Health Security for Children: Inside the SPARK Accelerator with AcQumen Medical and Vesynta
BioTalk with Rich BendisShow Notes
This episode brings together three leaders working at the intersection of pediatric innovation, health security, and early-stage commercialization. Kolaleh Eskandanian, Program Director of SPARK, is joined by founders Dori Jones of AcQumen Medical and Jugal Suthar of Vesynta for a conversation about advancing breakthrough solutions for children. They discuss the mission behind the BARDA-funded SPARK for Innovations in Pediatrics Hub at Children's National Hospital, the challenges of developing technologies for pediatric populations, and the impact of public-private partnerships in moving lifesaving tools to market. Dori and Jugal share what their companies are building, the inflection points that shaped their journeys, and how BioHealth Innovation's Entrepreneur-in-Residence program supported their progress. The group reflects on lessons learned, the value of mentorship, and how collaborative accelerator ecosystems help drive breakthroughs in pediatric care, preparedness, and health equity.
Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com).
Dr. Kolaleh Eskandanian is a nationally recognized leader in pediatric health innovation with more than twenty years of experience across academia, government, and industry. She previously served as Vice President and Chief Innovation Officer at Children's National Hospital, where she founded Innovation Ventures and secured significant federal funding, patents, and licensed technologies. She now leads the BARDA-funded SPARK Accelerator Hub for Pediatrics and serves as Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer at Compremium AG, while also supporting early-stage innovators as an angel investor with Citrine Angels.
Dori Jones is the Co-Founder and CEO of AcQumen Medical, a medtech company developing UltraTrac, the first ultrasound-guided impedance technology designed for rapid assessment of hemodynamics in critically ill infants and children. She brings nearly two decades of experience across R&D, clinical education, and commercialization roles supporting cardiac and critical care devices at organizations ranging from early startups to Abbott and Medtronic. Her commitment to pediatric innovation is shaped in part by her experience as the mother of a NICU and PICU patient.
Dr. Jugal Suthar is the Co-Founder and CEO of Vesynta, a precision medicine company developing the DosoLogic platform, the first marketplace-enabled precision prescribing software aimed at improving accuracy and safety for every patient. His background includes clinical work as a hospital pharmacist and roles in drug development in the pharmaceutical industry. His PhD in precision medicine fuels his focus on bringing personalized dosing insights to populations often underrepresented in clinical research.
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