Progress, Potential, and Possibilities Podcast / Show

Send us a textDr. Noel Gahamanyi, Ph.D. ( https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=HWW6M_wAAAAJ&hl=en ) is Division Manager, National Reference Laboratory at the Rwanda Biomedical Centre (RBC).Rwanda Biomedical Centre ( RBC - https://rbc.gov.rw/ ) is the nation's central health implementation agency which strives to improve the health of the Rwandan population by providing high quality, affordable and sustainable health care services, accomplished through the implementation of preventative, rehabilitative, and curative health interventions. RBC conducts scientific research, provides diagnostics services, and implements innovative health interventions to protect the nation against diseases and other health threats.Dr. Gahamanyi is a Microbiologist with interest in Bacterial pathogens and their drug-resistance potentials and has served as a Lecturer of Microbiology in the School of Medicine and Pharmacy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Rwanda.Dr. Gahamanyi received his Ph.D. from Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania. Dr. Gahamanyi also holds a MSc in Microbiology from Jain University (India) and BSc in Biotechnology from the former National University of Rwanda. Before embarking on Ph.D. journey, Dr. Gahamanyi served as a Lecturer of Microbiology-related courses at Catholic University of Rwanda where he also served as Head of Biology Department and then as the Vice-dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology. In Research, Dr. Gahamanyi has nine published papers and one book chapter all related to Microbiology. Five of these are indexed in PubMed. He also served as a reviewer for six international journals. Dr. Gahamanyi is a member of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) and the Young East African Health Research Scientists (YEARS) forum affiliated to the East African Health Research Commission. Dr. Gahamanyi received a number of awards including the Best Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) Postgraduate student Research Award for the academic year 2020-21 and the First-class with gold medal after completing MSc in Microbiology at top of the class (2013).Important Episode Link - Students Against Superbugs (SAS) Africa - https://www.studentsagainstsuperbugs.org/ #NoelGahamanyi #Microbiology #RwandaBiomedicalCentre #NationalReferenceLaboratory #AntimicrobialResistance #AMR #AntimicrobialStewardship #Campylobacter #Marburg #ZoonoticSpillover #Ethnobotany #Ethnopharmacology #Phytochemistry #NaturalProducts   #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Mahmoud Alyamany, MD is Health And Wellbeing Sector Head, at NEOM ( https://www.neom.com/en-us/our-business/sectors/health-wellbeing-and-biotech ), where he is responsible for overseeing a revolution in healthcare delivery at Saudi Arabia’s accelerator of human progress and hub for innovation.Dr. Alyamany brings a vast understanding of health and wellbeing issues facing the wider population being on many of the Boards driving the healthcare transformation in the Kingdom including:  Co-Chairman of the Founding Board of Directors, Western Healthcare Clusters Board, Member of the Founding Board of Directors Northern Healthcare Clusters Board, Member of the Board of Advisors King Khalid Eye Specialist Hospital, and Healthcare Transformation Advisor to the Minister of Health. Previous roles for Dr. Alyamany have also included chairing the Board for Madinah Health Cluster and CEO of Riyadh 2nd Health Cluster and King Fahad Medical City.  This vast experience, combined with his medical background in practice, gives him a unique understanding of the population health management and impacts of operational and clinical practice to drive sustainable solutions delivering improvements in patient outcomes.Dr. Alyamany gained master’s degrees in health administration, and health management from Washington University, bachelor’s degrees in medicine, and surgery from King Saud University’s college of medicine in Riyadh.Dr. Alyamany also did Fellowships in Cerebrovascular Surgery and Neuro-Oncology & Skull-Base Surgery, University of Toronto, and a Fellowship, Pediatric Neurosurgery, Western University.Dr. Alyamany has also served as director of the National Neuroscience Institute, chairman of the board of directors of the Scientific Committee for Neurosurgery, medical director of neurology and head of the department of neurosurgery, both at King Fahd Medical City, and as a consultant of neurosurgery at the Riyadh Medical Complex. #Neom #SaudiArabia #DigitalTwins #AI #DigitalHealth #SmartCities #Genetics #Epigenetics #Neuroscience #HealthyAging  #CerebrovascularSurgery #NeuroOncology #PediatricNeurosurgery #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textOn April 11, 2025, Gravitas Ventures ( https://gravitasventures.com/ ) will be releasing the movie Relative Control ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBq2dOcgUKA ), a family drama that follows the life a middle-age corporate attorney (played by Teri Polo of the Meet the Parents) whose life literally spirals out of control as she juggles the demands of her career, her family, and most importantly the care of her aging parents, which includes a very headstrong and accident-prone father. Relative Control is a wonderful film that gets into a range of themes, including the complex world of unpaid caregiving, the principal of the “sandwich generation” (a term for adults who care for both their aging parents and their children, as well as provide financial support for them and embark on a career), as well as themes of intergenerationality, dementia care, and end-of-life/palliative care, among others. On this episode of Progress, Potential and Possibilities, we have the honor of being joined by both the Writer, Charlene Davis, and Director, Dafna Yachin, of Relative Control to talk about all these topics.#RelativeControl #CharleneDavis #DafnaYachin #TeriPolo #PatrickMcDade #GravitasVentures #UnpaidCaregiving #SandwichGeneration #Aging #Intergenerationality #DementiaCare #EndOfLifeCare #PalliativeCare #AARP #MelindaGates  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #PodcastSupport the show

Send us a textBrig. Gen. Tanya S. McGonegal ( https://www.jtfcs.northcom.mil/About/Leadership/Bio-Article-View/Article/1199880/brigadier-general-tanya-s-mcgonegal/ ) currently serves as the Commander of Joint Task Force Civil Support, the Nation’s only standing, no-notice Joint Task Force that conducts Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Response and All-Hazards Defense Support of Civil Authorities operations.Brig. Gen. McGonegal most recently served as the Division Chief for Strategy and Policy in the Joint Manpower and Personnel directorate for the National Guard Bureau. The Strategy and Policy division provides personnel accountability of National Guard Service members during Domestic Operations. The division develops and coordinates Congressional, OSD, CNGB, JS-J1 and NGB-J1 products on National Guard manpower and personnel readiness concerns.Brig. Gen. McGonegal enlisted in the Virginia Army National Guard in September 1997. Upon completion of Basic Training, she attended the Virginia State Officer Candidate school in Ft Pickett, VA. She was one of 15 to graduate out of 54 candidates and was the only female to graduate with her class in June 1999. She was branched Military Police and assigned to the 229th Military Police Company, which she later commanded from September 2004 to August 2006. While serving with the 229th Military Police Company, she deployed in support of Operation Noble Eagle in 2001, Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, and put on State Activation in support of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. During this time, she spent four years working as a county police officer but was deployed two years of that time. Her time as a police officer enhanced her career in the military but due to the deployments, she transitioned to serve in military full time. In April 2005, she was hired by the Army National Guard Bureau’s Comptroller directorate as a Budget Officer.In 2012, Brig. Gen. McGonegal transitioned from the Virginia Army National Guard to the West Virginia Army National Guard to command the 151st Military Police Battalion. After battalion command, she served in a joint assignment with the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Policy, Homeland Defense and Global Security from 2014 to 2018. From August 2019 to July 2021, she served as Brigade Commander to the 77th Brigade Troop Command in the West Virginia Army National Guard. In recognition of her strengths in relationship building, communication, multi-tasking, and organizational leadership, Brig. Gen. McGonegal was selected by senior leaders six times to serve as their Executive Officer.Brig. Gen. McGonegal earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, a Master’s of Science Degree in Business Administration from Central Michigan University, and a Masters from the The United States Army War College in Military Strategic Studies, American Government and Politics (United States). She is also a graduate of the Military Police Officer Basic Course, Military Police Advanced Officer Course, Combined Arms Exercise Course, Intermediate Level Education/Advanced Operations Officer Course resident Command General Staff College, and Joint and Combined Warfighting School – JPME II.#TanyaMcGonegal #JointTaskForceCivilSupport #NationalGuardBureau #CBRN #NorthernCommand #Northcom #DepartmentOfDefense #JointBaseLangleyEustis #VibrantResponse #Chemical #Biological #Radiological #Nuclear #Response #AllHazards #Hurricane #Wildfire #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Craig Katz, MD ( https://profiles.mountsinai.org/craig-l-katz ) is Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Medical Education, and System Design and Global Health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and the founder and director of Mount Sinai’s Program in Global Mental Health ( https://icahn.mssm.edu/education/medical/global-health-education/global-mental-health ), an interest that grew out of his experience in organizing and providing psychiatric services to disaster-affected communities since 1998 through an organization he co-founded and led: Disaster Psychiatry Outreach.As part of Disaster Psychiatry Outreach, Dr. Katz has organized the psychiatric response to 9/11 in New York City, including founding and directing the World Trade Center Mental Health Screening and Treatment Program for 9/11 responders for a number of years. Dr. Katz is also currently the special advisor to the Center for Stress, Resilience, and Personal Growth ( https://icahn.mssm.edu/research/center-stress-resilience-personal-growth ), Mount Sinai’s system-wide program for addressing healthcare workers' mental health issues arising from COVID-19. Dr. Katz’s honors include the Medical Society of the State of New York’s 2022 David B. L. Meza, III, M.D. Award for Excellence in Emergency Preparedness and Disaster/Terrorism Response. Dr. Katz has written and co-edited a number of books and papers in the fields of disaster psychiatry, human rights, medical education, and global psychiatry, including A Guide to Global Mental Health Practice: Seeing the Unseen (Routledge) and his most recent, Unseen: Field Notes of a Global Psychiatrist ( https://www.amazon.com/Unseen-Field-Notes-Global-Psychiatrist/dp/9815129422 ).After attending Harvard College, Dr. Katz received his medical degree at Columbia University, where he completed his psychiatric residency training and served as chief resident in psychiatry. He subsequently completed a fellowship in forensic psychiatry at NYU. Dr. Katz also has a private practice in general and forensic psychiatry in Manhattan and is a former President of the New York County District Branch of the American Psychiatric Association as well as a Distinguished Fellow of the APA. He is currently the Vice Chair of the Medical Society of New York’s Committee on Emergency Preparedness and also serves as the National Trauma Consultant to Advanced Recovery Systems and the International Association of Firefighters Center of Behavioral Excellence.#CraigKatz #Psychiatry #GlobalHealth #IcahnSchoolOfMedicine #MountSinai #MentalHealth #Stress #Resilience #Trauma #Disasters #Psychodynamics #Telepsychiatry #TeleMentalHealth #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Alessandra Maleddu, MD ( https://www.uchealth.org/provider/alessandra-maleddu-md/ ) is a Medical Oncologist specializing in the care of patients with soft tissue and bone sarcomas at the University of Colorado Cancer Center.Dr. Maleddu treats patients with soft tissue and bone sarcomas, and she has a special interest in desmoid tumors (aka desmoid fibromatosis), as well as leiomyosarcoma and treatment delivery in the elderly population.Dr. Maleddu completed her training in Italy and the UK. She did her Sarcoma Fellowship at the University College London Hospital in 2020, her general oncology training at the University of Bologna and her MD from the University of Cagliari in Italy.Important Episode Link - https://www.desmoidtumors.com/#AlessandraMaleddu #MedicalOncologist #UniversityOfColorado #Sarcoma #DesmoidTumors #Oncology #Cancer #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #Podcasting #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Science #Technology #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Chari A. Cohen, DrPH, MPH ( https://blumberginstitute.org/faculty/chari-a-cohen/ ) is the President of the Hepatitis B Foundation ( https://www.hepb.org/ ), a global nonprofit dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for people affected by hepatitis B worldwide.Dr. Cohen conducts research and implements programs to reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes associated with hepatitis B, as well as hepatitis D, and liver cancer. Dr. Cohen is also co-chair of the Hep B United Coalition, co-founder and chair of Hep B United Philadelphia, co-founder and chair of CHIPO: Coalition Against Hepatitis for People of African Origin; and immediate past co-chair of the Hep Free PA Coalition. Dr. Cohen is also a member of the International Coalition to Eliminate of HBV (ICE-HBV) steering committee, HepVu advisory committee (an online platform that visualizes data and disseminates insights on the viral hepatitis epidemic across the U.S), and HBV Forum for Collaborative Research. Dr. Cohen serves as both a Professor at the Baruch S. Blumberg Institute, and adjunct faculty for Geisinger Commonwealth School of Medicine. Dr. Cohen received her DrPH in Community Health and Prevention from Drexel University and her MPH from Temple University.The Baruch S. Blumberg Institute ( https://blumberginstitute.org/ ) is a nonprofit translational research organization focused on understanding the pathobiology of hepatitis B virus and related diseases, developing diagnostics for early detection of liver cancer, and discovering therapeutics, antivirals and immune modulators for the cure of chronic HBV and other RNA viruses that cause hepatitis and hemorrhagic fever.#ChariCohen #HepatitisBFoundation #HepBVaccine #BaruchSBlumberg #LiverCancer #Cirrhosis #AntiVirals #HarmReduction  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Gregg Sylvester, MD is Chief Health Officer and Vice President, Medical Affairs, at CSL Seqirus ( https://www.cslseqirus.us/our-company/leadership/gregg-sylvester ), one of the world’s largest influenza vaccine companies.Dr. Sylvester has led CSL Seqirus Medical Affairs since 2016, overseeing the global team that scientifically differentiates company’s vaccines by generating Real World Evidence and presenting CSL Seqirus research to national vaccine recommending organizations.  Dr. Sylvester has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry, government and patient care. Prior to joining CSL Seqirus, Dr. Sylvester led Medical Affairs teams at Pfizer and Merck involved in the worldwide launches of vaccines including Gardasil (Human Papillomavirus Vaccine), Prevnar 13 (Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine) and Trumenba (Meningococcal Group B Vaccine).  Dr. Sylvester obtained specialty boards in Pediatrics and General Preventive Medicine.  Augmenting his clinical expertise, he served in the CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service and as a Public Policy Fellow in the U.S. Congress. During his distinguished career in state government, Dr. Sylvester was appointed to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services in Delaware, leading the state’s largest agency. Dr. Sylvester has a MD from Albany Medical College and an MPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.#GreggSylvester #CSLSeqirus #Influenza #Vaccine #FluShot   #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textDr. Sean Gibbons, Ph.D. is Associate Professor at the Institute for Systems Biology ( ISB - https://isbscience.org/people/sean-gibbons-phd/?tab=biography ) where his lab investigates how the structure and composition of evolving ecological networks of microorganisms change across environmental gradients, with a specific focus on how ecological communities in the gut change and adapt to individual people over their lifespans (i.e. host genotype, host development and host behavior) and how these changes impact human health ( https://gibbons.isbscience.org/ ). His lab develops computational and experimental tools for investigating host-associated microbial communities to explore the interactions between ecology, evolution and ecosystem function, applying these insights to develop personalized interventions for improving human health and well-being.Dr. Gibbons received his PhD in biophysical sciences from the University of Chicago in 2015, dual-advised by Jack Gilbert and Maureen Coleman. His graduate work focused on using microbial communities as empirical models for testing ecological theory. Dr. Gibbons completed his postdoctoral training in Eric Alm’s laboratory in the Department of Biological Engineering at MIT from 2015-2018. His postdoctoral work focused on developing techniques to quantify individual-specific eco-evolutionary dynamics within the human gut microbiome.Dr. Gibbons was awarded a Fulbright Graduate Fellowship to study microbiology and synthetic biology at Uppsala University in Sweden, where he earned a master’s degree in 2010. His PhD work was supported by an EPA STAR Graduate Fellowship. Upon joining the ISB faculty in 2018, his startup package was supported, in part, by a Washington Research Foundation Distinguished Investigator Award.Important Episode Link - Metagenomic estimation of dietary intake from human stool - Nature Metabolism - https://www.nature.com/articles/s42255-025-01220-1#SeanGibbons #InstituteForSystemsBiology #ISB #Microbiome #Microbes #Ecology #Medicine #Dysbioses #EcologicalTherapeutics #Virome #PrecisionNutrition #GutDigitalTwin #FecalMicrobiotaTransplantation #Longevity #Aging #Healthspan  #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show

Send us a textProf. Dr. Niels Riedemann, MD, Ph.D. is Chief Executive Officer and Founder of InflaRx ( https://www.inflarx.de/Home/About-Inflarx/Team~Niels-C.-Riedemann~.html ), a biopharmaceutical company focused on applying its proprietary anti-C5a and C5aR inhibitors to the treatment of life-threatening or debilitating inflammatory diseases with high unmet medical need. Prof. Dr. Riedemann has over 15 years of experience in the biotech industry and drug development, as well as over 20 years of experience in complement immunology research. He founded InflaRx in 2007 and has served as Chief Executive Officer since inception of the company. He has been instrumental in and led numerous private and public financing rounds of the company and has been the responsible lead for its Nasdaq IPO in 2017. He is named inventor on several internationally granted core patents of InflaRx. As physician, Prof. Dr. Riedemann was appointed Vice Director (“Leitender Oberarzt”) of Intensive Care Medicine, and led a 50-bed University ICU unit for over 6 years at Friedrich Schiller University, Jena, Germany until 2015. Before that, he received his board certification as General Surgeon upon completion of his surgical fellowship at MHH (Hannover Medical School, Germany) in 2007 where he also received his habilitation (equivalent to Ph.D.) and where he still holds an Adjunct Professorship (APL Professor). He spent three years as postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan, USA until 2003. He received his medical training at Albert Ludwig University (ALU), Freiburg, Germany, and Stanford University, USA and graduated as Dr. med. (equivalent to M.D.) from ALU in 1998. Prof. Dr. Riedemann’s research has been awarded with several national and international awards. He has received extensive extra-mural funding and published over 60 peer reviewed scientific publications in highly ranked journals. He has served as a member on a Board of Directors and a Scientific Advisory Board of two large scientific governmental funded programs. He currently serves as Co-Chair of the Health Politics working group of Bio-Deutschland and he serves as member of the board of trustees for the German Sepsis Foundation.#NielsRiedemann #InflaRx #Inflammation #ComplementComponent5a  #Sepsis #AcuteRespiratoryDistressSyndrome #Covid #ARDS #GOHIBIC #Vilobelimab #PyodermaGangrenosum #ChronicSpontaneousUrticaria #HidradenitisSuppurativa #Preparedness #BARDA #ProgressPotentialAndPossibilities #IraPastor #Podcast #Podcaster #ViralPodcast #STEM #Innovation #Technology #Science #ResearchSupport the show