LATAM Medtech Leaders

Paulo Fernandes is a distinguished clinical research executive with extensive experience in international clinical trials across various phases and therapeutic areas. With a solid foundation in the CRO industry, he has successfully held roles in project management, start-up, operations management, and business development. Paulo has worked at renowned CROs such as PPD, Covance, and IQVIA. Recently, he structured a healthcare sector start-up for a group of investors, showcasing his entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to high-impact public health initiatives. Additionally, he has 10 years of experience at the Brazilian Association of Clinical Research Organizations, including 4 years as the President of the Board of Directors. Paulo holds a specialization in Clinical Pharmacology from USCS, a degree in Pharmacy and Biochemistry from FCF-USP, and training in Business and Project Management from FIA, along with an Executive MBA from INSPER. 

Miriam is a seasoned professional in Health and Law, specializing in Sanitary Regulation and Clinical Research. With over 20 years of experience, she has a track record in planning and executing global, regional, and local clinical development programs, including Bioequivalence studies and Phase I-IV clinical trials. Her expertise spans Clinical Monitoring, Quality Assurance, Budgeting, Contracts & Payments Control, Clinical Trial Supplies, Master File, Pharmacovigilance, and Regulatory Affairs within both pharmaceutical industries and CROs, at national and international levels. She is recognized in the sector as a key opinion leader and a local expert in regulatory matters. Her leadership and active participation in gremial improvement initiatives have been pivotal, building synergies with authorities, academic, and industrial colleagues to further the development and progress of Clinical Research. 

Luis is the CEO and Founder of Theradaptive and developed the concept for targeted therapeutic delivery during and following a combat tour in Iraq where several of his soldiers suffered severe extremity injuries. Previously, Luis was the co-founding Deputy Director of the Department of Defense Regenerative Medicine Program and led the department's largest recombinant biologics program through Phase II. Luis was a DARPA Service Chief Fellow and Academy Professor at the United States Military Academy, West Point. Luis received his PhD in Biological Engineering from MIT where he was a Hertz Foundation Fellow.

Etienne Nichols is a Medical Device Guru and Mechanical Engineer who loves learning and teaching how systems work together. He has manufacturing and product development experience, even aiding in developing combination drug-delivery devices, from startups to Fortune 500 companies, and holds a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. Etienne has managed cross-functional teams for updating legacy products as well as developing new medical devices. His expansive knowledge, experience, and passion for medical devices are evenly matched with how much he enjoys helping customers work efficiently through the design and development process to bring safe, high-quality products to market.

Ruben is the CEO of Alandra Medical. He has dual qualifications in engineering and technology entrepreneurship combined with 16 years of experience in medical device development. Self-motivation, adaptability, trainability, and entrepreneurial drive are his key tools for achieving personal and business goals. Ruben started his career developing hardware and software for medical devices, spending countless hours reading scientific papers, twitching circuits, refining algorithms, and preparing technical reports to deliver products right on time. In a nutshell, his experience as an engineer revolves around developing Class I and II active and sterile medical devices (bio-instrumentation and software); this includes defining design inputs and producing design outputs following state-of-the-art industry standards such as ISO 13485, ISO 14971, IEC 62304 and the IEC 60601 series.

Ernesto has 27 years of experience leading healthcare strategies to drive access and expansion for new products, developing value propositions for public and private stakeholders, and assessing global market opportunities for healthcare companies. He has worked for both government agencies and global healthcare companies in roles ranging from strategic marketing and new product development to health economics and reimbursement. Also, Ernesto led several Market Access projects across the US, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East; Ernesto is the CEO and Founder of ValueConnected.

Ernesto also coordinates the ValueConnected team in applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Data Science to address significant unmet needs in healthcare, accelerating the adoption rate of medical technologies that can generate value for patients, payers, and providers. He holds an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, US, and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Fundação Armando Ávares Penteado(FAAP), in São Paulo, Brazil.

Dr. Antonio Trujillo is an Associate Professor in the Department of International Health with expertise in health economics, the economics of aging, and applied econometrics. Antonio is the co-director of the Master of Health Science (MHS) in Global Health Economics degree program. He teaches an advanced econometrics course on program impact evaluation using observational data and a course on behavioral economics and public health.

Carlos Medina is a Medical Doctor who works with health technology professionals to help them make the best technology for patient care available across Latin America. Carlos has witnessed the many benefits and risks that come with applying technology to solve health problems and is dedicated to helping others follow the best practices available and avoid the missteps that can derail their health technology problems. He has had the privilege to work with local and international companies across most countries in Latin America, helping them to achieve multi-million sales results and establish lasting and efficient global-local collaborations. He is a Licensed Medical Doctor in Mexico City. He is working on finishing his Master's degree in Information Technology for Healthcare while leading the Medical Devices workgroup of the Mexican HealthTech Association.

Yoku Sashida is the CEO & Co-Founder at Kenko Solutions, a company dedicated to managing and developing biomedical projects based on technology. He is responsible for opening economic relationships, capturing technology-based projects, forming work teams to carry out technological development, and administrative and financial accounting. The first product of its own is ecglove, the wearable able to determine the state of the heart in less than 60 seconds.

Luis Santiago is PEGASI's CEO and CTO. By training, he is a social communicator and marketing and public relations professor. By profession, he is a self-taught programmer, technology project manager, and Product Owner, with more than 14 years of experience in the area. He has ventured into banking, IT, and Digital Health. Luis was recognized in 2016 as one of the Young Leaders of the Americas by the American State Department, and in 2020 as one of the 35 Innovators under 35 in Latin America by the MIT Technology Review magazine. He has participated in dozens of international forums and events pointing out the importance of Healthcare digitalization in Latin America.