Don Crawford, President & Chief Executive Officer, is a seasoned medical device executive with a proven track record of excellent results driven leadership through team efforts and focused execution. Don previously founded and led Sapheon Inc., a cardiovascular-focused medical device company, from inception to $238 million acquisition by Covidien in 2014. His career started with Medtronic and included sales and marketing positions of increasing responsibility with Guidant Corporation, Ventritex, and Intermedics, including an international sales director role in charge of a $100 million cardiovascular business. Don received his B.Ch.E. in Chemical Engineering from Georgia Tech and M.B.A. from Emory University.
Charles R. Bridges, M.D., Sc.D., Executive Vice President & Chief Scientific Officer, was Chief Technology Officer for the Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Therapeutic Areas at Janssen Pharmaceuticals and the scientific lead on nearly $1 billion of investments and acquisitions. He was previously Professor of Surgery and Bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Pennsylvania Hospital, Professor and Chairman of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Carolina’s HealthCare System. Dr. Bridges has 175 peer-reviewed publications and 15 patents. He received an A.B. in Applied Physics from Harvard University magna cum laude, entering Harvard Medical School at age 18, receiving an M.D. (with honors), an M.S. in Electrical Engineering and a D.Sc. in Chemical Engineering from MIT.
Gabrielle Zaeska, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs & Quality, is an established Regulatory Affairs leader with over 15 years of experience in the medical device industry. Her expertise includes executing regulatory strategy and submissions for the US, EU, and Canada markets, as well as supporting new product applications globally (Australia, Asia, Latin America). Gabrielle began her career in biocompatibility before transitioning into Regulatory Affairs where she formerly led teams at St. Jude Medical and Abbott Laboratories within the Structural Heart divisions. She has also served as a working group member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) creating a standard for cardiac occluder devices. Gabrielle received a M.Sc. in Regulatory Affairs from St. Cloud State University and a B.S. in Biology from the University of Minnesota.
Robyn Baek, Vice President of Finance, is a strategic finance leader with extensive experience in accelerating financial success and establishing a data-driven culture. Robyn previously provided financial leadership at SOC Telemed, an acute care telemedicine company through an IPO and three acquisitions. She also serves as an Editorial Board Member of Telehealth and Medicine Today, an international peer-reviewed journal for healthcare leaders and innovators around the globe. Previously, she was an investment banker at Citigroup and a management consultant at Booz Allen Hamilton. Robyn holds a B.S. in Finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a M.B.A. from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University.
Horace R. Gillins, Vice President of Clinical Affairs, is a Cardiovascular Invasive Specialist and Certified Clinical Research Professional with over 15 years of healthcare experience and 9 years of experience supporting clinical communications and affairs organizations in interventional cardiology, structural heart, and dermatology. He was previously at Keystone Heart, Inc. as the Director of Clinical Operations, where he managed clinical studies and strategy for the U.S., Canada, and Europe. Before that, Horace was a Sr. Manager of Clinical Affairs at Ulthera, Inc., where his responsibilities included developing and conducting clinical trials, EDC design and development, and product training for commercial and clinical sites. Horace studied Health Promotion at Coastal Carolina University.
Shyam Ramchandani, Ph.D., Vice President of Research, is a serial life sciences entrepreneur with over a decade of drug discovery industry experience, having founded and successfully financed two biopharma ventures. Before his entrepreneurial endeavors, Shyam was a research scientist at Tularik Inc. and Cytokinetics, where he actively participated in preclinical activities, including drug discovery and business development efforts in cancer, immunology, and cardiac muscle biology. Shyam currently serves in adjunct appointments in Ophthalmology and the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University. Shyam has an M.B.A. from Queen’s University and earned his doctorate in Pharmacology and Therapeutics at McGill University with his thesis work being the basis for the founding of MethylGene, a prominent Canadian biopharma company that merged with Mirati Therapeutics.
Jonathan Woodward, Vice President of Product Development and Manufacturing, CTO, Analytics for Life, is a seasoned technologist with proven experience in researching, developing, and commercializing electronics and software products for the medical and consumer markets. Jonathan previously was the CTO for Zephyr Technology, a remote physiological monitoring company, where he oversaw product development from inception to commercialization, resulting in a successful acquisition by Covidien/Medtronic in 2015. After the acquisition, Jonathan led research and product development of Home and Hospital remote patient monitoring solutions for the Minimally Invasive Therapies Group at Medtronic. Jonathan has a B.E. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Canterbury, New Zealand.
Ian Shadforth, Vice President of Operations, has a wealth of experience in the science, strategy, and development of connected health ecosystems comprising medical and consumer hardware integrated with cloud and mobile software. Ian has pioneered a number of cutting-edge programs for large and small companies, including: Johnson and Johnson and GlaxoSmithKline. He was recently co-founder and CEO of AffirmXH Inc., a wearables company working at the intersection of consumer and medical devices. Ian is a Cambridge-educated scientist with a doctorate in bioinformatics from Cranfield University and an MBA from the University of Dundee. He has been awarded an Enterprise Fellowship by the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), and the Emerging Chemometrician prize by the Royal Society of Chemistry. He is co-author of the textbook Building Bioinformatics Solutions (Oxford University Press), has authored a number of well-received peer-reviewed scientific publications, and holds numerous patents in the areas of machine learning, diagnostics, and disease management.
Sthepen has over 15 years of experience in the diagnostics sector of the medical device industry, with experience across various functions, including Quality, R&D, and Operations. He has proven experience in all phases of the medical device lifecycle, from product concept to decommissioning, across multiple jurisdictions, including Europe, the Americas, and Asia. Stephen has worked extensively with automating and modernizing medical device workflows and Quality frameworks and also has expertise in designing algorithms and machine learning. He holds a BS in Chemistry from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
After finishing medical school at the University of Saskatchewan, Derek completed his post-graduate training at the University of Western Ontario and the University of Calgary. Following that he completed his M.P.H. at Johns Hopkins and a research Fellowship at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Dr. Exner is the Associate Dean, Clinical Trials at the Cumming School of Medicine, Canada Research Chair in Cardiovascular Clinical Trials and is a Professor of Cardiac Sciences and Community Health Sciences at the University of Calgary. Derek is leading multiple large international trials, is a world authority on arrhythmias, has over 300 peer-reviewed publications and abstracts and multiple patents related to using ECG signals to evaluate cardiac structure and the risk of serious arrhythmias. He is actively engaged in research with multiple small and large biotech companies in Canada and beyond and has obtained over $50 million in funding from peer-reviewed and industry sources over the past two decades. The Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and Alberta Innovates Health Solutions all support Dr. Exner’s research.
Professor Junbo Ge, M.D. is a cardiologist passionate about improving care pathways in cardiovascular health. He has worked to improve coronary artery disease (CAD) diagnosis and treatment through innovation, making extraordinary advancements in intravascular ultrasound (IVUS). His research areas include novel coronary stents, treatment strategy optimization for complex cases of CAD, and stem cell therapy. He developed China’s first biodegradable, drug-coated coronary stent in 2005 and is the first physician in China to successfully complete a percutaneous aortic valve replacement, percutaneous mitral valve repair, and percutaneous pulmonary arterioplasty. He is currently serving as president of the Chinese Society of Cardiology, chairman of the China Cardiovascular Association, head of the cardiology department at Zhongshan Hospital at Fudan University, trustee member of The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, member of the international advisory board of American College of Cardiology, and member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He is also head of the Shanghai Cardiovascular Clinical Center, chairman of the Shanghai Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases, head of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences, head of the Institute for Panvascular Medical Research at Fudan University, chairman of the Panvascular Fund at Fudan University, and director of the Engineering Research Center for Cardiovascular Devices at the Ministry of Education. Prof. Ge has been responsible for over 20 scientific research projects supported by the Chinese government. He has published over 300 papers in internationally-recognized journals, edited 20 books (one published abroad), and co-edited more than 20 monographs and textbooks. He is the chief editor of Internal Medicine (8th edition), Practice of Internal Medicine (15th edition), and Cardiology Plus and deputy editor of Herz. He was bestowed one of China’s most prestigious academic awards, the Scholars of the Yangtse River. He has also been awarded the National Labor Medal by the National Federation of Trade Unions, the Tan Jiazhen prize in life sciences, and the national “Bethune” Medal, and the Shanghai Science and Technology Association has named him among the “science and technology elite”. In addition, Prof. Ge has received more than fourteen awards, including the second prize for the National Award for Science and Technology Progress, the second prize for the National Award for Technological Invention, the first prize for the Science and Technology Progress Award presented by the Ministry of Education, the second prize for the China Medical Technology Award (twice), and the first prize for the Shanghai Science and Technology Progress Award.
Puneet K. Khanna, M.D. graduated from the Armed Forces Medical College in India. He went on to do his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. This was followed by three years of a Fellowship in Cardiology at the University of Southern California and a fourth year of Interventional Cardiology. Dr. Khanna was Board Certified in Internal Medicine in 1990. He is also Board Certified in the subspecialties of Cardiology (1993, 2003), Interventional Cardiology (1998, 2009), Vascular Medicine (2012) and Endovascular Medicine (2012). Dr. Khanna has been on staff at Eisenhower Hospital since 1993 and has performed over 10,000 interventional and vascular procedures in his career. He has served in various capacities including as Chief of Cardiology and is currently the Co-Director of the Cardiac Catheterization lab. He has been instrumental in bringing in new technologies to Eisenhower Medical Center, including directional atherectomy, rotational atherectomy, intra coronary radiation and orbital atherectomy. In addition to his active practice Dr. Khanna has been personally involved with the evolution and development of new medical devices for the last 15 years. He has issued and pending patents from the United States Patent & Trademarks Office relating to cardiac and vascular devices. He has authored manuscripts, scientific abstracts and articles in peer-reviewed journals. He has been an investigator for leading medical devices and clinical trials and continues to remain active with medical research. He serves on the Scientific Advisory Board of seven different companies. He is married to Monica Khanna, MD, Chief of Radiation Oncology at Eisenhower Medical and has two children who are currently attending college. “We are blessed to be living in this wonderful valley and to be able to serve our patients in such a great environment” he says. In his free time he loves to golf and ski.
Vallerie V. McLaughlin, M.D., is the Kim A. Eagle, M.D., Endowed Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine, Associate Chief Clinical Officer for Cardiovascular Services of the UMMG, and Director of the Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) Program at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. She is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association. She has served as Chair of the American Heart Association “Women in Cardiology” Committee, Chair of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Clinical Expert Consensus Document on PH, member of the American College of Cardiology Scientific Sessions Program Committee, and member of the Scientific Committee for the World Symposium on Pulmonary Hypertension 2008, 2013, and 2018. Professor McLaughlin is a past Chair of the Scientific Leadership Council of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association, past Editor-in-Chief of Advances in Pulmonary Hypertension and past Chair of the Pulmonary Hypertension Association Board of Trustees. She was inaugurated as a charter member into the Clinical Excellence Society at the University of Michigan and is a founding member of the World Symposia on Pulmonary Hypertension Association. Her research interests focus on PH.
Rodney Raabe, M.D., is an interventional radiologist board certified in diagnostic radiology with subspecialty certification in vascular and interventional radiology. As co-founder of the former Sapheon, Inc., Dr. Raabe co-invented and developed the technology for what is now known as Medtronic’s VenaSeal™ Closure system. His practice specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of a broad spectrum of venous disorders and interventional radiology procedures. He also has worked in diagnostic neuroradiology for over 30 years. Dr. Raabe earned his medical degree at University of Oregon, Portland in 1979, and completed his diagnostic radiology residency at University of Utah Healthcare, Salt Lake City, where he served as Chief Resident and later completed an ultrasound/CT and interventional radiology fellowship. He opened the Varicose Vein Center at Inland Vascular Institute in 2002. An active researcher, Dr. Raabe has participated in more than 25 clinical trials as principal investigator or sub-investigator. He has authored or co-authored more than 30 peer-reviewed journal articles and abstracts, book chapters, or books. He has been an invited lecture or speaker at more than 60 regional, national, and international medical conferences. He has done extensive research in neuroimaging including MRI, CT in the setting of stroke and carotid stenosis with stenting. Dr. Raabe, whose pioneering efforts in laser and other noninvasive treatments of varicose veins date back nearly two decades, provides physician training throughout the world. His research in varicose vein has led to a new treatment method using minimally invasive medical adhesive to close the great saphenous vein. He has shared his varicose vein procedures and techniques on the faculty of medical education conferences throughout the world. A fellow of the Society of Interventional Radiology and member of the American College of Radiology and the Radiological Society of North America, Dr. Raabe has served on numerous medical committees as member, chair or co-chair. In 2003, he formed the Venous Forum Task Force within the Society of Interventional Radiology to bring together interested members of industry and outline a strategic plan for managing all aspects of venous practice for interventional radiology.
Dr. Mark Rabbat is Associate Professor of Medicine and Radiology in the Division of Cardiology. Dr. Rabbat completed a 7-year BS/MD Medical Scholars Program at Michigan State University where he was inducted into Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA), National Medical Honor Society. He completed his internship and residency at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio where he was awarded Clinical Scholar. Dr. Rabbat completed his cardiovascular medicine and advanced cardiovascular imaging fellowships at Loyola University. Dr. Rabbat has published over 200 manuscripts, book chapters, editorials, reports, and abstracts in journals such as Lancet Digital Health, Journal of American College of Cardiology, Circulation, and European Heart Journal. A few Dr. Rabbat's publications were referenced in the new United States AHA/ACC/ASE/CHEST/SAEM/SCCT/SCMR Guideline for the Evaluation and Diagnosis of Chest Pain which was published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology. He was first author on an international effort of leading cardiologists and radiologists on the future of cardiac magnetic resonance clinical trials which was published in the Journal of American College of Cardiology and his research has been presented as late breaking clinical trials at major cardiology conferences such as the European Society of Cardiology. He serves on the editorial board and peer reviewer for numerous high impact journals such as Nature, Scientific Reports. Dr. Rabbat is a committee member for various national and international cardiology and radiology societies such as the American College of Radiology Appropriate Use Criteria expert committee for cardiac imaging. He is the current chair-elect of the advocacy committee of the Society of Cardiovascular CT. Dr. Rabbat received an early career investigator award and was awarded Scholar in Cardiovascular Disease and Stroke by the American Heart Association. He received a research fellow award through Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) for his research at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Rabbat serves as course director for various advanced cardiac imaging courses and was asked to serve as Chairperson for a debate on Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Cardiology at the prestigious European Society of Cardiology Annual Congress. He has served as a mentor to many physicians and medical students, and was recognized in the Teaching Honor Roll. Dr. Rabbat’s research interests are in advanced cardiac imaging and the bridge of technology to cardiovascular medicine. Dr. Rabbat serves as Principal Investigator for multiple clinical trials and implemented the 1st FFR-CT program (a revolutionary non-invasive diagnostic test for the evaluation and management of coronary artery disease) in the state of Illinois. Dr. Rabbat has received numerous Top Doctor Awards, nominated by other physicians.
Aaron L. Berez, M.D. is the founder and CEO of Alembic, LLC, a medical device development company in Mountain View developing new devices for Interventional Neuroradiology. At his previous company, Chestnut Medical, he led the development of the Pipeline Embolization Device for the treatment of complex intracranial aneurysms. Chestnut Medical was acquired by Ev3 (now Medtronic) in 2009. Aaron is currently an investor, advisor, and director to privately held medical device companies focused on capital-efficient medical device development. Aaron is a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Medicine, where he received his M.D. degree. His postgraduate training was at UCSF/Mt. Zion in Internal Medicine, and Stanford University in Radiology and Neuroradiology.
Adam Cappelli, LL.B, TEP, CFP, has been practicing law since 1996. He is a founding partner of Cambridge LLP, with offices in Toronto, Burlington, and North York, Ontario. Since 2006, Adam has been voted by his peers as one of the “Best Lawyers in Canada” in the area of Estates & Trusts law. He is one of select group of lawyers in Ontario who has been certified by the Law Society of Upper Canada as a Specialist in the area of Estates & Trusts law. He is a frequent speaker on estate planning in both public and professional forums. Adam is also the creator, writer and host of the popular TV program “Heirs + Omissions”, which provides the audience with current information in the complex, fascinating, and often emotionally-charged world of estates law, an area of law that touches virtually everyone during their lifetime and can cause great controversy and distress for families if not managed properly. Adam is dedicated to advising clients in the development and execution of their estate plan. He also advises executors, trustees and attorneys in respect of their obligations in the management and administration of an estate or trust. He is often retained by beneficiaries and trustees in respect of bringing or defending a claim involving an estate or trust. Adam resides in Ancaster, Ontario, is married and has two daughters. During his free time he enjoys sports, music and outdoor activities with his family.
Don Crawford, President & Chief Executive Officer, is a seasoned medical device executive with a proven track record of excellent results driven leadership through team efforts and focused execution. Don previously founded and led Sapheon Inc., a cardiovascular-focused medical device company, from inception to $238 million acquisition by Covidien in 2014. His career started with Medtronic and included sales and marketing positions of increasing responsibility with Guidant Corporation, Ventritex, and Intermedics, including an international sales director role in charge of a $100 million cardiovascular business. Don received his B.Ch.E. in Chemical Engineering from Georgia Tech and M.B.A. from Emory University.
James McLaren is a Managing Director of TM Capital Corp. and brings his extensive background in the healthcare industry to the firm’s newly formed TM Asante Healthcare Partners. James joins TM Capital from Asante Partners, which he founded more than twenty years ago to provide quality strategic advice to middle-market healthcare companies. Previously, James had a twenty-year career advising corporate clients at Goldman Sachs, where he served as head of European Corporate Finance in London and of International Corporate Finance in New York, leading teams that executed significant global transactions. James is a non-executive director of ABK Biomedical in Halifax, Nova Scotia and is an advisory board member of Radius Ventures, a New York-based firm focused on the healthcare industry. He was previously a director of RTP Pharma in Montreal until its sale to Skye Pharma. James earned a BA with Honors in Economics from Oxford University. James and his wife are active patrons of the arts, supporting emerging artists, theater and dance productions in New York and London. He serves as a Director and Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the leading venue in New York City for contemporary performing arts, and he is a Trustee of The Field, supporting emerging choreographers, composers and directors. James also serves as President of the American Friends of Eton College. He is known for his diverse interests and eclectic tastes, ranging from racquet sports to contemporary art to growing tomatoes, and particularly enjoys the company of his wife, three daughters, five granddaughters and one grandson – at last a boy!
Elspeth Murray is an Associate Professor of Strategy and Entrepreneurship at the Smith School of Business, Queen’s University, where she has specialized in technology based ventures for the last 18 years. Prior to joining academia, she spent time as a software developer and a systems engineer at IBM, and as an owner/operator of several successful retail ventures. She has served both as a Director and as an advisor for numerous technology-based startups and companies, including Parteq Innovations, the technology transfer organization at Queen’s University.
Management
Medical Advisory Board
Board of Directors