OVERVIEW:
Jason A. Duprat, Entrepreneur, Healthcare Practitioner, and Host of the Healthcare Entrepreneur Academy podcast, speaks with Dr. Nick Medendorp, PhD, Co-Founder, and CEO of UV Innovators. Nick talks about the importance of combating pathogens that cause hospital-acquired infections. He shares his journey in medical engineering and how this led him to launch his own medical company.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS:
- Nick's father worked for GE so they moved around a lot. His father had a strong work ethic and Nick learned early on to power through problems.
- His basis for success is twofold: how to solve problems and why things break.
- Nick believes it's important to get out of your comfort zone to get a different perspective to advance your knowledge base.
- Early in his career, Nick took a position with Phoenix Corp lab in tech development. While there, he realized the challenges large organizations faced.
- Nick was at a crossroads when it came to his career. Choose tech or business. He went to work for CREE, a startup in Santa Barbara that jump-started his entrepreneurial journey.
- As an entrepreneur, if you can't find a partner, find a mentor. The CFO of CREE became Nick's mentor and helped him develop a network with bankers, venture capitalists, and other entrepreneurs.
- While he worked at the startup, he opened his eyes and ears and learned from his interactions, which eventually helped him start his own business.
- UV Innovators was founded in 2020 with two partners who had backgrounds in medical technology and medical devices. NuvaWave is a portable disinfection technology that eradicates pathogens on the surface by eliminating bacteria and viruses, including those caused by the Coronavirus.
- One out of every 31 patients who are hospitalized gets a hospital-acquired infection.
- In the healthcare industry, there's about $45 billion of additional expense from hospital-acquired infections.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the challenges of making what's invisible visible.
- WellAir acquired UV Innovators and Nick believes it's the perfect marriage.
- Based on feedback from clinicians, Nick and his team are continuing to explore medical technology innovation. Currently, they're working on a tool that's cordless, simple to use access verticals, and can easily integrate into workflows.
3 KEY POINTS:
- UV Innovators focuses on portable, handheld disinfection technologies that eradicate pathogens on the surface. Nick's mission is to protect clinicians and nurses, as well as patients and their family members.
- Be open to the idea of a company acquisition. Sometimes, merging with another innovative entity is the best way to scale and leverage your product and business.
- Throughout the development process, Nick continues to focus on key attributes to solve problems including making products cordless so healthcare workers can integrate them into a workflow.
TWEETABLE QUOTES:
“Curiosity is an important part of being successful in business and in things you do in life.” – Dr. Nick Medendorp, Jr.
“The willingness to go outside your comfort zone not only enables you to learn new things but sometimes makes you come out with a different perspective.” – Dr. Nick Medendorp, Jr.
“If you want to make a billion dollars, you've got to solve a problem for a billion people.” – Dr. Nick Medendorp, Jr.
RESOURCES:
Nuva Wave website: https://nuvawave.com/
Have a healthcare business question? Want to request a podcast topic? Text Jason at 407-972-0084 to be added to his contacts. Occasionally, he'll share important announcements and answer your questions as well.
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