Catalyst innovation method trains Fellows to surface unmet needs, build cross-disciplinary teams, and design solutions grounded in clinical reality
MIT linQ at the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES) selected 18 professionals to join the 2026 Catalyst Fellowship, and 10 Scholars to join the January bootcamp. Since its founding in 2010 by Martha Gray, PhD, Whitaker Professor in Biomedical Engineering, Catalyst has pioneered a needs-driven approach to biomedical innovation that has since been adopted by other MIT programs and innovation initiatives.
The program assembles cohorts spanning clinical practice, engineering, life sciences, design, and entrepreneurship, creating cross-disciplinary teams that surface healthcare problems often impossible to solve through single-discipline approaches. Through strategic partnerships, Catalyst engages clinical organizations where innovation needs are most acute. Since 2019, the program has collaborated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs VHA Innovation Ecosystem (VHA IE), with seven Fellows from VA centers joined the 2026 cohort. This year marks a new collaboration with the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub at MIT, which launched in April 2025. Part of the MIT Health and Life Sciences Collaborative (HEALS), the Hood Hub is helping Catalyst participants explore opportunities to innovate for the unique biomedical and healthcare needs of children.
Catalyst’s distinctive training method produces dual impact: Fellows develop into innovation leaders who transform how their institutions approach problem-solving, while their Catalyst projects generate technologies that outperform MIT benchmarks for commercial advancement and funding success.
The program was created to transform how biomedical innovation begins—by first uncovering genuine, unmet healthcare needs, and then developing solutions grounded in patient experience and healthcare system realities. “Catalyst proves that when you bring a broad range of expertise together around genuine healthcare needs—and apply a rigorous methodology—you unlock innovations that can make real clinical impact,” said Dr. Gray. “Over the years, we’ve seen this approach shape how leaders across industry, academia, and health systems, and within our collaborating organizations like VA, think about innovation.”
Bridging MIT innovation with clinical reality
The 2026 cohort embodies Catalyst’s commitment to technology innovation driven by genuine clinical need. The 18 Fellows include clinicians and healthcare professionals from major medical centers nationwide—including seven from VA medical centers—bringing firsthand experience across wide-ranging care settings from academic hospitals to community health systems. Their expertise spans suicide prevention, chronic disease management, surgical innovation, emergency medicine, and rural healthcare access.
This clinical depth ensures that innovation opportunities emerge from real patient care challenges rather than theoretical problems. “The perspectives of this cohort are extraordinary,” said Melissa Parrillo, Senior Program Manager for Catalyst. “When you have practitioners who see patients daily working alongside engineers and scientists, the needs we identify and solutions we develop are shaped by clinical reality from day one.”
“We’re excited to work with this year’s cohort of Catalyst Fellows and Scholars as we continue to cultivate life-long innovators,” said Joseph Frassica, MD, Professor of the Practice, MIT Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, and Executive Director, Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub (shown left). “Each year, Catalyst Fellows and Scholars bring exceptional experience and a passion for problem-solving to our community. As the Hood Pediatric Innovation Hub teams up with MIT Catalyst, we anticipate that this year’s cohort will deliver outstanding solutions to persistent challenges in pediatric healthcare.”
The emphases on need-driven innovation, coupled with the cross-stakeholder collaboration essential to effective problem-solving, attracted the Fellows to join. “I’m deeply motivated to develop medical technologies that are not only cutting-edge but also accessible and impactful, especially in underserved communities,” said Michaela Prado, PhD candidate at Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology (HST). “Seeing my mother, a nurse, care for patients without adequate tools showed me how innovation often fails to reach those who need it most. This experience fueled my dedication to translational research that brings meaningful innovation that addresses the urgent needs of strained health systems.”
Meet the 2026 Catalyst Fellows
- Pablo Cabrales Miró-Granada
PhD Candidate, Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Integrates AI and PET imaging to improve treatment verification and tumor characterization in proton therapy. - Jessica Feranec, MD
Associate Chief of Staff, Surgical Services, Orlando VA HealthCare System
Leads implementation of state-of-the-art surgical technologies and serves as consultant for safe AI adoption in healthcare systems. - Jonah Goodman, MFA
Industrial & Product Designer, Modern Culture Labs
Explores the intersection of design, biology, and systems thinking to create sustainable, regenerative products including patent-pending wound-care materials. - Prisca Hamm, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Investigates the association between hemostasis and ABO blood groups, applying expertise in bioconjugates, proteomics, and glycobiology. - Aryavarta Kumar, MD, PhD
Radiation Oncologist, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System
Pioneers new approaches to radiation oncology through clinical trial leadership, novel care delivery models including a prostate cancer dashboard, and expanded applications of radiation therapy. - Tyler Lieberthal, PhD
Principal Scientist, 3D BioLabs LLC
Bridges gaps between engineers, scientists, and clinicians through tissue engineering and 3D printing technologies for therapeutic solutions. - Sarah C. McBride, MD
Director, Pediatric Hospital Medicine Fellowship, Boston Children’s Hospital
Conducts clinical effectiveness research and leads quality improvement initiatives for high-risk pediatric inpatient populations. - Selim Olcum, PhD
Co-Founder & Vice President of Engineering, Travera
Develops functional assays to guide cancer therapy selection and has led development of CLIA-certified laboratory tests for clinical decision-making. - Othman O’Malley, DPT
Inpatient Physical Therapist, Lt. Col. Luke Weathers Jr. VA Medical Center
Applies AI to frontline care delivery challenges, leading development of an AI decision-support platform for real-time suicide risk identification in primary care. - Helen T. Paradise, MD, MPH
Staff Physician and Clinician Educator, Minneapolis VA Medical Center
Champions practical, sustainable healthcare innovations grounded in primary care delivery experience and leadership of system-wide reform programs. - Namrata G. Patel, MD
Primary Care Physician, Orlando VA Medical Center
Dedicated to advancing health equity and efficiency through lifestyle medicine approaches that prevent and cure chronic conditions. - Michaela Prado
PhD Candidate, Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology
Develops innovative mRNA vaccine platforms with targeted lipid nanoparticle systems for in vivo immune cell engineering to enhance cancer immunotherapy. - Ali Ramezani, MSc, PhD Candidate
Research Assistant, University of Utah
Develops novel medical devices and sensing algorithms for perioperative kidney monitoring and early detection of acute kidney injury. - Neeti G. Reddy, MD, FACC
Section Chief of Cardiology, VA Texas Valley Coastal Bend Healthcare System
Bridges clinical cardiology and digital health innovation through regional program leadership and consulting work developing emerging technologies for cardiac care. - Adam C. Siegel, PhD
Co-Founder and CEO, Kitten Labs
Builds companies bridging computing and the physical world, with experience developing launched products including Amazon Care and leading the Amazon Catalyst Fund. - Samuel Smith, MSNA, CRNA
Certified Registered Nurse Anesthesiologist, Central Virginia VA Health Care System
Leads SmartFlow initiative advancing anesthesia modernization, low-flow adoption, and environmental stewardship across the VA enterprise. - Spencer Tomberg, MD, MS
Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine and Orthopedics, Denver Health Medical Center
Focuses on improving acute orthopedic trauma care, optimizing provider mental performance, and streamlining emergency-to-clinic transitions. - Melinda Turner, MD
Medical Director, Behavioral Health Group, Nashville Treatment Center
Transforms substance use disorder care through modernizing treatment protocols and designing national acute care-to-outpatient bridging programs.
Catalyst Scholars: MIT students and VA nurses join innovation bootcamp
This commitment to real-world impact extends throughout the program’s structure, including the Catalyst Scholars who support discovery from the front lines of care. Catalyst Fellows were joined early in Phase 1 by Catalyst Scholars—MIT undergraduates from the Priscilla King Gray Public Service Center at MIT and Veterans Administration nurses who engaged in deep, hands-on work alongside Fellows and program faculty. Through hands-on research they helped surface unmet needs and contributed to the program’s foundational exploration. The 2026 scholars are:
- Sima Amin BSN, RN
- Julia Item BSN, RN
- Rui Liu, MIT ’26
- Izzy Luca, MIT ’26
- Emanuel Perez BSN, RN
- Mercedes Randhahn, MIT ’26
- Abigail Thomas, MIT ’26
- Cindy Tien, MSN, RN
- Malia Vistro MSN, RN
- Jonah Xu, MIT ’27
Meet the professionals participating in Catalyst in 2026
Catalyst faculty mentor Fellows through each phase of the program, from initial clinical observations through validated project proposals. Their expertise spans clinical care, engineering, life sciences, entrepreneurship, and healthcare delivery—providing the multidisciplinary guidance essential to the Catalyst method.
- Janna Alayu, MSN, RN, CNS, OCN
RN Residency Director, VA Greater Los Angeles health care; Liaison for Nursing Scholars - Satish Annadata, MD, MPH, MBA
Acting Chief Medical Officer, VA Sunshine Healthcare Network (VISN 8); Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2022 - Kathryn Beckner, MS, OTR/L
Director, IDEAS Center for Innovation, Central Virginia VA Health Care System; Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2022 - Kelly Boyle, DNP, RN, CNOR
Associate Director for Quality Management, VA Boston Healthcare System; Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2022 - Eric Bruns, MBA
Executive Director, SimLEARN (VHA Office of Healthcare Innovation & Learning); Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2022 - Brynn Cole
Director of Design and Storytelling, VHA Innovation Ecosystem; Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2022 - Heather L. Davidson, MD
Deputy Chief of Staff and Hospitalist Physician, VA Boston Healthcare System; Catalyst faculty member since 2019; Catalyst Independent Advisory Panel member since 2020 - Mike Dempsey
Entrepreneur in Residence at CIMIT - Robert Evans
Director Systems Engineering, Abbott Labs (retired) - Jamie Fairclough, PhD, MPH, MSPharm
Director of Mental Health Evaluation and Assessment, Dartmouth College, and Biomedical Data Scientists & AI Research Engineer, US Department of Veterans Affairs - Marra Francis, MD
Chief Medical Officer at PinkDx - Joseph Frassica, MD
Professor of the Practice, Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES), MIT - Rafael Fricks, PhD
Associate Director for AI in Medical Imaging, MAVERIC (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs - Stephan Gaehde, MD, MPH
Chief of Emergency Services and Medical Informatics Fellowship Program Director; VA Boston Healthcare System - Martha Gray, PhD
J. W. Kieckhefer Professor of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and MIT linQ Director - Gina Green, OTD, MOT, OTR/L
Innovation Specialist, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System - Daniel Hurtado, PhD
Associate professor, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile and Founder and CSO, IC Innovations - Angela James, PhD
Vice President, Head of Clinical Pharmacology, MacroGenics Inc - Tania Lopez Silva, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering and Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES), MIT - Freddy Nguyen, MD, PhD
CEO and Co-Founder, Nine Diagnostics - Tim Padera, PhD
Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School - Anne Quaadgras, PhD
Director of the MIT Sloan Health Systems Initiative - Sandra Reidel, MD
Orthopedic surgeon, Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center - Lindsay Riegler, CCC-SLP, CBIS
Innovation Specialist and Speech-Language Pathologist, Cincinnati VA Medical Center - John Riordan, MD, MSc
Medical Director for Clinical Operations at the David J. Thatcher VA Clinic, Missoula, Montana - Indra Sandal, PhD, MBA
Chief of Innovation, VA Tampa Healthcare System - Laurie Sanders
Director, Enterprise R&D Program and Change Management, BD - Jay Schnitzer, MD, PhD
Senior Vice President, Corporate Chief Engineer, Chief Medical Officer, MITRE (retired) - Robert Sege, MD, PhD
Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics, Tufts University School of Medicine - Suzanne Shirley, MSW
Vice President, Health Research, Ipsos - Stephanie Sinnett, MS, RDN
Innovation Specialist at Orlando VA Healthcare System - Samantha Sissel
Innovation Specialist, VA Boston Healthcare System - Nancy Steele
Vice President, Strategy & Innovation at Pfizer (retired), and Mentor, Entrepreneurship for All - Joseph Ting, SB, SM
Vice President of Design at Boyd Biomedical - Ben Vakoc, PhD
Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School
Building innovation capacity across MIT’s healthcare innovation ecosystem
Catalyst pioneered the needs-driven approach that now influences healthcare innovation training across MIT. Since 2010, the program has established a proven approach to identifying genuine clinical needs and developing solutions positioned for real-world impact that has influenced how IMES, HEALS, and other MIT initiatives approach biomedical technology development.
The program is intentionally designed as a 360° learning experience. Fellows and Scholars develop rigorous approaches to identifying unmet needs, while faculty and advisors from IMES, HEALS, and partner organizations like the VA sharpen their own innovation frameworks, gain exposure to Catalyst’s methodologies, and build connections across disciplines and institutions. This reciprocal model strengthens the entire ecosystem—from MIT labs to clinical partners—creating pathways for collaboration that extend well beyond the six-month intensive.
About MIT linQ
MIT linQ is an initiative based in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Institute for Medical Engineering and Sciences (MIT IMES) to develop a new paradigm for biomedical technology innovation. MIT linQ unifies a portfolio of international innovation programs focused on improving healthcare through need-driven, interdisciplinary research and training. For more information, visit http://linq.mit.edu