predictive risk models in a drive towards scientific wellness. @ISBNathanPrice #DigiMed17 Institute for Systems Biology    

Jason Hwang, founder, Lemonaid Health and renowned healthcare innovator talks about bringing disruptive solutions to the healthcare marketplace.  Lemonaid uses an asynchronous analysis model where patients submit symptoms and requests for medications online.  Submissions are automatically reviewed quickly, overseen by doctors when necessary, and prescriptions sent to pharmacies for treatment.  The focus of the service is on common health challenges like sinus infections and the flu to ongoing concerns like birth control and hair loss.  The mission is to lower costs and make health care more accessible and convenient. @drjhwang #DigiMed17 Lemonaidhealth.com

Nick Desai, co-founder, Heal.com talks about taking advantage of the trend to miniaturize medical equipment to allow them to build a business model where the doctor comes to a patient's home, office, or hotel room within two hours 365 days a year.  Heal is promoting price transparency, accepts most medical insurance, and is providing rapid response with well-equipped high quality doctors scheduled through the Heal mobile app, web site or by phone.  Service available in limited areas with some restrictions on patients who are accepted. @healapp #DigiMed17 Heal.com  

Noga Leviner, Co-Founder, PicnicHealth knows how important it is to be able to have access to complete medical records and is creating a company that can search for old medical files as well as provide a dashboard to manage new data.  In order to get optimal care, PicnicHealth is providing clients with a service that searches medical data on paper, film and in digital format and gives access to the patient, current doctors, and appropriate family members.  The biggest challenge seems to be reading the handwriting of doctors in order to digitize office visit notes. @picnichealth #DigiMed17 PicnicHealth

Melissa Menke, Founder and CEO, Access Afya is a digital health activist in Nairobi Kenya where she has set up micro-clinics in the informal settlements to bring health services to an under-served community.  They are using digital diagnostic tools and mobile devices to send text and voice alerts to patients where there is near universal access to a phone or smart device.  Melissa is also bringing 21st Century medicine to neighborhoods, schools, and factories using mobile units.  Part of the secret to her success is the engagement of those in the community to participate in the program as volunteers and workers. @accessafya #DigiMED17 #DigitalHealth Access Afya