2020 and 2021 will remain in our memories as the years that turned existing infrastructures upside down. As a result, the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly accelerated the digitization of our society particularly in the healthcare sector.
Technologies such as robotics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, spatial computing and big data have found their way into many clinics and dominate the discussion in digital health.
As many in-person conferences and trade fairs were cancelled, we saw a boost in the use of social media, virtual events, podcasts and webinars.
If you would like to stay on top of the discussion around digital health, be sure to follow these experts on LinkedIn.
1. Kevin Pho, MD
Kevin Pho is a practicing, board-certified internal medicine physician, national media commentator, public speaker and author based in the US. He is the founder and editor of KevinMD.com, a website aimed at medical professionals, and host of a podcast of the same name. KevinMD.com serves as a platform for physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students and patients to share their insights and tell their stories.
With his followers, Pho frequently shares his knowledge on issues ranging from health policy to innovations in technology that are changing healthcare delivery today. His writings have been published in USA Today, The New York Times and on CNN.com among others.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
2. Nisha Mehta, MD
A radiologist with subspecialty training in musculoskeletal and breast imaging, Nisha Mehta is also the founder of Physician Side Gigs, the largest physician only online community, and Physician Community, a virtual physicians’ lounge. As an international keynote speaker, writer, and physician advocate, this US-based health expert focuses on issues related to life in medicine and the changing healthcare landscape. Physician empowerment and cultural change in medicine are two of her main objectives, along with increasing business and financial literacy among physicians. On her LinkedIn she offers insights into her life as a physician including some of the challenges physicians are often faced with, always striving to empower others, particularly women, in the field of medicine. Her work has been featured in the Washington Post, CNN and Forbes among others.
LinkedIn Profile
Her personal website
3. Professor Shafi Ahmed
Shafi Ahmed is an award-winning cancer surgeon, currently specializing in colorectal cancer, based in London, United Kingdom. Dubbed the ‘Virtual Surgeon’, he was among the first physicians to live-stream an operation using Google Glass, performing the world’s first VR operation and conducting an operation while being joined by other surgeons from across the world using avatars and holograms. He co-founded Medical Realities who released the world’s first VR Interactive Surgical Training Module, and launched the Barts X Medicine Programme which embeds future technologies and entrepreneurship into medical school. As an advocate for AI, Digital Health and robotics, his mission is to make surgical education affordable and accessible to everyone through the power of connectivity.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
4. Umbereen S. Nehal, MD
A US-based professor, healthcare consultant and pediatrician, Umbereen S. Nehal talks about digital health and global trends in healthcare, as well as health disparities and community health. This former Chief Medical Officer has contributed to state public health curricula, driving transformation in the healthcare sector. She has been named “LinkedIn Top Voice” for Healthcare four times.
LinkedIn Profile
Her personal website
5. João Bocas
João Bocas is a globally recognized thought leader, keynote speaker, advisor and entrepreneur with expertise in wearable technologies, digital health, IoT and healthcare innovation based in London, United Kingdom. As CEO of Digital Salutem, a company that vows to implement digital healthcare transformation in less than a month, he explores the intersection of technology and business, analyses the impact of disruptive innovations and shares future trends in the marketplace with his followers.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
6. Artur Olesch
Artur Olesch is a digital health journalist, content writer, designer and conference speaker, focusing on the digital transformation in healthcare living in Germany. He is the founder of aboutDigitalHealth.com as well as editor-in-Chief of ICT&Health International and OSOZ News. Follow him to learn more about the latest trends, ideas and insights in digital healthcare and technology.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
7. Christina Farr
Christina Farr is a US-based health-tech investor with a background in journalism who has worked for CNBC, VentureBeat and Fast Company, among others, covering topics like health and technology. As an expert in the latest digital health trends, she has a particular focus on behavioral health, telemedicine, electronic medical records and women’s health.
8. Gil Bashe
A US-based digital health leader, author and keynote speaker, Gil Bashe’s career includes emergency care delivery, public affairs, public relations and crisis management. He is an advocate for health innovation and improved patient care and frequently writes for Health Tech World and Medika Life, discussing the latest trends in digital health and medical technology. As a leading voice in digital health, he is on the board of Digital Salutem together with João Bocas and is an advisor for Newtopia Inc, VyTrac and Rezilient Health as well as Chair Global Health at FINN Partners.
9. Ola Brown, MD
Ola Brown is a medical doctor with special training in aviation medicine, a healthcare entrepreneur and founder of the Flying Doctors Healthcare Investment Company which invests and operates across the African healthcare and wellness value chain and specializes in technology enabled healthcare. She was listed among the 2013 Young Global leaders by the World Economic Forum. Her work has been featured in the British Medical Journal, the New York Times and the Huffington Post, among others.
LinkedIn Profile
Her personal website
10. Ali. A. Baaj, MD
Ali A. Baaj is Chief of Spine Surgery and Associate Professor of Neurological & Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Arizona and Banner – University Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ. He is specialized in spinal surgery and has advanced training and expertise in pediatric and adult spinal oncology, spinal tumor resection and complex reconstructive surgery for spinal deformity. Prolific author of more than 100 abstracts and manuscripts, he also serves on the editorial boards of Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery and the Journal of Spinal Disorders and Techniques. Follow him to get detailed insights about state of the art surgery.
11. Lucien Blondel
Lucien Blondel is the CTO and Co-founder of Quantum Surgical SAS, an innovative medical robotics startup from France. He combines 20 years of experience in the design of breakthrough products integrating medical imaging, surgical navigation, software, instruments and robotics for knee surgery, brain surgery, spine surgery, and interventional radiology treatments. Lucien has a deep understanding of the field of robotics and shares his insights about surgical robots – so if this is something you’re interested in, you should definitely start following him.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
12. Rafael J. Grossmann, MD
A full-time practicing surgeon based in the US, Rafael Grossmann’s specialties include General, Trauma, Advanced Laparoscopic, Single Incision and Robotic Assisted Surgery. His focus and passion lie with the convergence of healthcare and technology and he was the first surgeon to use Google Glass in the operating room, earning him the title healthcare futurist. He has held various TED Talks explaining the possibilities of digital healthcare and its promising future. With his followers, he shares insights into the newest developments in medtech, presents new products and software and engages with fellow digital health enthusiasts.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
Watch his TEDx Talk
13. Chrissa McFarlane
Chrissa McFarlane is the founder and CEO of Patientory Inc, a global currency and population health management service that regulates and secures patient data. She is also a HIMSS Digital Influencer and has vast experience in many areas of the healthcare industry, specifically the digital transformation. Devoted to fostering digital innovation in the healthcare industry, Chrissa has served as co-chair of the HIMSS18 Blockchain Workgroup, and sits on the HIMSS Interoperability & Health Information Exchange Committee.
LinkedIn Profile
Her personal website
14. John Nosta
A self-proclaimed technology theorist, John works at the intersection of science, medicine. and innovation. He is the founder of NOSTALAB, a digital health think tank, and is currently ranked as one of the leading global influencers in medical innovation and technology. He is well established as one of the top global strategic and creative thinkers and is a member of the Google Health Advisory Board and frequent contributor to Fortune, Forbes, Psychology Today and Bloomberg. If you would like to learn more about digital health, he is definitely someone you should follow on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn Profile
His personal website
15. Daniel Kraft, MD
Daniel Kraft is a healthcare futurist, Stanford and Harvard trained physician and scientist, chair for medicine at Singularity University, and founder and chair of Exponential Medicine. Hespecialized as a physician in internal medicine and pediatrics, having also completed fellowships in hematology/oncology and bone marrow transplantation. With over 25 years of clinical, research, biotechnology and entrepreneurial experience, Dr. Kraft has created multiple publications through his faculty positions at Stanford Medical School and the University of California San Francisco. He also specialized in aerospace medicine and has published research together with NASA. On LinkedIn, he posts about a wide range of topics including healthcare innovation and technology, recent COVID-19 news, healthcare and big data, global health, AI and virtual and augmented reality in medicine.