Healthcare’s Frontier: Attracting Global Medical Innovations with Jeff Stinson and HealthTech Arkansas

Summary

In this episode of The Bentonville Beacon, host James Bell is joined by Jeff Stinson for a compelling conversation about Bentonville’s unique culture and how it helps businesses thrive. Jeff is the Director of HealthTech Arkansas, which is driving innovation for Arkansas health systems through internal innovation programming and accelerators for medtech, healthtech and therapeutics that attract accomplished startup founders from around the world. A long-time leader in the Arkansas entrepreneurial ecosystem, Jeff recently relocated to Bentonville, where he gets to live, in his words, a charmed day-to-day experience. Throughout the episode, James and Jeff discuss how HealthTech Arkansas is facilitating healthcare innovation by focusing on clinical engagement, Northwest Arkansas’s rising whole health sector and Jeff’s life transformation in Bentonville.

Show Notes

(0:54) Introducing Jeff Stinson and His Connection to Bentonville

(4:41) HealthTech Arkansas: An Innovation Catalyst

(11:21) The Benefits of a Virtual Accelerator

(13:32) BioAR and SymBiosis’s Affect on Bentonville

(16:37) HealthTech Arkansas Success Stories

(18:59) The Benefits of Being in Bentonville

(27:39) Jeff’s #BecauseBentonville Story

(31:34) Fun Questions with Jeff

(36:03) The Future of Healthcare Innovation

(42:31) What’s Next for HealthTech Arkansas?

Links

Jeff Stinson

HealthTech Arkansas

HeartX

BioAR

James Bell

Bentonville Economic Development

Quotes

“The thing that makes us different is that we built our entire program around clinical engagement. So we think we are one of, if not the only, program in the country that guarantees hospital pilot projects and clinical trials for startup companies.” - Jeff Stinson, (5:25)

“We present [our cohort] to our clinical trial sites here in the state of Arkansas and facilitate those clinical trials, and really it’s a great way for us to bring these advanced therapeutics into the state...Too many times, when Arkansans want to participate in these advanced clinical trials, they have to go get on a plane and go to Houston or Dallas or Chicago. So to the extent we can bring more of those into the state, we’re increasing access to care for Arkansans.” - Jeff Stinson, (10:24)

“What I have found moving to Northwest Arkansas...the accessibility is unbelievable. The people that I can meet with and talk to here who are in a position to move the needle for us—there’s no way you could have better access than you can in Northwest Arkansas to people who can make a difference in what you’re doing.” - Jeff Stinson, (20:35)

“[Moving to Downtown Bentonville] has been the most transformative thing in my life. I feel like when I walk outside every day, people sprinkle fairy dust over my head. It’s just a charmed day-to-day existence. ” - Jeff Stinson, (23:30)

“[Bentonville] could not be a more magical place. The friends I’ve made here in four or five months—it’s just fantastic...It’s just a really great place to embed yourself in the social scene, meet people and make friendships.” - Jeff Stinson, (29:47)