Frank Jaskulke is one of the regular hosts of the Medical Alley Podcast, but on this week's episode he's on the other side of the microphone as the guest. Medical Alley celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, and Frank has been with the organization for nearly half of its history. He has now worked for 19 years at Medical Alley, and he joins the podcast to reflect on how the organization — and the ecosystem — have changed during that time.From driving around looking for companies that sounded like medical organizations, to establishing his signature red shoes as a way to be easily identified at meetings and events, Frank shares some of the highlights from his 19 years at Medical Alley — and looks into his crystal ball at what the next 40 years for Medical Alley (both the organization and the ecosystem) might look like.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

This episode of of the Medical Alley Podcast is a replay of a webinar hosted on January 31st titled: “Transforming Regulatory Compliance with Artificial Intelligence,” sponsored by RegDesk. The discussion focused on how artificial intelligence is impacting regulatory compliance, with a look at the growing complexity in the regulatory space and why it is imperative that teams adapt.Panelists included: Priya Paul, Founder and CEO, RegDeskLiz Haines, Northeastern UniversityDon Ellis, Vice President, Global Regulatory Affairs, Reva MedicalFollow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Leadership can be hard, especially in healthcare. Those tasked with leading companies or managing teams working on potentially live-saving technology or services can face plenty of stress and uncertainty, especially with the changes in the work environment post-pandemic. Sometimes those leaders need executive coaches, which is where groups like The Bailey Group come in.On this week's episode of the Medical Alley Podcast, we're joined by Sal Mondelli and Anja White, who are both executive coaches and consultants at The Bailey Group. They address the question: who might be a good fit for executive coaching? Sal and Anja also chat with our Ben Wagner about how leaders play a big role in workforce retention, the differences in leaders of a startup versus a larger corporation, and the importance of leaders being lifelong learners. Learn more about The Bailey Group at thebaileygroup.com.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Artificial intelligence enabled devices are changing the landscape of medical devices and are subject to evolving regulation. Listen back to a replay of our webinar from late last year as team of lawyers from Covington & Burling LLP discuss key considerations for the AI-enabled medical device space, including current best practices for industry participants seeking to take advantage of this powerful new technology.Panelists from Covington included:Andrew MentPam ForrestAdrian PerryTo watch a video replay of the webinar, you can find it on Medical Alley's YouTube page.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Forty years ago, Earl Bakken  helped establish Medical Alley to ensure that Minnesota's healthcare ecosystem remained strong. Prior to helping found Medical Alley, Bakken famously founded Medtronic. But his inspiration and love of science and technology started as a kid when he fell in love with the movie "Frankenstein." Many years later, Bakken's legacy and his love of innovation and curiosity — and electricity — is preserved and told at the Bakken Museum in Minneapolis.On this week's Medical Alley Podcast, Bakken Museum President and CEO Alissa Light and Adrian Fischer, curator of exhibits and collections at the museum, join to share more about the Bakken Musuem as an incubator for innovation. They also discuss the ways in which the Bakken Musuem is helping future generations of entrepreneurs and innovators by fostering a love of STEM in children through various programs and educational opportunities.Learn more about the Bakken Museum or find out what you can expect when you visit at thebakken.org.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

When PRO-TECH Design says it's a family business, it means it. Pamela McMaster founded the company back in 1980 in California, and now her two sons — Aaron Swanson and Jeff Swanson — are helping run the company. Aaron serves as president, while Jeff is the company's VP of sales. The duo became the first set of brothers to join us on the Medical Alley Podcast when they stopped in studio to share more about PRO-TECH and its work as a medical device contract manufacturing organization.Tune in to hear more about the family dynamic at PRO-TECH, about the company's entrance into the Minnesota market with its acquisition of Surgical Technologies, Inc. in 2022, the importance of packaging for medical devices, and more.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

We had so many great guests on the podcast in 2023 and enjoyed all the conversations with leaders from Medical Alley who are all working to help make this region the epicenter of health innovation and care. Thank you to all of our guests on the podcast this year, and to all of you who tuned in to listen.As we look ahead to the new year, we first look back at the most-listened-to episodes of the Medical Alley Podcast in 2023. The top five episodes included:Relieving Lower Back Pain: A Conversation with Tyler Binney, President and CEO, Relievant MedsystemsInnovation in Neuromodulation: A Conversation with Jim Schuermann, President and CEO, Saluda MedicalWearing Many Medtech Hats: A Conversation with Morgan Evans, Medtech EntrepreneurInteracting with the FDA: A Conversation with Chris Mullin, Director of Global Strategy Services, NAMSAJoy and Mindfulness: A Conversation with Deepak ChopraTake a listen to some highlights from our most popular episodes, and stay tuned for more great conversations with healthcare leaders in 2024.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP) is a Medical Alley Starts sponsor and provides financial and tax consulting, as well as fractional CFO and outsourcing services. CLA offers a 25% discount to qualifying startups for the first year of working together.On this week's Medical Alley Podcast, startup principal Filip Kostal is joined by five experienced practitioners at CLA, a professional services firm, to learn more about the company's offerings, ranging from tax structuring, cybersecurity, outsourced services, and more.Guests from CLA include:Randy Romes, Principal of Information Security ServicesJeff Sellner, Principal, Succession Concierge ServicesRyan Bjerke, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Partnerships, and Digital TransformationKelly Rousar, BizOps ControllerCraig Arends, Managing Principal, Private Equity & Portfolio companiesThe information contained herein is general in nature and is not intended, and should not be construed as legal, accounting, investment, or tax advice or opinion provided by CLA (CliftonLarsonAllen LLP) to the listener. For more information, visit CLAconnect.com.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The medical device industry is in a new era—the consumerization era.Historically, we focused on meeting rigorous requirements of safety and efficacy. Today, we must meet a new set of standards. Safety and efficacy, of course. But also, intuitiveness and sophistication. This has big implications not just for the devices you design but also for how you do business.This webinar, presented by Delve, was hosted in October of 2023 and explored the reasons behind the shift. Host Mathieu Turpault, Delve's VP of Design, offered attendees actionable steps to rethink your product development processes, based on Delve’s decades of experience developing medical devices and consumer products. Tune in to hear more insights from Mathieu.Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

In countries with significantly aging populations like Japan and parts of Western Europe, wound care is the third biggest expense to their national healthcare systems. As the population in the United States continues to age, wound care will be a very important aspect of the healthcare system.That's why Nima Ahmadi co-founded The Wound Company, a Medical Alley-based company offering virtual-first wound care to its patients. To learn more about what virtual first means when it comes to wound care, Nima joined Frank Jaskulke on this week's Medical Alley Podcast to share The Wound Company's story.Nima also discusses:The ways in which medical technology plays a role in wound careHow The Wound Company grew its national footprint in just a few short yearsThe benefits of having the company based in Minnesota's Medical AlleyTune into the conversation with Nima to learn more about The Wound Company as it looks to help a growing population of patients needing wound care.  Follow Medical Alley on social media on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.