Stream by AlphaSense has an expansive expert call library that offers a range of industry perspectives. For followers of the healthcare industry, Stream has prepared a June 2023 recap of expert call transcripts that provide deeper insights on market movers, trending healthcare topics, and upcoming events. Keep reading to find expert insights on: artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, challenges facing Nevro, healthcare company deep dives, surgical robotics and more!
You’ll find a preview of these expert call transcripts below, but you can gain full access with a free trial of AlphaSense.
Top-Rated Stream by AlphaSense Expert Transcripts
A selection of Stream expert call transcripts that are particularly insightful, thought-provoking or unique.
Top-Rated Expert Transcripts in Life Science Tools
- Illumina: Customer Hopes to See Stronger Competition Emerge in Next-Generation Sequencing but Thinks New Competitors Face Challenges Against ILMN – Senior Director at Celsius Therapeutics
- Nanostring: Former Director is Bullish on the Growth of Spatial Genomics but Sees Cannibalization Risks, Adoption Lags and Growth Constraints – Former Director at NanoString Technologies Inc.
Top-Rated Expert Transcripts in MedTech
- TransMedics: Transplant Coordinator Is Bullish on TMDX’s OCS but Also Sees Challenges That Will Slow Adoption – Organ Transplant Coordinator at Clinical Consulting Associates
Top-Rated Expert Transcripts in Biotech/Pharma
- Harmony Biosciences: Former Territory Manager Is Pessimistic About the Prospects of HRMY’s Wakix and Believes the Market Is Saturated – Former Territory Manager at Harmony Biosciences Holdings Inc.
Top-Rated Expert Transcripts in Healthcare Delivery
- Acadia Healthcare: Competitor Sees Labor Costs Continuing to Pressure Behavioral Health Facility Margins but Thinks Demand Is Very Strong – Chief Financial Officer at McLean Hospital
Top-Rated Expert Transcripts in Managed Care
- Humana: Former Competitor Expects Increased Migration to VBC Arrangements That Should Improve Financial Visibility for Health Plans – Former Regional Director at Elevance Health Inc.
Trending Healthcare Topics
Stream expert call transcripts that provide context to important industry topics.
AI in Healthcare
Transcripts covering AI topics remain some of the most popular in the Stream library. Here’s a handful of recent Stream interviews offering deep insights on AI in healthcare:
- Competitor Is Bullish on SDGR’s Ability to Integrate AI and ML Into Its Solutions – Senior Director at Envisagenics
- Supplier Believes AI Will Transform Coding Accuracy and Claim Adjudication for Healthcare Insurance Companies – Director at Innovaccer
- Industry Expert Believes Significant Efficiencies Afforded By The Use Of AI In Drug Discovery Will Be Evident Within ~2 Years – Senior Scientist at Atomwise
- Industry Expert Is Not Impressed With the Current State of AI in Drug Discovery – Independent consultant and practicing research scientist
- Former Sr. Director Believes GSK Should Build Out Its AI/ML Capabilities More Through Partnerships and Acquisitions – Former Senior Director at GlaxoSmithKline PLC
No Relief for Nevro
A year ago, we published a post in the Stream blog about factors experts believed had contributed to sluggish sales of Nevro Corp.’s spinal cord stimulation (SCS) system for chronic pain. In the time since, Nevro has continued to struggle, with its stock hitting a five-year low after management lowered Q2 revenue guidance earlier this month.
So what gives? Stream’s expert transcript library indicates the challenges faced by Nevro a year ago are still largely in play and go beyond management’s explanation of pandemic-related disruptions. Specifically, experts at Stream think Nevro remains challenged by a lack of differentiation vs. large diversified SCS players, payer resistance, high staff turnover and difficulty accessing patients with painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN), which is Nevro’s stated growth market.
“When Nevro’s [device] came out, they stood out… [Now] it’s tough to quantify differences between [SCS] manufacturers. They certainly are there, but [they’re] maybe becoming less apparent.” – Neurosurgeon at Semmes Murphey Clinic
“The only thing that was consistent [at Nevro] was the fact that things were changing on a daily basis. During that time period, I had five different managers, three different regional business directors. The direction of the sales force was sporadic and out of control.” – Former District Manager at Nevro Corp.
“I had really good results [with SCS for PDN], but patient selection is a challenge…[Insurance companies are critical of SCS because] there’s a fairly high failure rate, and it’s very expensive.” – Interventional pain physician at Paradigm Health
In addition, Stream experts believe new pressures have emerged from recent market entrants, such as Saluda Medical and BIOTRONIK, and that these pressures are unlikely to subside anytime soon.
“The [SCS] space is going to be the most competitive it’s ever been in the next few years. Saluda, there’s a lot of physicians who have been waiting for this product… They’re certainly going to impact Nevro. They’re going to impact everyone [in] some capacity.“ – Former Regional Director at Stimwave
Weight Loss Drugs a Boon to Aesthetics Companies?
According to this Stream interview with a plastic surgeon, an under-appreciated aspect of weight loss drugs such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy is their potential benefit to Inmode, Cutera, Bausch Health and other makers of minimally-invasive skin tightening devices.
“It’s really going to be an exciting time since so many people are going to be… accessing [weight loss] medicines. That’s going to leave them with excess skin or residual fat or… all of a sudden, they’re going to be a lot more conscious about how they look. Those medicines [are] really great news for companies that are into body contouring and skin tightening.” – Plastic Surgeon-in-Chief at University Medical Center and Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Hospital
Company Deep Dives
Stream’s expert transcript library is an excellent source for detailed insights into company-specific issues such as corporate leadership, culture and strategic direction. Here’s a taste:
- Former Executive Director Believes BMY’s CEO Transition Was Long Overdue – Former Executive Director at Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.
- Former Sr. Manager Thinks the Spinoff Presents Both Opportunities and Risks for GEHC – Former Senior Manager at GE Healthcare Technologies Inc.
- Former VP Believes TAK Needs Significantly More Centralization and the C-Suite and Global Executives Have No Real Power – Former Vice President at Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.
- Former Unit CEO Is Optimistic Management Change Will Drive More Consistent Results for PHG – Former Unit CEO, Executive Vice President and Member of the Executive Committee at Royal Philips NV
- Former VP Is Bullish on WAT With Tailwinds From Renewed Focus on Innovation and Technology – Former Vice President at Waters Corporation
Surgical Robots
- Medtronic PLC recently hired Amazon.com Inc.’s former vice president and general manager of consumer robotics to drive adoption of Medtronic technology platforms, including the Hugo surgical robot. According to this Stream interview with a former Medtronic employee who was part of the company’s surgical robotics group, Hugo faces major hurdles and will likely have difficulty taking meaningful share from market leader Intuitive Surgical Inc. (This sentiment is in line with Stream’s April Healthcare Recap.)
“[Medtronic has] operated way too slowly. There’s just too much red tape internally… By the time the Hugo robot actually is commercially available in the U.S., the Intuitive Surgical robot will be on its fourth or fifth iteration and be so far advanced… On the surface, nobody’s going to choose the Medtronic Hugo robot over the Intuitive surgical robot.” – Former Commercial Manager at Medtronic PLC
- Siemens Healthineers AG recently announced plans to narrow the focus of its Corindus surgical robot after purchasing Corindus just a few years ago for $1.1 billion. In this Stream interview, a former Siemens Healthineers vice president discusses the issues that led to the decision as well as the outlook for Corindus.
“I am not surprised by the news, but it’s obviously very disheartening. It’s going to result in a significant loss. It’s not just the financial [loss], it’s the marketing, messaging, and the impact it’s going to have on relationships with these physicians who [were] sold the promise of Corindus… It’s very discouraging.” – Former Vice President with Siemens Healthineers AG
- Here’s a bonus interview with an interventional pulmonologist on the emerging use of robotics in bronchoscopy. As a user of bronchoscopy systems from both Intuitive Surgical and Johnson & Johnson, this expert brings a unique perspective to the topic.
Coming Up in Healthcare
FDA Approval Decision: Verrica Pharmaceuticals
On July 23, the FDA will decide whether to approve Verrica Pharmaceuticals’ VP-102 for the treatment of molluscum contagiosum, a viral skin infection. In this Stream interview, a former Verrica regional director is optimistic about VP-102’s market opportunity, and in this interview, a former Verrica director gives the company high marks for its VP-102 market access strategy.
Drug Launch: Krystal Biotech
After receiving FDA approval last month, Krystal Biotech is planning a Q3 launch for its topical gene therapy, Vyjuvek, to treat dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), a rare disorder that causes the skin to be fragile and blister easily. In this Stream interview, as well as this one and this one, dermatologists share positive opinions about Vyjuvek and describe how they expect to use it in clinical practice. Here’s another interview to boot.
Stream’s American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Conference Coverage
Over the next several weeks, Stream will publish interviews capturing reactions from oncologists to major study results presented earlier this month at the 2023 ASCO Annual Meeting. We’ll follow it up with a summary of experts’ key takeaways. Notably, interviews are being conducted with practicing physicians who did not participate in any of the ASCO studies, so these discussions will provide a great read on how study results are likely to translate into real-world application. Check out our oncology conference coverage from last year for a head start on reading: European Society for Medical Oncology 2022 and American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons 2022.
Stream by AlphaSense
Stream by AlphaSense is a searchable database of investor-led expert interviews based on one-on-one calls with former executives, customers, competitors, and channel participants across a breadth of industries. With our proprietary AI search technology, we help the leading financial institutions and corporations get up to speed about a company or topic in seconds.
Past Stream Healthcare Recap Issues:
Contributor
Alyees Qureshi, Content Marketing Specialist and Healthcare Lead
Vice President and Sector Head, Healthcare at Stream by AlphaSense
Sara has more than 16 years of experience generating sell-side research content across a variety of industries, including healthcare, which is her focus at Stream by AlphaSense. Sara has a passion for developing content that helps clients pursue their ideas and sparks new ways of thinking.
Read all posts written by Sara Mallatt Stahl
