Team
Meet the
People Behind Novocardia™
We’re on a mission to transform cardiovascular disease care in this country — how it’s delivered and how patients experience it.
We’ve built a team of people with proven track records and the passion to make real change. And we have decades of experience as clinicians and leaders — at health plans, provider organizations, and in federal and state government.
Meet Our Team
Dan Blumenthal, MD, MBA
Co-Founder &
Chief Executive Officer
Chief Executive Officer
Dr. Dan Blumenthal brings a unique combination of business leadership skills and medical expertise to his role as Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Blumenthal is a practicing board-certified non-invasive cardiologist and an instructor at Harvard Medical School. He received his MD and MBA degrees from Harvard Medical School and Harvard Business School and trained in internal medicine and cardiology at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Blumenthal is a past recipient of the American Heart Association’s Laennec Young Clinician Award and an accomplished health services and cardiovascular disease outcomes researcher whose previous work has focused on innovations in payment model design, quality improvement in cardiology, and leadership development. He has published over 50 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Blumenthal previously was a member of the founding team at Devoted Health, where he held the roles of Associate Chief Medical Officer and Medical Director for the health plan.
Julius Torelli, MD, FACC
Co-Founder &
Chief Medical Officer
Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Julius Torelli ensures patients receive the highest quality care available through innovative clinical programs transforming the practice of cardiology. Certified in both internal medicine and cardiovascular disease, Dr. Torelli spent over 20 years practicing cardiology in the Piedmont area of North Carolina. He also founded the Integrative Cardiology Center in High Point, NC, and served as Chief of Cardiovascular Services at eviCore healthcare, a division of Cigna Inc. He completed his MD at the University of South Florida College of Medicine and his internal medicine residency and fellowship in cardiovascular disease at the Cleveland Clinic.
Geoff Wade
Chief Development Officer
Geoff is a senior business executive with over 20 years of experience working with physicians and health care companies to build successful partnerships, including mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, de novo development, and strategic affiliations. His previous roles include Chief Development Officer at Pinnacle Treatment Centers and Reliant Renal Care, as well as Vice President of Corporate Development at DaVita Healthcare Partners and Fresenius Medical Care. Earlier in his career, he played a key role in the development of two integrated delivery systems in the Boston market. Geoff is passionate about expanding access to care and helping physicians have a voice in transforming health care delivery. He received his undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College.
Christopher Richardson
General Counsel,
Chief Compliance Officer &
Head of Human Resources
Chief Compliance Officer &
Head of Human Resources
Chris is responsible for Novocardia's legal, regulatory, and compliance activities. Chris also oversees the development, staffing, and management of Novocardia’s talent infrastructure. Prior to joining Novocardia, Chris served as a Senior Associate General Counsel at UnitedHealth Group where he provided strategic counseling and legal guidance on regulatory, compliance, transactional and operational matters to executive leadership and senior management across all lines of business. Chris has also worked in private practice, representing both publicly and privately held companies in a variety of matters across healthcare and other industries. He received his JD from Harvard Law School and his undergraduate degree from North Carolina A&T State University.
Jeff Dang, PhD, MPH, MBA
Chief Data Officer
Jeff leads Novocardia's strategy and execution for the company's data, analytics, and point-of-care solutions. He previously served as Vice President of Analytics at New Century Health, Senior Director of Statistics at FAIR Health, and Senior Statistician at the UCLA Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics. Jeff received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Irvine, an MPH from Columbia University, and a PhD and MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Katherine Evans, DNP, FNP-C, GNP-BC, ACHPN, FAANP
Chief Nursing Officer &
Senior Vice President, Clinical Services
Senior Vice President, Clinical Services
Dr. Katherine Evans oversees operations of Novocardia’s clinical programs, including implementing new initiatives, training and managing clinical personnel, and developing case management programs. Dr. Evans is a nurse practitioner with board certifications in geriatrics and hospice & palliative care, as well as experience in inpatient and outpatient cardiology. Prior to Novocardia, she served as national president of the Gerontological Advanced Practice Nurses Association (GAPNA); Chief Nursing Officer for UnitedHealthcare Retiree Solutions; and Director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Georgia State University. A Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, she received her MS in Nursing from Emory University and her DNP from Vanderbilt University.
Nick Satey, CPA, MBA
Acting Chief Financial Officer
Nick is a finance executive with over 20 years of leadership experience. Before joining Novocardia as CFO, he was President and Founder of a consulting firm focused on financial leadership within the health care space. Other previous leadership roles include Chief Financial Officer of Metrolina Nephrology and Global Head of Internal Audit for Polypore International (NYSE: PPO). He is a certified CPA, holding a BBA in Accounting from Georgia Southern University and an MBA from Duke University.
Brooks Pollard, MBA, MDiv
Senior Vice President, Operations & Value-Based Strategy
Brooks leads Novocardia’s operations and drives payer contracting and partnerships. He has a wealth of experience in the areas of value-based care, MSO management, and population health. He established value-based care programs at Cigna in the Commercial, Medicare Advantage, ACA, and Medicaid spaces. He’s also held roles with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Premier Healthcare Alliance, and Emory University. Brooks received his undergraduate degree in Biology from Morehouse College, a Master of Divinity from Emory University, and an MBA from Wake Forest University.
Aretha Delight Davis, MD, JD
Senior Vice President, Product & Strategy
Leading Novocardia’s product & strategy, Aretha brings significant operational experience in product development, strategic communications with multiple stakeholders across the health care continuum, and management of teams and finances. Her prior experience includes being Co-Founder & CEO of ACP Decisions, a non-profit that creates, studies and disseminates a serious illness quality improvement program. She also has legal experience as a Litigation Associate at Morgan Lewis and as a Fellow of the Philadelphia Bar Foundation. Aretha earned a medical degree from Harvard Medical School, attending residency at Mount Auburn Hospital for two years. In addition, she completed her JD at University of Pennsylvania Law School and her undergraduate degree at Harvard College.
Ben Diestel
Vice President, Corporate Development
Ben is Vice President, Corporate Development and a founding team member of Novocardia. He is responsible for leading corporate development initiatives, including M&A, de novo growth, and market expansion opportunities. Prior to Novocardia, Ben led business development activities at CareCentrix and was a Consultant at the Advisory Board Company. Ben holds received his undergraduate degree from the University of Maryland, where he ran varsity track and field, and holds an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Kathryn Hughes
Acting Chief Marketing Officer
Kathryn leads strategic marketing, communications, branding, referral development, and demand generation as Chief Marketing Officer. Kathryn is widely recognized for her expertise in health care marketing and driving patient volume, formerly serving as the Chief Marketing Officer of Prospira PainCare, Halifax Health, Virginia Hospital Center, and as Vice President of Marketing for HealthSouth and TLC Laser Eye Centers. She received her undergraduate degree in Communication from the University of Alabama.
Kiesha Mayes
Vice President, Human Resources
Kiesha Mayes is Novocardia’s Vice President of Human Resources. In her current role, Kiesha serves as a strategic partner and is responsible for leading Novocardia’s human capital agenda including talent acquisition, alignment, and succession planning; leadership development; employee learning and performance management; culture, diversity, equity, and inclusion; employee relations; compensation and benefits; and HR operations and technology. Kiesha formerly served as a strategic legal advisor to human capital and business leadership at UnitedHealth Group, with a focus on care delivery organizations. Prior to joining UnitedHealth Group, Kiesha was an attorney in private practice and served as Assistant Attorney General for the State of Minnesota.
Warren Jacobson, MHA
Vice President, Revenue Cycle
Warren is responsible for implementing new programs that ensure the best possible interaction of patients, providers and insurers for the financial aspect of Novocardia. Warren has a wealth of experience as a strategy and operations leader in all aspects of provider, health plans, and life sciences health care solutions. His prior experience includes Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Ready Responders; Vice President of Revenue Cycle at Greenbrook TMS; Senior Director, Patient Financial Services, at Inova Health System; Manager, Healthcare Division at Accenture Consulting; and Senior Consultant, Strategy and Operations, at Deloitte Consulting. He holds a Master of Healthcare Administration from Tulane University and an undergraduate degree in Economics from Emory University.
Roger Roper, MBA
Vice President, Practice Operations
Roger leads clinic operations for Novocardia practices to drive improvements in their quality, patient experience, value, performance, and market share, in addition to building our MSO practice operations. Roger is a highly experienced C-level executive with a breadth of experience in health care, beginning his career in clinical roles before progressing to more operational positions. He previously served as Executive Director of Cone Health Medical Group, where he led nine divisions within the integrated health care network; as Chief Administrative Officer for LeBauer HealthCare, a multidisciplinary physician group part of Cone Health; and as Chief Operating Officer at Pinehurst Medical Clinic. He received his MBA from East Carolina University, his MS in Nursing Administration and undergraduate degree in Nursing from Queens University of Charlotte; and an undergraduate degree in Exercise Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Opi Akuffo, MBA
Vice President, Finance
Opi is a key member of the Novocardia leadership team who helps drive internal operations, maximize performance, and achieve our company’s financial goals. As an accomplished finance leader with over 12 years of experience, his previous roles include Vice President of Finance for R1 RCM; Senior Director (Group CFO for Midwest Region) at Surgical Care Affiliates, a division of UnitedHealth Group; and a Senior Consultant at Ernst & Young (EY). He holds an MBA in General Management from Cornell University and an undergraduate degree in Electronic Engineering from DeVry University.
Brian Richards
Vice President, IT & Business Systems
Brian is a highly experienced IT leader who brings proficiency in design, development, and administration of technology infrastructure and applications to his role as Vice President, IT & Business Systems at Novocardia. He has held a number of leadership positions in IT across multiple industries, including health care. He most recently served as Director of IT Operations at Seniorlink, where he was responsible for providing strategic guidance on all corporate infrastructure, cloud, security, and service desk services. He earned an MBA from Whittemore School of Business & Economics (now the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics) at the University of New Hampshire and an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from Dickinson College.
Kristin Bergethon, MD, MBA
Director, Product & Strategy
Dr. Kristin Bergethon leads Novocardia's development of new service lines to improve quality, value and growth. Her prior experience includes working as a Healthcare Specialist at McKinsey & Co., where she focused on creating strategies for large multi-regional health systems to increase operational efficiency. She completed her training in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and continues clinical practice as a part-time hospitalist at Montefiore Medical Center. She received her MD-MBA from Duke University and an undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Williams College.
Janet O’Malley, MBA
Senior Director, Clinical Transformation
Janet is responsible for transforming practice clinical operations to provide sustainable growth and the success of practices in new and innovative contracting models. A health care leader for over 20 years, she is passionate about helping stakeholders navigate the intersections of care delivery and digital technology, improving clinical outcomes and patient experience. She was previously the Director of Clinical Programs in Population Health Management at Mass General Brigham and a Solutions Architect for Boston Scientific. Janet received her undergraduate degree in Mathematics from SUNY Binghamton, a Harvard Medical School Certificate in Safety, Quality, Informatics, and Leadership, and an MBA from Suffolk University.
Jesse VanGeison
Director, Healthcare
Practice Integration
Practice Integration
As Director of Healthcare Practice Integration, Jesse is responsible for the broad planning and delivery of successful integration experiences for new Novocardia practices, empowering clinicians to deliver high-quality, prevention-focused patient care. She is a dedicated manager with over 30 years of experience, including building and leading the integration division of United Urology Group and managing marketing, communications, and training functions at T. Rowe Price Retirement Plan Services, Discovery Communications, the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, and R.H. Macy & Company. She received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Washington College and is a Series 6 registered representative.
Keneyá Edwards
Director, Human Resources
John Guinee
Associate, Corporate Development
John is part of Novocardia's corporate development team and helps make strategic decisions for growth and organizational excellence. He has worked as an Analyst for Surgical Care Affiliates (an Optum/UnitedHealth Group company) and as a Private Equity Analyst for Constitution Capital Partners. John received his undergraduate degree in Philosophy from Thomas Aquinas College.
Ben Pearlmutter
Chief Of Staff, Operations
Ben brings expertise in strategic analytics, project management, and health care consulting to his role as Chief of Staff for Operations. Prior to Novocardia, he worked at Steward Health Care Network as a Senior Manager of Business Operations; Manager, National Care Coordination; and Senior Business Development Analyst. Ben holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from the University of Virginia.
Avinash Chugani, MBA
Chief of Staff
Avinash brings strategic vision, leadership, and a growth-and-innovation mindset to his role as Novocardia’s Chief of Staff. He will serve as a critical member of the executive team, reporting directly to the CEO. Avinash will support the executive team in executing the company’s strategic vision and business development opportunities. Prior to joining Novocardia, Avinash led the development and growth of eviCore’s new provider risk enablement solutions, focused on aligning longitudinal care to improve patient value. He has also held roles with Cigna’s Network Analytics and Consumer Health Engagement organizations. Avinash holds an MBA from the University of Connecticut and an undergraduate degree in Forensic Science from the University of New Haven.
Kayla Guadagni
Executive Assistant
Kayla is the Executive Assistant at Novocardia. She works closely with leadership to organize workstreams, plan meetings, and lay the core foundation for the company. She has served as an Executive Assistant at ABILITY Network, and Simmons University. She is also currently pursuing her undergraduate degree in business management from Boston University.
Yevgeniy Feyman
Data Analyst Consultant
Yevgeniy is a Data Analyst Consultant with years of experience applying statistical models to complex data sets in order to answer key questions in the health care space. He currently is a PhD candidate in Health Services Research at the Boston University School of Public Health. His research focuses on dynamics in the Medicare Advantage program, as well as outcomes for Veterans enrolled in the VA health care system.
Andy Tang, MPH
Senior Data Analyst
Andy serves as Senior Data Analyst for Novocardia, where he conducts analyses that help determine key markets and how we can improve quality, reduce total costs of care, and create value. Prior to Novocardia, Andy worked at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as a COVID-19 Data Analyst developing, managing and updating data visualizations for the city’s COVID-19 website. He also served as a Data Analyst in the Bureau of Equitable Health Systems at the Department. He received his undergraduate degree in Public Health from the University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology with a Certificate in Applied Biostatistics, from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health.
Londyn Rantala, MBA, CCS, CRCR
Coding & Compliance Manager
Londyn is responsible for managing Novocardia’s coding and compliance. She has over 20 years of experience in health care finance analysis and all areas of the revenue cycle management process, with special expertise in provider/facility coding education development, HCC risk coding and financial RBRVS analysis. Previously, she was a Supervisor at Advent Health Tampa’s Coding Division and a Physician Liaison at Orlando Health. Londyn received her undergraduate degree in Management and Leadership, as well as an MBA specializing in Hospital Management, from JFK University. She is also a Coding Specialist Alum from the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) and a Certified Revenue Cycle Representative from the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA).
Lenny Lima
Provider & Healthcare Recruiter
As Provider & Healthcare Recruiter, Lenny works closely with our partner practices to source and recruit physicians and advanced practice providers within the areas of clinical cardiology, interventional and vascular cardiology, electrophysiology cardiology, and diagnostic imaging. Lenny has been a recruiter in the health care space for over a decade, with previous recruiting roles at LifeStance Health, Executive Alliance, and Alpha Medical Group. Lenny has an MBA from Centenary University and an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Eastern Connecticut State University.
Ross Felix
Business Analyst
Ross brings his expertise in business solutions, innovation, and implementation to Novocardia as a Business Analyst. Ross is experienced in delivering transformative data-driven technology-based solutions to solve problems and redesign outdated processes to drive ROI. Prior to joining Novocardia, he served as Director of Business Solutions at Medversant Technologies and as Technology, Startup and Data Solutions Consultant at Fulcrum Solutions. Received an MBA, with a specialization in Entrepreneurship, from UCLA Anderson School of Management and an undergraduate degree from the University at Albany, SUNY.
Board of Directors
Dan Blumenthal, MD
Co-Founder &
Chief Executive Officer
Novocardia
Chief Executive Officer
Novocardia
Dr. Dan Blumenthal brings a unique combination of business leadership skills and medical expertise to his role as Chief Executive Officer. Dr. Blumenthal is a practicing board-certified non-invasive cardiologist and an instructor at Harvard Medical School. He received his MD and MBA degrees from Harvard Medical School and Harvard Business School and trained in internal medicine and cardiology at the Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Blumenthal is a past recipient of the American Heart Association’s Laennec Young Clinician Award and an accomplished health services and cardiovascular disease outcomes researcher whose previous work has focused on innovations in payment model design, quality improvement in cardiology, and leadership development. He has published over 50 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Blumenthal previously was a member of the founding team at Devoted Health, where he held the roles of Associate Chief Medical Officer and Medical Director for the health plan.
Julian Harris, MD
Partner
Deerfield
Deerfield
Steve Anastos
Principal
Deerfield
Deerfield
Dinesh Pubbi, MD, FACC, FHRS
Director Of Electrophysiology
First Coast Heart & Vascular Center
First Coast Heart & Vascular Center
Contact Us
345 Park Avenue South, 12th Floor
New York, NY 10010
New York, NY 10010
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