Tag Archives: Type 2 Diabetes

An Inside Look at the ADA's Launch of the Obesity Association

American Diabetes Association Launches Obesity Association

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In this episode of StartUp Health NOW, Chuck Henderson, the CEO of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and a member of StartUp Health’s Health Moonshot Impact Board, took time out of his busy schedule at the recent ADA Scientific Sessions – the ADA’s annual global gathering of more than 11,000 people working on foundational products and bleeding-edge ideas related to both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes – to chat with us about innovation, collaboration, and the ADA’s latest initiatives.

  • Launch of the Obesity Association: The ADA has announced the formation of the Obesity Association, which will now be a division within the ADA, focusing heavily on integrating obesity care into diabetes standards.
  • Cutting-Edge Research: The ADA is doubling down on its efforts to combat obesity by incorporating it more thoroughly into their standards of care, considered a critical resource in diabetes management.
  • Health Equity: A significant focus is on health equity, ensuring that all programs are accessible and beneficial to underserved communities, including rural areas.
  • Community Outreach: The ADA has initiated programs like mobile clinics in rural Alabama to address diabetic retinopathy, demonstrating their commitment to reaching underserved populations.
  • Innovation and Competition: The ADA values innovation and competition, fostering early-stage research and encouraging disruptive ideas to push forward diabetes care and treatment.
  • Collaboration with StartUp Health: Chuck Henderson expressed his appreciation for his involvement with StartUp Health. He highlights StartUp Health’s role in connecting communities and emphasized the importance of our ecosystem in addressing chronic illnesses through innovative solutions like the Type 1 Diabetes Moonshot.

 

 

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Innovators: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

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A Masterclass with the Founder of One of the Great Success Stories in Health Innovation

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Virta Health is one of the greatest success stories in health tech today.

Join us for an insightful StartUp Health NOW episode featuring Sami Inkinen, the visionary CEO & Founder of Virta Health, a pioneering company focused on the reversal of Type 2 diabetes. In this Masterclass, originally recorded in front of a virtual audience of entrepreneurs in the StartUp Health community, Inkinen – also a member of the community – shares his journey and the innovative strategies behind Virta Health’s success.

Inkinen’s impressive background includes co-founding Trulia, leading it to a successful IPO and eventual sale to Zillow Group. At Virta Health, he’s raised $366M and achieved a $2B valuation, with the company recognized as a TIME100 Most Influential Company in 2023. Beyond his business acumen, Sami is a world-class athlete and health advocate, known for his rowing expedition to raise awareness about diabetes.

In this episode, Inkinen delves into:

  • The biggest surprises he faced as a health tech founder
  • Balancing his roles as CEO, father, and husband
  • The strategic planning rhythms that drive Virta’s mission
  • His personal journey, from existential crises to global health impact

As is typical of members of the StartUp Health community, Inkinen is generous in sharing his wisdom. Tune in to learn from his experience and gain valuable insights into leadership and achieving sustainable product-market fit in the digital health industry.

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Innovators: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

Funders: Become a Health Moonshot Champion

Two Startups Bringing Health Innovation to Vulnerable Communities

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Because of the nature of the work we do at StartUp Health, we’re often dealing with bleeding-edge ideas and technologies. Just last week on the show we talked to a founder creating what could be the smallest implantable devices on the market. Others are working on molecules that could cure diseases.

But there’s another kind of innovation that we’re equally passionate about at StartUp Health. That’s the kind of business model innovation that brings the best care and technology already available to new places and new people. There are many vulnerable communities that don’t get to benefit from the latest technical advances and it takes creative founders to bridge the gap.

Today on the podcast we’re highlighting two such founders. The first is Shruti Gurudanti, the CEO & Co-founder of Televëda – a member of the StartUp Health community since 2021. Gurudanti and her team are working with Native American veterans with the goal of lowering rates of suicide and suicidal ideation. They’ve got a tech platform that enables community building and telemedicine-style services, but what Gurudanti has found is that sometimes the most meaningful change is something basic: building trust with communities, particularly those long ignored.

After the conversation with Gurudanti we’ll hear from Kehlin Swain, CEO & Co-founder of Greens by Xplosion Technology, a member of the StartUp Health T1D Moonshot Community. Greens is an app designed to help vulnerable communities – particularly Black and Brown communities in the American South – manage diabetes in a culturally competent way. The app is called “Greens” in honor of one of the biggest cultural disconnects a family member faced as he navigated changing his diet after a diabetes diagnosis.

The common thread between Gurudanti and Swain is using the best tech of today to meet people where they are and to really understand what’s holding them back. Sometimes it’s something basic, like improving internet access or tech literacy, or bringing basic accountability to disease management.

Let’s get into the interviews, recorded live at a recent health tech conference.

 

Innovating in Alzheimer’s disease? Learn how you can join our new Alzheimer’s Moonshot.
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Innovators: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

Funders: Become a Health Moonshot Champion

From the Archives: Dr. Robert Wilson on How Partnering with PreventScripts Enhanced His Medical Practice

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Typically on this show we talk to the health tech founders – who we call Health Transformers – that are creating the tools and platforms that will modernize our health system. Or we talk to top investors on what they’re looking for in startups.

But, on this week’s StartUp Health NOW, we look back at one of our most-popular podcast episodes, which featured a different kind of guest: one that helps round out the picture of how healthcare innovation goes from idea to real-world implementation.

Robert Wilson, MD, is a family physician who runs CovenantCare Family Practice, a multi-site medical practice in Tennessee. Dr. Wilson popped up on our radar because he was an early partner for PreventScripts, a startup that’s part of the StartUp Health community. PreventScripts, led by Brandi Harless and Natalie Davis, MD, has created a platform that helps family doctors like Dr. Wilson identify patients who would benefit from chronic care management. Think about a patient who is pre-diabetic and all signs point towards a long battle with Type 2 diabetes. While Dr. Wilson might be too overextended to identify and coach this patient before the disease sets in, PreventScripts can identify the risk and put the patient on a clinically-proven program. Patients with chronic diseases, or the risk of disease, get heightened care between visits, and Dr. Wilson gets added reimbursement.

We wanted to talk to Dr. Wilson to understand why he was interested in partnering with a health startup, as this is one of the key hurdles for any health innovator. How do you find the right clinical partner, a place to prove out your brilliant idea in the real world, and then iterate based on user feedback?

In the conversation – our most-downloaded episode in the past year – we’ll get into the real-world challenges that Dr. Wilson faces, his motivation for evolving his practice, and how PreventScripts has helped him fill gaps in patient care.

We will be back with fresh episodes after Labor Day!

 

Founders: Health Transformer University fuels your health moonshot

Funders: Become a Health Moonshot Champion
Want more content like this? You can subscribe to the podcast as well as other health innovation updates at startuphealth.com/content.
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Looking to break down health barriers? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our Health Equity Moonshot.
Passionate about Type 1 diabetes? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our T1D Moonshot.

Health Innovation Implementation: Dr. Robert Wilson on How Partnering with PreventScripts Enhanced His Medical Practice

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Typically on this show we talk to the health tech founders – who we call Health Transformers – that are creating the tools and platforms that will modernize our health system. This week we have a different kind of guest who will help round out the picture of how healthcare innovation goes from idea to real-world implementation.

Our guest is Robert Wilson, MD, a family physician who runs CovenantCare Family Practice, a multi-site medical practice in Tennessee. Dr. Wilson popped up on our radar because he was an early partner for PreventScripts, a startup that’s part of the StartUp Health portfolio. PreventScripts, led by Brandi Harless and Natalie Davis, MD, has created a platform that helps family doctors like Dr. Wilson identify patients who would benefit from chronic care management. Think about a patient who is pre-diabetic and all signs point towards a long battle with Type 2 diabetes. While Dr. Wilson might be too overextended to identify and coach this patient before the disease sets in, PreventScripts can identify the risk and put the patient on a clinically-proven program. Patients with chronic diseases, or the risk of disease, get heightened care between visits, and Dr. Wilson gets added reimbursement.

We wanted to talk to Dr. Wilson to understand why he was interested in partnering with a health startup, as this is one of the key hurdles for any health innovator. How do you find the right clinical partner, a place to prove out your brilliant idea in the real world, and then iterate based on user feedback?

In the conversation, we’ll get into the real-world challenges that Dr. Wilson faces, his motivation for evolving his practice, and how PreventScripts has helped him fill gaps in patient care.

Learn more and connect with the team at PreventScripts.

Entrepreneurs: How to get investment from StartUp Health startuphealth.com

Investors: How to invest in StartUp Health Moonshots healthmoonshots.com
Want more content like this? You can subscribe to the podcast as well as other health innovation updates at startuphealth.com/content.
Sign up for StartUp Health Insider™ to get funding insights, news, and special updates delivered to your inbox.

Passionate about Type 1 diabetes? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our T1D Moonshot.
Looking to break down health barriers? If you’re an entrepreneur or investor, contact us to learn how you can join our Health Equity Moonshot.

Reversing Diabetes With Sami Inkinen of Virta Health

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Join us in Miami Beach from March 6-9, 2022, for StartUp Health @ ViVE to meet Health Transformers: startuphealth.com/vive

The numbers surrounding Type 2 diabetes are staggering. The WHO puts the number north of 400 million people globally, and it’s just getting worse. Health experts agree that Type 2 diabetes can largely be managed by a combination of nutrition, exercise, and medication. But what if it could be reversed completely? That’s the claim, and the health moonshot, of our guest today, Sami Inkinen, CEO and Founder of Virta, which StartUp Health backed in 2020. Specifically, Inkinen and his team want to reverse Type 2 diabetes in 100 million people by 2025.

Before Virta, Inkinen disrupted the real estate industry by co-founding Trulia, which he sold to Zillow for $2.5B. Now with Virta, he’s raised more than $350M to date, giving him the capital needed to take a great idea and scale it in unprecedented ways.

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Entrepreneurs: How to get investment from StartUp Health startuphealth.com

Investors: How to invest in StartUp Health Moonshots healthmoonshots.com
Want more content like this? You can subscribe to the podcast as well as other health innovation updates at startuphealth.com/content.
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