Dr. John Showalter is the Chief Strategy Officer at Linus Health, a company focused on early detection of cognitive impairment and dementia. They develop digital cognitive assessments and engagement tools to help people think about their brain health, get diagnosed, and receive lifestyle medicine suggestions.Key Takeaways:

• Linus Health modernized the Minicog test, making it more accurate and accessible for detecting mild cognitive impairment.
• Their digital assessment can be administered by medical assistants, making it easier to integrate into primary care visits.
• The company provides a Brain Health Action Plan to give patients agency over their brain health.
• Linus Health emphasizes the importance of early detection, as 30% of people over 65 have mild cognitive impairment.
• Their approach combines systematic inventive thinking with new technologies to address cognitive health.

Dr. Showalter's journey to Linus Health began with his background in internal medicine and informatics. He worked on various health IT projects, including predicting sepsis and detecting domestic violence in EHRs. His passion for dementia care was sparked by personal experience with his grandmother's rapid decline.

Linus Health's technology aims to catch cognitive issues early when interventions can be most effective. Their assessment tool is designed to be user-friendly and integrated into regular check-ups, potentially reducing the risk of dementia by up to 50% through early intervention.

The company faces the challenge of introducing new ideas about brain health and potential outcomes to both healthcare providers and patients. They focus on providing clear, actionable information and emphasize the importance of brain health alongside other routine health checks.

Looking ahead, Dr. Showalter envisions a future where brain health assessments are as common as blood pressure checks, and where early intervention can significantly impact cognitive health outcomes.

About Dr. John Showalter
John Showalter, MD, MSIS, is board-certified in internal medicine and informatics and serves as Chief Strategy Officer of Linus Health, a digital health company enabling early detection of Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Linus Health has won Time Magazine’s Best Inventions and Fast Company’s Innovation by Design awards for its work in bringing the power of digital cognitive assessments to PCPs. Dr. Showalter also practices medicine in Danville, Pa., with a focus on cognitive care and dementia prevention.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Sandra Johnson is the Senior Vice President of Client Services at CliniComp, an EHR provider with 40 years of experience in the healthcare technology space. CliniComp is launching its first full EHR solution suite for the commercial market, focusing on providing integrated solutions that offer a holistic view of patient care across various healthcare settings.Key Takeaways:

• CliniComp's EHR system aims to provide a comprehensive, longitudinal patient record across all care settings.
• The platform incorporates real-time reports, alerts, and early warning dashboards for improved clinical decision-making.
• CliniComp is expanding beyond inpatient care to include ambulatory, ancillary, and revenue cycle management services.
• The company focuses on bringing superior technology at a more affordable price point to underserved communities, such as rural and critical access hospitals.
• CliniComp emphasizes the importance of integrating AI and telehealth components to enhance care accessibility and efficiency.

Sandra highlights the evolution of EHR systems from administrative tools to comprehensive platforms that enable better patient care. CliniComp's approach includes incorporating intrinsic AI to automate workflows and streamline processes, making it easier for healthcare providers to access and utilize patient data effectively.

The company's experience with the Veterans Administration has informed their development of robust telehealth and remote patient monitoring capabilities, addressing the needs of patients in rural or remote areas. This focus on accessibility and comprehensive care aligns with the broader industry trend of using technology to reduce barriers to healthcare access.

Sandra emphasizes the importance of customer feedback and rapid iteration in product development. CliniComp's agile approach allows them to quickly incorporate user insights and evolve their product to meet changing healthcare needs.

About Sandra Johnson
As Senior Vice President of Client Services, Sandra Johnson is responsible for delivering healthcare IT solutions and managing the customer experience to ensure CliniComp’s technology is continuously evolving to meet the changing needs within the healthcare community. Sandra oversees all aspects of the customer lifecycle including account & project management, application support, clinical services, cybersecurity, and learning & development for our global customer base.

Sandra Johnson is known for her understanding of today’s healthcare challenges and partnering with customers to provide innovative solutions that address their challenges. She shares the organization's passion for continuous innovation and improvement and has played an integral role in developing our System as a Service model.

This approach takes the burden of implementation and sustainment off the customer as CliniComp takes responsibility for all aspects of the system from configuration and testing to installation, training, optimization, maintenance, and 24/7 support.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Special Mini-Series From HLTH 2024
The healthcare industry accounts for nearly one third of the USA's GDP and yet all Americans can agree that the system is ripe for innovation, heck even just plain 'improvements' would be great.

So, I took Awesome Future to HLTH 2024, one of the largest yearly gatherings for healthcare technology professionals and innovators. As part of the Like A Girl Media podcast network we recorded these four interviews on the show floor, direct from Media Central, to dive into the state of innovation in health IT and startups.

We'll share two episodes starting Thursday, December 19th and two more starting on the 26th. If you enjoy these episodes, could you share them with a friend?

____

Dr. Allen Gee is a neurologist, neuroscientist, and innovator who leads the Wyoming Health Innovation Living Lab (WHIL).

Key Takeaways:

• WHIL focuses on vetting and operationalizing healthcare technologies, particularly in neural health.
• Dr. Gee aims to address the devastating impacts of cognitive decline through early detection and intervention.
• The lab uses innovative technologies to assess mobility, cognition, speech, and vision to predict health trajectories.
• Dr. Gee emphasizes the importance of personalized, precision neural health to improve overall wellbeing.
• WHIL is helping to develop and clinically test tools that identify cognitive decline early and empower individuals to manage their health.

Dr. Gee's work at WHIL involves partnering with companies to test and implement healthcare technologies. He focuses on neural health, aiming to enhance cognition and mobility to help people live independently longer.

The lab uses cutting-edge technologies to assess various aspects of health, including speech analytics and vision system digitization.Dr. Gee emphasizes the concept of "neurohealth," which encompasses the entire nervous system and its interaction with the world.

He advocates for a holistic approach to health, focusing on sleep, nutrition, movement, and mindfulness. His goal is to use technology and data to provide personalized insights and interventions that can improve overall health outcomes.

___
About Allen GeeMD, PhD, FAAN
Dr Gee is a board-certified neurologist and founder of Frontier NeuroHealth, a private neurology practice with clinics throughout Wyoming.

Dr. Gee also holds a PhD in Psychoneuroimmunology, the study of how your immune system and your central nervous system interact.

With a passion for using technology to improve patients’ lives, Dr. Gee designed WHILL to be an innovation ecosystem that is clinically-integrated and equipped to support the needs of technology companies that are developing, expanding, or launching disruptive healthcare solutions.

Dr. Gee is also founder of Optimal NeuroHealth which pr

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Special Mini-Series From HLTH 2024
The healthcare industry accounts for nearly one third of the USA's GDP and yet all Americans can agree that the system is ripe for innovation, heck even just plain 'improvements' would be great.

So, I took Awesome Future to HLTH 2024, one of the largest yearly gatherings for healthcare technology professionals and innovators. As part of the Like A Girl Media podcast network we recorded these four interviews on the show floor, direct from Media Central, to dive into the state of innovation in health IT and startups.

We'll share two episodes starting Thursday, December 19th and two more starting on the 26th. If you enjoy these episodes, could you share them with a friend?

____

Liz Jensen, PhD, MSN, RN-BC, Clinical Director at Direct Supply Innovation and Technology Center, shares insights on The Glow Up podcast about innovating in long-term care. From connecting nurses with tech developers to advocating for policy changes, Jensen is reshaping the future of aging care.Key insights include:

• The critical need for innovation in long-term care due to demographic shifts
• The power of nurse-led initiatives like the Spark Collective in driving meaningful innovation
• The importance of preserving choice and independence for older adults

Jensen's work offers valuable lessons on addressing the challenges of an aging population through technology and policy advocacy.

Don't forget to like, and subscribe to stay updated on more inspiring stories of innovation and resilience on The Glow Up - Fabulous conversations with innovative minds!

About Liz Jensen

Liz Jensen, PhD, MSN, RN-BC is the Clinical Director at Direct Supply Innovation & Technology Center @MSOE. In her practice she collaborates with leaders in tech, business, academia, healthcare, and senior care/living to define, vet, and test solutions to the most challenging problems facing senior care and living providers.

She runs the SPARK Clinical Collective, bringing clinicians, technology developers, engineers, and product designers together to build, test and pilot innovative solutions that address workforce retention, as well as health and safety outcomes of people residing in senior care/living centers. Dr. Jensen draws from her prior experience as a senior care nurse executive, educator, and direct care nurse to inform her education and advocacy efforts with policy makers, researchers, and investors in senior care.

She holds a BSN from Creighton University, MSN from Cardinal Stritch University and PhD in Leadership for the Advancement of Learning & Service from Cardinal Stritch University researching future technology development and investment priorities of nursing executives in long term
care.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Ashley Hamic, a rare disease mom and advocate, is the founder of Wish Ware Accessories, a company dedicated to creating innovative, adaptable, and personalized accessories for families with rare diseases. Here are the key takeaways from her conversation:

• Personal Origin Story: Ashley's journey began with her son Maddox's diagnosis of CTNNB1 syndrome, a rare condition that affects his physical, emotional, and mental abilities. This led her to create customized solutions to address his specific needs.
• Community Engagement: Ashley connected with other families in the CTNNB1 community, particularly through Effie Parks, who requested a wheelchair-friendly blanket for her son Ford. This collaboration sparked the development of various accessories tailored to the needs of children with disabilities.
• Innovative Products: Wish Ware Accessories includes items like waterproof blankets with straps to secure them in place, sensory books, and adaptive clothing such as swift-change t-shirts designed for children with tracheotomy tubes. These products aim to provide comfort, individuality, and practical solutions for daily challenges.
• Background in High Tech: Ashley's 18-year career in high tech, including roles in auditing, engineering, and operations management at companies like Cisco, has equipped her with valuable skills in product development, user experience, and iterative design.
• Iterative Design Process: Ashley emphasizes the importance of direct feedback from the community. She works closely with parents to understand their needs, creates prototypes, and iterates based on feedback to ensure the final products meet their requirements.

Key Takeaways:

• Addressing Rare Disease Needs: Wish Ware Accessories focuses on solving daily challenges faced by families with rare diseases through customized and adaptable products.
• Community-Driven Design: The company's products are developed in close collaboration with the community, ensuring they meet specific needs and provide individuality.
• High Tech Background: Ashley's experience in high tech has been instrumental in her approach to product development and user experience.
• Impact on Quality of Life: The accessories aim to provide comfort, agency, and the ability for children with disabilities to feel more like their peers.

About Ashley Hamic, Founder, Wish Wear Accessories

Ashley Hamic is the founder of Wish Wear Accessories creating innovative, fun, and functional products for children with disabilities. When her son Maddox was diagnosed with CTNNB1, a rare genetic disorder, Ashley began a mission to support families facing similar challenges. Wish Wear Accessories helps make everyday life a little easier with custom-made waterproof wheelchair accessories and other adaptable products that allow children to express their individuality. Ashley’s journey as a rare disease mom and her commitment to inclusion have shaped Wish Wear Accessories into a brand with empathy and community connection at its heart.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Sarah Ticho and Niki Smit are the creators of SoulPaint, an innovative virtual reality (VR) experience designed to make emotions visible and help people connect with their bodies and feelings. Here are the key takeaways from their conversation:

• Origin Story: Sarah's personal experience navigating the healthcare system and feeling unheard led her to explore VR as a tool for expressing complex emotional states. She discovered body mapping, a process where individuals draw their emotions on a physical body outline, and saw potential in translating this to VR.
• Collaboration: Sarah and Niki met while working on a breath-controlled VR experience called Deep. Their collaboration on SoulPaint began when they discussed combining Sarah's healthcare insights with Niki's game design expertise to create an immersive experience where users can paint their emotions onto a 3D avatar in VR.
• Innovative Features: SoulPaint allows users to express emotions through painting and embodiment in VR. The experience leverages the visual and associative nature of human thinking to bypass language barriers in describing emotions. Users can paint their feelings onto a 3D avatar and then reflect on their creation, providing a new way to understand and communicate emotional experiences.
• Therapeutic Benefits: The platform aims to address challenges in communicating complex emotional experiences, particularly in healthcare settings where time is limited. By using play and embodiment, SoulPaint helps users access their subconscious feelings in a freer and more instinctive way.
• Future Vision: The creators envision SoulPaint as a tool for mental wellbeing and emotional regulation, leveraging the engaging nature of VR and game design to create healthy behaviors.

--- About Soul Paint - www.soulpaint.co

Niki Smit is an interactive artist creating playful experiences at the intersection of art, science and education. As co-director of Monobanda he has directed several award winning experiences including Explore Deep, Remembering, In My Absence and The Shape of Us. In 2020 he was awarded the Dutch Directors Guild award for Best Digital Storytelling.


Sarah Ticho is a multi-award-winning artist, strategist, and entrepreneur. She is founder of Hatsumi, a multidisciplinary agency dedicated to advancing human-centred experiences at the intersection of immersive art, scientific research, and healthcare. As co-director of the XR HealthAlliance, she supports the equitable adoption of immersive technology for healthcare across strategy and policy. Her work is featured in Forbes and BBC, and she speaks at festivals and institutions globally.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Dan Scarfe is the CEO and founder of XRAI, a company that develops augmented reality solutions to break down communication barriers, particularly for those with hearing loss and across language differences.

Key Takeaways:

• Origin Story: XRAI was born from Dan's personal experience with his grandfather who had lost his hearing, inspiring the idea to combine real-time subtitles with augmented reality.
• Evolving Technology: Starting with assistive technology for hearing loss, XRAI expanded to facilitate cross-language communication and make events more accessible.
• Innovative Features: XRAI's "Auto Reverse" feature allows for seamless two-way conversations across languages, a significant improvement over traditional translation methods.
• Market Timing: Dan emphasizes the importance of timing in tech innovation, balancing between being too early and too late in the market.
• Hardware Challenges: While software capabilities are advancing, XRAI is still waiting for hardware breakthroughs to achieve the ideal AR glasses experience.

Dan's journey with XRAI began two and a half years ago, evolving from his background in enterprise IT. The company's initial focus was on providing real-time subtitles for individuals with hearing loss. However, they quickly expanded their vision to address language barriers, enabling conversations across 140 different languages.

XRAI's technology goes beyond simple translation. Their "Auto Reverse" feature allows for fluid two-way conversations, automatically detecting the spoken language and providing captions in the listener's preferred language. This approach significantly improves upon traditional translation methods by reducing communication delays.

Dan highlights the importance of balancing customer feedback with maintaining a focused vision. While open to user suggestions, he emphasizes the need to "stick to their knitting" and excel in a few key areas rather than trying to do everything.

The company faces challenges in hardware development, as the ideal AR glasses (lightweight, all-day wearable, full-color) are still a few years away. However, Dan sees this as an opportunity, positioning XRAI to be ready when the hardware catches up to their software capabilities.

Looking ahead, XRAI aims to continue refining their technology and expanding its applications, potentially revolutionizing how we communicate across languages and accessibility needs.

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.

Richard Zreik is the founder of InnoVationGirls, and Tereze Bogdane is a student and active member of the community. InnoVationGirls is a global community of young Gen Z girls and non-binary individuals working on innovative solutions to global problems, with a current focus on solving fast fashion waste using new technologies.Key Takeaways:

• Origin Story: InnoVationGirls was born from Richard's personal experience as a father, recognizing gender inequity in the workplace.
• Global Community: IVG has evolved into a worldwide network of young innovators, working remotely across many countries.
• Technology Focus: The group utilizes cutting-edge technologies like VR, AR, NFTs, and DAOs in their projects.
• Fast Fashion Solution: IVG is currently working on addressing fast fashion waste through innovative use of technology and creative thinking.
• Award-Winning Work: The team has gained international recognition, including winning best in show at the Augmented World Expo in Vienna.

Richard's journey began when he became a father and noticed the unfair treatment of women in the workplace. This realization led him and his wife to quit their corporate jobs and create a business model that could bring about change. InnoVationGirls evolved from this mission, aiming to tap into the latent innovative energy of young minds.

Tereze, representing the student perspective, describes IVG as a fun and engaging community where learning happens naturally through collaboration and creative problem-solving. She emphasizes the power of storytelling and the excitement of being part of a movement fighting for a better future.

The group's approach combines systematic inventive thinking with new technologies. Their current project on fast fashion waste involves using leftover fabric to create patches with NFC tags, turning them into NFTs that can represent tickets or memories.IVG's success is evident in their collaborations with major companies like Meta, Procter & Gamble, and General Electric. In one project for GE, they developed a solution for recycling K-cups in the workplace, which won first place among 50 competing teams.

Kickstarter Campaign: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ivgworld-sesame/sesame-design-with-conscience (live 11/18)

Website: https://ivg.world/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/innovationgirls

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ivg.world/

A "glow up" signifies a positive transformation, reflecting the journey of becoming a better, more successful version of oneself.

At The Glow Up, we humanize the startup and innovation landscape by focusing on the essential aspects of the entrepreneurial journey. Groundbreaking ideas are often ahead of their time, making resilience and perseverance vital for founders and product leaders.

In our podcast, we engage with innovators to discuss their transformative ideas, the challenges they face, and how they create value for future success.

If you're a founder or product leader seeking your own glow up, or a seasoned entrepreneur with stories to share, we invite you to join our guest list via this link.