Over the years, we’ve found that the curation of a powerful and compelling Stage Program relies on one secret ingredient: the TEDMED Community. From our Editorial Advisory Board and Research Scholars to our Partners and volunteers, the TEDMED Community is composed of all of the individuals and organizations that provide us with the insight and expertise to help identify the topics, themes, and Speakers that appear at the annual TEDMED event.
After completing the first half of our Editorial Advisory Board meetings on both the East and West Coasts, we are now bursting with captivating Speaker nominations for the TEDMED 2017 Stage Program. To ensure that each Speaker on the TEDMED stage represents high-quality and scientifically credible ideas in health and medicine, we rely on a group of carefully selected Research Scholars to help us vet each nomination.
TEDMED’s Research Scholars are a diverse group of experts from across the globe who specialize in a wide range of subjects, such as biophysics, health policy, neuroscience, immunology, bioinformatics, nutritional and metabolic biology, public health, and epidemiology. Regardless of their field, each Research Scholar is passionate about the future of health and medicine and has graciously invested their time and expertise to help shape the TEDMED 2017 Stage Program.

TEDMED’s 2017 Research Scholars represent organizations including the National Cancer Institute, The University of Chicago Medicine, the YMCA of the USA, The Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Stanford University School of Medicine, The World Health Organization, the Dell Medical School, and many more.
We are proud to announce the 2017 class of TEDMED Research Scholars, and we are deeply grateful for their contributions. Learn more about each of them below:
Ajay Khilanani, MD – Critical Care, Global Health, Telemedicine
Alex Cressman, MD, MSc – Disease, Healthcare Delivery
Amy Faith Ho, MD – Health Policy, Medical Humanities, Medicine
Ann M. Geiger, PhD – Cancer, Disparities, Epidemiology, Healthcare
Ata Kiapour, PhD, MMSc – Medical Devices and Wearables, Sports Injuries
Beth Taylor Mack, PhD – Health and Wellness Innovation
Bridget N. Queenan, PhD – Neuroengineering, Neuroscience
Bryon Petersen, PhD – Bioengineering, Stem Cell Biology
Christina Allison Gulotta, MPH – Global Health
Cindy Greatrex – Ologies in Telehealth, Radiological Intervention
Dezmond Taylor-Douglas, PhD – Immunology, Life Sciences, Obesity
Diana Lutfi – Medical Ethics, Social Systems, Worldviews
Diego Wyszynski, MD, MHS, PhD – Drug Safety, Pharmacoepidemiology, Pregnancy Registry
Emilie Grasset, PhD – Immunology
Geetha Rao, PhD – Medical Technology Innovation
Halima Moncrieffe, PhD – Autoimmunity, Knowledge Sharing, Pharmacogenomics
Happy D. Thakkar, MD – Cardiology, Care Coordination, Health IT
Jasmin Saric, PhD – Digital Strategy and Transformation
Jeffrey L. Blackman, MBA – Corporate Innovation, Entrepreneurship
Jill J. Williams, PhD – Bioengineering, Nutrition Science, Nutritional and Metabolic Biology
Joshua Brown, PharmD, PhD – Health Economics and Outcomes Research
Kaitlin E. Sundling, MD, PhD – Pathology, Quantitative Biology
Karen Palmer, MS, MPH – Healthcare Delivery and Funding, Health Policy
Kim Kristiansen, MD – Entrepreneurship, Research
Lisa Sundahl Platt, MS – Health Systems Science and Engineering
Nicole Stone, PhD Candidate – Cardiac Reprogramming, Epigenomics
Paul Lindberg, JD – Healthy Communities
Pooja Prabhakar – Global Health
Qiming Duan, MD, PhD – Epigenetics, Medicine
Ramsey Najm, PhD Candidate – Neurodegenerative Disease, Regenerative Medicine
Ritesh Bhattacharjee, MPH – Dentistry, Oral Oncology, Public Health
Rukmani Sridharan, MSc – Immune Response, Regenerative Medicine, Stem Cells
Sandor Bekasi, MD, MSc – Mobile Health, Primary Care
Shirley Yan – Public Health
Sneha R. Aidasani, MS – Global and Public Health, Maternal and Child Nutrition, Reproductive Health
Srdjan Saso, PhD – Fertility Preservation and Restoration, Oncofertility, Ultrasounds
Sudah Yehuda Shaheb, MD – Endocrinology, Medical Anthropology
Sumudu Perera, MD candidate – Global and Public Health, Health Innovation and Technology
Tabitha Moses, MS – Bioethics, Medicine, Neuroscience, Public Health
Tej Azad, BA – Bioinformatics, Digital Health
Teresa Wilson – Alternative Medicine, Biotechnology, Healthcare, Marketing
Tony Manuel, MD, MMM – Frontline Healthcare Delivery
We’ll soon be sharing the event theme for TEDMED 2017 and the various topics that will make up the Stage Program—so stay tuned! And, if you’ve been thinking about joining us in Palm Springs this November 1-3, there is no better time to register. Click here to join us.