Medtech Talk

A discectomy can feel like instant relief until the pain comes back, and the “small” hole in the disc turns into a repeat surgery, degeneration, and lost mobility. Joining the podcast is Greg Lambrecht, founder and executive director of Intrinsic Therapeutics, with host Geoff Pardo to unpack why recurrent lumbar disc herniation is still so common, what surgeons and patients often don’t see downstr...

Brian Webster, President and CEO of Kestra Medical Technologies (Nasdaq: KMTS), joins Medtech Talk to discuss his 30-year career in cardiac defibrillation and the road to founding Kestra. With host Swaril Mathur, Webster unpacks learnings from leading through decades of repeated acquisitions, divestitures, and restructurings — and keeping the team motivated through it all. Their conversation explo...

How do you approach growing and investing? Quentin Blackford, president and CEO of iRhythm Technologies, joins Medtech Talk host Justin Klein to discuss how he took his company beyond traditional monitoring and expanded into the primary care setting, even though many traditional medical device companies don’t have much success in primary care. Blackford shares advice on how to develop expertise an...

How do you evaluate investments and risks? Kate Garret, managing partner at Sonder, and Deborah Kilpatrick, partner at Sonder, share their insights and experiences as entrepreneurs, CEOs, and investors in this episode of Medtech Talk, hosted by Swaril Mathur. They deep dive into the practical realities of entrepreneurship, including the importance of networking, knowing when to keep pushing or pul...

Meeting the right people can completely change the trajectory of one’s career. In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Stacy Enxing Seng, independent director and venture partner, about her journey from Harvard Business School to SciMed to ev3 and beyond. She delves into the lessons learned, the challenges, and—most importantly—the people that have impacted her illustrious ca...

The data gap in women’s health has always been a major issue and challenge. Ridhi Tariyal, CEO and co-founder of NextGen Jane, is on a mission to de-risk the women’s health field and fill in the blanks with critical information and research. Host Swaril Mathur speaks with Tariyal on how NextGen Jane is collecting data through menstrual blood to make diagnoses and treatments easier. Tariyal also sh...

From consulting to working at large companies to taking a risk with start-ups to becoming Silk Road Medical’s CEO, Chas McKhann has experienced almost everything in his long and illustrious career. In a discussion with Medtech Talk host Geoff Pardo, McKhann shares all the lessons learned from his jump to small private companies, handling a cultural rebirth as a newcomer CEO under the public eye, a...

Niche markets and small populations don’t get the attention they need for medtech and healthcare.  Medtech Talk host Swaril Mathur speaks with Eric Chehab, founder and former CEO of Novonate and director of business development of Laborie OB/GYN/NICU, and James Wall, pediatric surgeon and founder of Impact1 at Stanford University, about how they’re bringing medtech innovation to small patient popu...

Live from Medtech MVP, Michael Mahoney, chairman and CEO of Boston Scientific Corp, sits down with Medtech Talk podcast host Justin Klein. They discuss Mahoney’s communications strategies to align expectations and convey intentions to shareholders, how to delegate and streamline decision making, and advice on doing better as a partner. Mahoney also shares which second order considerations (such as...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo and Eric Wichems, former CEO of Vertos Medical (recently acquired by Stryker), discuss the responsibilities of a CEO, why high accountability and transparency are important aspects of company culture, and how to hire the right person for the position—and how to determine if they can thrive in your company’s culture. Wichems shares his background in...

In this month’s Medtech Talk, co-host Swaril Mathur, vice president of business development at Axonics, debuts in her first episode with John Woock, former EVP and chief marketing and strategy officer at Axonics. They discuss the early days of their company, including what motivated Woock to join a company that was considered risky at the time, what he learned from supporting and working directly...

This month at Medtech Talk, co-host Justin Klein, co-founder and managing partner at Vensana Capital, debuts in his first episode with a discussion with Douglas Kelly, former deputy center director for science and chief scientist at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health at the FDA. Kelly talks about his time at the FDA and the fundamental changes he implemented to make a helpful impact on...

In the first Medtech Talk episode of 2025, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Dr. Billy Cohn, MD, PhD (H), Chief Medical Officer of BiVACOR, about entrepreneurship, limitless innovation, and thinking outside the box. Dr. Cohn discusses his experiences as a driving force behind the Center for Device Innovation at the Texas Medical Center, what influenced him to pursue medical devices, and finding resourc...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Michael Jaff, DO, chief medical officer and vice president of Clinical Affairs, Technology, and Innovation at Boston Scientific. Dr. Jaff has a long list of achievements and a robust background as a professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, president of Newton-Wellesley Hospital, medical director at the Massachusetts General Hosp...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo and Per Langoe, CEO of GT Medical, discuss Langoe’s extensive career, from his start in sales to eventually making his way to medtech. Langoe gives tips on how to keep investors on board during times of crisis (such as the Covid-19 pandemic) and how he hires the right people for the job, as well as the differences between small companies and big co...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Punit Soni, CEO of Suki, about using AI to build better technology in healthcare, the origins of Suki, and how Soni shifted from Google to healthcare. Soni also delves into the difficulties and challenges of healthcare, including handling the regulatory aspects and encouraging doctors to adapt to new tech. He also discusses managing fai...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Dr. Liz Kwo, chief commercial officer at Everly Health, about how she got started in the medtech field, her experience at InfiniteMD, and the lessons learned along the way. They also discuss Dr. Kwo’s new book Digital MD: Revolutionizing the Future of Healthcare , which provides an in-depth look at ROI development, how organizations thi...

In this special episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo interviews Raymond W. Cohen, CEO of Axonics and winner of the Medtech MVP 2024 Award. The MVP Award recognizes an individual for extraordinary contributions to a medtech company that has successfully advanced an important new product and delivered strong financial returns. This year's award honors Cohen for his visionary leadership and...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Darshana Zaveri, founder & managing partner of Catalyst Health Ventures, about her entry and journey to medtech and venture capital. Zaveri discusses how she approached her first deal, why treating others with kindness and dignity is the key to good networking, and the qualities she looks for in entrepreneurs, particularly in the ea...

In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo and Conor Hanley, PhD, CEO of FIRE1, discuss various topics ranging from leadership to entrepreneurship to raising funds. Hanely also talks about lessons learned about raising capital at BiancaMed, how he keeps investors on the same page, how he utilizes his board and partnerships, and how he assimilates other people’s perspectives while taking on...

In this month’s episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Rodney Perkins, M.D., serial medtech inventor and founder of several companies, including Collagen Corporation and Laserscope. Perkins delves into his extensive history as one of the industry’s most prolific and successful entrepreneurs whose inventions have helped shape many medical specialties. Perkins discusses what drew him...

Starting a company is an intimidating feat. Starting multiple companies is even scarier. In this month’s episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Amr Salahieh, founder and CEO of Shifamed, about his extensive experiences of entrepreneurship in the medtech ecosystem. As the founder of several companies, including Sadra Medical, Maya Medical, and Apama Medical, Salahieh shares his tips...

Though the stigma around mental illnesses has lessened, there is an ongoing mental health crisis affecting the country—and the rest of the world. In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Nolan Williams, M.D. Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, about how electrical signaling abnormalities in the brain could be behind mental illnesse...

How does one decide to invest in the right company? In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with Justin Klein, MD, JD, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Vensana Capital, about how he uses his legal background to determine the best investment strategy, how he found his way into the medtech industry, and which areas of medicine fascinate him the most. He also talks about his experi...

How does one navigate the difficult road of entrepreneurship? How do you find the right industry for you? In this episode of Medtech Talk, host Geoff Pardo speaks with serial founder and med device CEO Keegan Harper, about overcoming the challenges of being your own boss and finding what you’re good at. Harper discusses what inspired him to become an entrepreneur, how he became interested and invo...