About

Mr. Dan Lemaitre joined BlueWind Medical as Executive Chairman in September 2018 and serves as CEO since January 2020. Dan also serves on the board of Globus Medical (NYSE: GMED) one of the fastest growing spinal companies with revenue of ~$700 million per annum. Previously, Dan was the CEO of CoreValve that launched the first commercial transcatheter aortic valve in Europe in 2007. Prior to joining CoreValve, Dan was a Senior Vice President at Medtronic where he headed-up strategic planning and corporate development. Earlier in his career Dan spent 28 years in the medical device field as an investment analyst.

Dr. Roger Dmochowski is a world-renowned leader in the fields of urology, OAB and incontinence, a recipient of the Zimskind Award and Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Urodynamics Society for his accomplishments in the clinical treatment for incontinence, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the American Urological Association and International Continence Society, and a trustee of the American Board of Urology. An accomplished scholar, Dr. Dmochowski has published over 320 articles, 100 book chapters and 460 abstracts, given over 260 presentations at various national and international meetings, led and participated in dozens of OAB and incontinence studies, is the Editor-in-Chief of NeuroUrology and Urodynamics, and serves on the editorial board for several scientific journals.

Mr. Moshe Ben-Chorin has more than 20 years of experience in the high-tech industry. Prior to joining Bluewind Medical, he served as Vice President of the High-Tech Programs at Ramot, the business engagement center of Tel Aviv University. Before that, he served as VP R&D and headed the system engineering group at Aspect Imaging, where he was involved in the development of medical and pre-clinical MRI systems. Prior to that, Moshe held R&D positions at various companies, including being a co-founder and chief scientist of Genoa Color Technologies, where he guided the development of multi-primary display technology from idea to maturation. Moshe holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and spent several years following graduation in academic research. He is an author of about 60 scientific publications and a co-inventor of more than 20 patent families.

Roy Katz brings to BlueWind Medical more than two decades of global and cross-cultural leadership and business experience in the medical device industry, in both startups and large corporations. Prior to joining BlueWind Medical, Roy served as Vice President for Business Development for Rainbow Medical, a medical device investment firm and technology incubator. Previously, Roy served as marketing director for Rhythmia Medical, a venture-backed medical device startup that was acquired by Boston Scientific in 2012. Prior to joining Rhythmia, Roy held several marketing positions at Medtronic HQ in Minneapolis, MN.

Dr. Karin Aharonson-Raz is a biomedical scientist, trained as a veterinarian doctor and holds a PhD in Epidemiology, with a multidisciplinary research background in neuroscience, immunology and epidemiology. She has been in BlueWind Medical from early stages and was involved as the company transitioned from pre-clinical to clinical phases leading the science research, pre-clinical, clinical and regulatory fields.

Alan Beckman brings over 30 years of Senior leadership, both in Market Access and Sales, to BlueWind Medical. Alan’s spent the last 12 years building and leading the Market Access team at Livanova where he oversaw the success of VNS Neuromodulation therapy in Epilepsy. He also spent over 15 years in sales and sales leadership helping to lead Cephalon from pre commercial to commercial sales of over 1 billion dollars. Alan holds a B.A. Economics from Rutgers University and an M.B.A from the Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison.

Roni Diaz brings her 24 years of experience in medical device clinical trial management to the table at Bluewind Medical. Prior to joining the company, Roni was Director of Clinical Research at Insightec in Dallas, Texas, where she was responsible for the planning, oversight and organization of US and OUS feasibility, pre-approval, and post-approval studies for a Class III medical device. Before Insightec, Roni was the Global Director of Clinical Affairs for 13 years at Abbott Neuromodulation (formerly St. Jude Medical) in Plano, Texas. She was responsible for oversight of the chronic pain portfolio of studies, including protocol development, study execution, publication planning, and regulatory body submissions. Roni has a B.Sc. in Health Sciences from San Jose State University.

Susan is an accomplished medical device Compliance professional with over 30 years of experience developing, implementing, and managing comprehensive, global Compliance programs in alignment with applicable laws and industry guidelines. She is proficient at leading key initiatives that educate, train, motivate and influence cross-functional teams to create a culture of compliance, integrity, and accountability. Susan serves as an essential business partner on Compliance matters related to interactions with healthcare professionals and patients, sales and marketing/promotional strategies and materials, healthcare fraud and abuse and anti-bribery and anti-corruption issues. She also serves as BlueWind’s Data Protection Officer, managing the company’s lawfulness, fairness and transparency of applicable data privacy and security regulations and laws. Prior to joining BlueWind Medical, Susan was the Senior Director of Compliance at Endologix, LLC for 10 years, where she was responsible for the development, implementation, and management of the global Compliance program.

Asher Kuper has held various roles within startups and global companies across the medtech industry for the past 18 years. He previously served as Vice President of Product for Zebra Medical Vision (acquired by Nanox Vision), where he was responsible for the strategic roadmap of organic and joint ventures product management, and as CEO of SpirCare, where he helped pioneer approaches to respiratory disease management based on artificial intelligence. Asher holds a Bachelor of Science degree in biomedical engineering and a M.B.A and from Tel Aviv University.

Paul Maguire brings more than 25 years of operations experience in medical devices to BlueWind Medical, with a career spanning multinational organizations such as Stryker, Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Allergan and, most recently, AbbVie. As Executive Director of New Jersey Operations at AbbVie, Paul led a large-scale regenerative medicine business and oversaw major operational transformation programs. Before that, he also managed a startup operation and supply chain for the VenaSeal delivery system for the treatment of varicose veins, supporting the global sales team within Europe, Canada and the U.S., following the successful completion of a premarket approval application, later to be acquired by Covidien/Medtronic. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering from the Dundalk Institute of Technology and a M.B.A. from the Athlone Institute of Technology.

Lisa Mead brings over 30 years of Human Resources experience to BlueWind Medical including 20 years in the healthcare and medical device industry. Prior to joining BlueWind Medical, she was the Head of HR for Silara Medtech Inc., (formerly Direct Flow Medical), where she was responsible for recruitment, organizational development, succession planning, inclusion and diversity, compensation and community and wellness initiatives. Before Silara Medtech, Inc., Lisa worked in London for the National Health Service (NHS), the largest employer in the United Kingdom. She was responsible for talent management, conflict resolution and mediation and organizational transformation. Lisa has a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication from Emerson University in Boston and an M.B.A. from the University of California, Irvine.

Sandra Muhlfeld brings 20 years of experience commercializing new medical technologies in both early stage and large medical device companies. Previously, she held a variety of executive roles at Caldera Medical, a women’s pelvic health medical device company, where she played a key role in building the company from R&D stage to a high growth privately held business. Sandra served as the Vice President of Marketing, and most recently she served as the Vice President, Portfolio and Clinical Strategy. Prior to joining Caldera Medical, Sandra held a variety of positions in global and U.S. marketing at Guidant and St. Jude Medical. Sandra holds a B.S. in Physical Therapy from the University of Connecticut and an M.B.A from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.

Seamus O’Connor brings 23 years of experience in the medical device industry across quality assurance and regulatory affairs, working with various medical device technologies. His product experience includes life-supporting and sustaining devices, as well as sterile, implantable, and consumable devices. He has successfully managed numerous U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspections and other regulatory body audits. Prior to BlueWind Medical, Seamus held positions of increasing responsibility at MEDNOVA, TE Connectivity, Boston Scientific and Natus Medical. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree and a Higher Diploma in quality management from the University of Galway, Ireland.

Mike Ruger brings over 30 years of Senior Sales, Executive Leadership, and Consulting experience with both large and small medical device companies including Ethicon Endosurgery (J&J), Spectranetics, Micrus, HeartWare, and Medtronic. In 2010 Mike joined HeartWare pre-commercial and built the North America field team from the ground up. He recruited a passionate and high performing, customer facing team. Once commercial, HeartWare substantially grew market share, consistently exceeding corporate sales goals, and eventually gaining a market leadership position. In 2016 HeartWare was acquired by Medtronic for over $1B. Mike holds a B.A. in Business Management from the University of Northern Colorado.

Mr. Dan Lemaitre joined BlueWind Medical as Executive Chairman in September 2018 and serves as CEO since January 2020. Dan also serves on the board of Globus Medical (NYSE: GMED) one of the fastest growing spinal companies with revenue of ~$700 million per annum. Previously, Dan was the CEO of CoreValve that launched the first commercial transcatheter aortic valve in Europe in 2007. Prior to joining CoreValve, Dan was a Senior Vice President at Medtronic where he headed-up strategic planning and corporate development. Earlier in his career Dan spent 28 years in the medical device field as an investment analyst.

Mr. Neugarten has over 35 years of senior managerial experience, and over 15 years of experience in the medical industry. He brings to BlueWind Medical significant experience in medical devices venture capital investments, commercialization, and asset realization. Mr. Neugarten serves as Executive Chairman of Rainbow Medical, BlueWind’s founding and largest investor. Previously, he was a partner at DOR Ventures, a VC fund focusing on imaging technologies as part of the Viola Partners Group. During his period at DOR Ventures he led various investments including medical imaging ventures. Since 2006, he led the healthcare investments of Viola Partners, and currently serves on the boards of Angioslide, NanoPass, and PainReform. Prior to joining the Viola Partners Group, he worked for Scitex (NASDAQ:SCIX) in various management positions in Europe, Japan, and Israel. He received his BSc in Electronics from the Technion, Haifa Israel, and an MBA from Boston University.

Kerry Nelson joined BlueWind Medical as Director in December 2020. She brings expertise in investment and financial management as well as deep experience in investing in medical device companies. Ms. Nelson is currently Portfolio Manager and Founder of Skystone Capital Management LP, which focuses on the healthcare industry. Before starting her own firm, she was a Portfolio Manager at Highbridge Capital Management, a division of JP Morgan Chase & Co. She spent the previous four years as a Partner with Blum Capital Partners LP, an activist fund, where she spearheaded the firm’s healthcare sector activities. From 1995 to 2001, Ms. Nelson was at Fidelity during which she launched and managed the firm’s Medical Technology Fund. She has previously served as a board observer at Haemonetics (NYSE: HAE) and Kinetics Concepts, Inc. (a division of 3M). Nelson earned a BA from Cornell University.

Barry joined the BlueWind Medical Board as Director in 2022 and brings over 40 years of diverse experience in the financial industry. He is currently the Director of the Kirsh Family Office and sits on the Board of Directors for many of the Kirsh Group Portfolio companies. He was the founder, CEO and shareholder of the Meridian Value Added Tax (“VAT”) Reclaim Group which became the largest VAT reclaim agency in the world. In 2013, Barry was appointed Chairman of Magal Security Systems Limited and Jetro Holdings Inc., in addition to sitting on the Board of Ki Corporation Limited. Barry is a Charted Accountant in South Africa and a Registered Auditor in the UK. He holds both a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Accounting from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa.

Seth joined the BlueWind Medical Board as Director in 2022 and brings his expertise in the financial and medical device sectors. Seth currently serves as the President and Chief Operating Officer for the Continence Care and Home Services Group at ConvaTec, a global medical product and technology company. He joined ConvaTec in September 2017 following the acquisition of Woodbury Health Products, where he served as CEO for five years. Prior to ConvaTec, Seth served at Cantel Medical Corp as an EVP for a decade - a New York Stock Exchange listed specialty healthcare company dedicated to Infection Prevention and Control. Seth has lived and worked in North America, Asia and Europe holding positions in investment banking, management consulting, and as head of operations for a global media research firm. Seth holds an MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Mathematics with honors from the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Liz Kwo joined the BlueWind Medical board as a Director in September 2022. Dr. Kwo is currently Chief Medical Officer at Everly Health, a company focused on home care testing. Prior to joining Everly Health, she founded two successful companies: New Pathway Education, a company that provides educational technology throughout China and InfiniteMD, which specializes in connecting international patients to physicians in the US for medical second opinions. Additionally, Dr, Kwo was VP of Provider Networks at American Well, a leading telemedicine company. She also served as Deputy Chief Clinical Officer at Anthem (recently renamed Elevance). Dr. Kwo has an MD from Harvard Medical School, MBA from Harvard Business School, MPH from Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, and a BA from Stanford University. She is a Board Certified in Preventive Care and Occupational Medicine.

Howard B. Goldman is a Professor on the faculty of the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine and an expert in quality and patient safety serving as the Institute Vice Chairman for Quality at the Glickman Urologic Institute. He has a joint appointment in the departments of urology and obstetrics and gynecology and is actively involved in the training of fellows and residents, including serving as Fellowship director for Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery in the Department of Urology at the Cleveland Clinic. He has directly trained over 35 fellows and residents who are specialized FPMRS practitioners. Dr Goldman’s interests are in the medical and surgical treatment of urinary incontinence and other types of voiding dysfunction, neuromodulation, prolapse repair, complex reconstructive female urologic surgery and neurourology. His contributions to the literature have been prolific, including author of over 250 articles and book chapters, editor of three textbooks and panel member for a number of standardization, guidelines and best practice statement panels. Within the AUA he has been on the SUI Guidelines as well as Urodynamics guidelines committees. Within ICS he has been on the male LUTS terminology committee as well as the ICS/IUGA female prolapse terminology committee. He also led the group that came up with the ICS sacral neuromodulation best practices document. His prominent international reputation has led to invitations as visiting professor in the United States and abroad as well as numerous invited lectures. He is on the editorial board of a number of journals and is a former Assistant Editor of the Journal of Urology. . He is currently the co-director of the AUA annual review course for part 1 of the ABU exam, is on the AUA Education committee, serves as online education director for IUGA, is the scientific co-chair for the 2020 ICS annual meeting, was the program co-chair for the 2020 SUFU meeting, was on the program committee for the 2020 International Neurourology Society and is the International Consultation on Incontinence committee chair for surgery for male incontinence. Dr Goldman has been involved in and led numerous projects related to innovative treatments utilizing stem cells for SUI, neuromodulation, utilization of urodynamics, management of complications and improvements in safety and efficiency in pelvic floor surgery. Dr. Goldman is an astute physician-scientist, nurturing educator, model leader, and unwavering patient advocate renowned in the field of urology

Dr Richter is The Obstetrics and Gynecology Endowed Chair in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). She is Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Urology & Geriatrics, past Division Director and current Research Director of the Division of Urogynecology and Pelvic Reconstructive Surgery. She is the Medical and Quality Officer of the Ambulatory OB/GYN Clinics and Director of the Urogynecology Care and Genitorectal Disorders Clinics. She is Associate Director of Gynecologic Research for the Center for Women’s Reproductive Health and past President of the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons. She is currently President-elect of the American Urogynecologic Society and serves as an Editor for the International Urogynecology Journal and Obstetrics and Gynecology. In 2019, Dr Richter received the Society of Gynecologic Surgeons Distinguished Surgeon Award. She was the Principal Investigator of the NIDDK-sponsored Urinary Incontinence Treatment Network and is PI of the NICHD-sponsored Pelvic Floor Disorders Network since its inception in 2001. She oversees other NIH (R01) and industry sponsored research. She was also the recipient of a 10 year mid-career award (K24, NIDDK) in patient oriented pelvic floor research and mentors many young investigators. She has over 300 publications, many in top journals such as JAMA and NEJM. Dr. Richter is the ACOG representative to the Section for Enhancing Geriatric Understanding and Expertise among Surgical and Medical Specialists (SEGUE) council of the American Geriatrics Society/Hartford Foundation. She has a strong interest in treating vesicovaginal fistulas and has visited Africa regularly over the past 15 years.

Eric S. Rovner, M.D. is a Professor in the Department of Urology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, South Carolina. He is the director of the Section of Voiding Dysfunction, Female Urology and Urodynamics in the Department of Urology at MUSC. He is Board Certified in Urology and Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery, Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, as well as a member of the Society of Pelvic Surgeons, American Association of GU Surgeons, Society of Academic Urologists, and the Society for Urodynamics, Female Urology and Urogenital reconstruction (SUFU) among others. He was the President of SUFU from 2014-16. Dr. Rovner’s research interests include the study of voiding dysfunction, overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis, lower urinary tract reconstruction, neurourology and urodynamics. He has held several visiting professorships and is the author of >150 peer-reviewed scientific articles, and >30 book chapters on these topics as well as books on urinary incontinence and urodynamics. He has been an invited speaker on numerous occasions throughout the United States and the world, and has been the Principal or co-investigator on multiple NIDDK/NIH as well as industry sponsored grants.

Gary Lemack, M.D., is a Professor in the Department of Urology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and is the holder of the Rose Mary Haggar Professorship. He and has a secondary appointment in the Department of Neurology. He is board certified in Urology and Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery. He has been the Residency Program Director in the Department of Urology since 2004 and is the past Program Director for the Female Pelvic Medicine and Reconstructive Surgery Fellowship. His clinical specialties include urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse, overactive bladder, and voiding dysfunction in the setting of neurologic disease. In particular, he cares for patients with bladder conditions stemming from spinal cord injury, multiple sclerosis, and movement disorders such as Parkinson’s Disease. He performs complex urinary diversions for patients with severe bladder disorders due to congenital and advanced neurological diseases. Dr. Lemack earned his medical degree from Cornell University and performed his residency at The New York Hospital. His fellowship training at UT Southwestern focused on incontinence, urodynamics, and neurourology. Dr. Lemack has been a faculty member at UT Southwestern since 1999. He is also active in research. His clinical research has focused on the use of urodynamic studies in patients with lower urinary tract dysfunction/incontinence, and on establishing best urological practices in the care of patients with multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and other neurological conditions. Texas Monthly has honored Dr. Lemack with its Super Doctor award, and D Magazine has named him a Best Doctor in Dallas on multiple occasions, including 2020. Dr. Lemack is the Past President of the Society of Urodynamics, Female Pelvic Medicine, and Urogenital Reconstruction (SUFU) – the primary urology subspecialty organization devoted to the conditions affecting the pelvic floor, such as incontinence and prolapse – where he has been on the Executive Committee since 2005. He has earned both the Paul Zimskind and Distinguished Service awards from SUFU, two of the highest honors that the Society bestows. He has been on the Board of the South Central Section of the American Urological Association, and is a former member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Urology. He is one of 12 Trustees of the American Board of Urology and currently serves at the Chair of the Oral Examination Committee for the Board. Dr. Lemack has authored two guidelines from the American Urological Association (Urodynamics and Stress Urinary Incontinence) and served as the lone American representative on The European Association of Urology Incontinence Guidelines. He has authored over 160 original articles and over 25 book chapters. He has been Visiting Professor at 25 locations throughout the United States, South and Central America and Australia.

Sandip Vasavada, MD, serves as the Urologic Director, Center for Female Urology and Reconstructive Pelvic Surgery, at Cleveland Clinic within the Glickman Urological Institute. Together with his other colleagues he helps represent one of the largest centers for female urology and reconstructive genitourinary surgery in the country. He is also Professor of Surgery (Urology) at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine and has a joint appointment with the Women's Health Institute. Dr. Vasavada completed his medical school training in the competitive six-year combined BS/MD program at Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine in 1991. Upon graduation, he began his urology residency at Cleveland Clinic and graduated the residency in 1997. Subsequently, he began a fellowship in female urology, neuro-urology and reconstruction at the UCLA School of Medicine in Los Angeles, Calif. He then took a position as Assistant Professor of Urology at Thomas Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia prior to returning to Cleveland in 2001. Dr. Vasavada has published numerous manuscripts and book chapters in the area of voiding dysfunction and urinary incontinence and has been named to "Top Docs" in Philadelphia and Cleveland magazines for over 15 years, Crains Cleveland Business Top 40 under 40 and the Urology department Teacher of the Year. He has published three textbooks and has authored over 100 manuscripts and over 25 book chapters and numerous abstracts and videos . He has lectured and demonstrated surgical techniques around the world in over 20 countries. Dr Vasavada is a reviewer for seven major journals in the field of urology, urogynecology and voiding dysfunction. He recently completed a term on task force A of the American Board of Urology Exam Committee and has helped author the American Urological Association (AUA) and Society of Urodynamics and Female Urogenital Reconstruction (SUFU) Guidelines in Overactive Bladder and Stress Urinary Incontinence for the country. Additionally, Dr Vasavada serves presently as Vice President of SUFU. Dr. Vasavada's main clinical interests lie in the area of urinary incontinence, pelvic organ prolapse and complex reconstruction of the lower urinary tract and management of complications of vaginal and lower urinary tract surgery. His current research interests are in the field of refractory bladder overactivity and neuromodulation and care pathways for optimizing care in patients undergoing incontinence and prolapse surgery. Dr. Vasavada serves with the Section of Urogynecology on the NIH-Pelvic Floor Disorders Network.

Dr. Sidon is a senior physician in the pediatric orthopedic unit in the Schneider's children hospital in Petah-Tikva, Israel. He graduated from Sackler medical school in Tel-aviv university in 2008, and completed his orthopedic training in Beilinson hospital in 2016. He continued his training in the US with a fellowship year in foot and ankle in the Rothman institute and a fellowship year in pediatric orthopedics in the New york Presbyterian Hospital. He is a member of the Israeli orthopedic foot and ankle society, the European foot and ankle society as well as the Israeli Pediatric Orthopedic Society.