“Need to Succeed: The Surprising Power of Needs-Driven Health Technology and Innovation”

The Case Western Reserve University community is invited to attend the fall 2017 Ford Distinguished Lecture featuring Paul Yock, director of Stanford Biodesign, and Michael Ackermann, executive chairman of Oyster Point Pharmaceuticals Inc. The speakers will deliver their lecture “Need to Succeed: The Surprising Power of Needs-Driven Health Technology and Innovation” on Tuesday, Oct. 17, at 4:30 p.m. in the Linsalata Alumni Center.

Paul Yock

Paul Yock, the Martha Meier Weiland Professor of Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, is internationally known for his work in inventing, developing and testing new devices. Yock also founded and directs Stanford Biodesign, a unit of Stanford’s Bio-X initiative that focuses on invention and technology transfer related to biomedical engineering. His works include the Rapid Exchange balloon angioplasty system, which is now the primary system in use worldwide; a Doppler-guided access system known as the Smart Needle; and PD-Access. Current research interests of Yock’s group at Stanford focus on development and testing of catheter-based delivery systems for cardiac cell transplantation and new catheter and molecular imaging techniques for cardiology.

Michael Ackerman

Michael Ackermann serves as executive chairman of Oyster Point Pharmaceuticals Inc. and is developing two early-stage health care ventures. He was recently vice president of neurostimulation for Allergan, after serving as CEO of Oculeve Inc., which was acquired by Allergan in August 2015. He received a Bachelor of Engineering, magna cum laude, in biomedical engineering from Vanderbilt University, and a Master of Science and PhD in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University. Ackerman is a graduate of the Stanford University Biodesign Fellowship and Vision Research Fellowship at Stanford. He has numerous patents and peer-reviewed publications. Register by Oct. 10 at bme.case.edu/ford.