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Core Team
Core Team
Hamid Ghanbari, MD, MPH
Director of the Frankel Cardiovascular Center Innovation Program
Dr. Hamid Ghanbari's innovation work is focused on understanding the biological and psychological determinants of patient-reported outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation. He leverages mobile applications, wearable sensors, signal processing, and machine learning to explore the dynamic relationship between symptoms, affect, and functional status in patients with atrial fibrillation.
Dr. Ghanbari is a cardiovascular electrophysiologist at the the Frankel Cardiovascular Center where he treats patients with complex arrhythmias. When not working, Dr. Ghanbari enjoys spending time with his daughters, cooking, running, reading, and traveling. Before completing his Advanced Cardiovascular Electrophysiology Fellowship at the University of Michigan, Dr. Ghanbari was a fellow at Providence Hospital and Medical Centers and a student at Wayne State University, the University of Michigan School of Public Health, American University of the Caribbean, and McMaster University.
C. Alberto Figueroa, PhD
Associate Director of the Frankel CVC Innovation Program (Commercialization)
Dr. C. Alberto Figueroa is the Edward B. Diethrich Professor of Surgery and Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Figueroa joined U-M in 2014 and co-founded the start-up company, AngioInsight, Inc., in 2021. AngioInsight develops machine learning/AI tools for anatomical and functional assessment of coronary artery disease using angiography data.
His current academic work is focused on computational methods to model blood flow, algorithms to describe stress-mediated growth and dynamic flow regulation of blood vessels, computational methods for assessing the stability of thoracic and abdominal endografts, and hemodynamic performance of cardiovascular medical devices. He also is an instructor for the undergraduate course BME350, “Introduction to Biomedical Engineering Design”, and assists Vascular Surgery residents to secure different F32 fellowship applications which entail the deployment of innovative advanced imaging modalities such as tissue characterization based on T1/T2 mapping for carotid disease, dual-venc 4D MRI for assessment of low-velocity venous flows, etc. Dr. Figueroa is also a graduate of the Aikens Innovation Academy 2019 cohort.
Sarah Adie, PharmD, BCCP
Associate Director of the Frankel CVC Innovation Program (Quality Improvement)
Dr. Sarah Adie is a clinical cardiology pharmacy specialist for the U-M Cardiac Intensive Care Unit and adjunct clinical assistant professor at the U-M College of Pharmacy. Dr. Adie joined U-M in 2018, and her quality efforts have leveraged multidisciplinary collaborations and clinical decision-support tools to improve outcomes for patients with cardiovascular disease and cardiogenic shock.
Dr. Adie received her Bachelor of Arts from Saint Mary’s University and her PharmD from Creighton University. She completed her pharmacy residency at Cleveland Clinic and cardiology pharmacy residency at the University of Michigan.
Jon Servoss
Jon Servoss, EdD is the Director of FFMI’s Commercialization Education Program, where he leads a team of educational specialists to provide extensive training in biomedical technology commercialization for UMMS faculty, graduate students, and postdoctoral trainees. Before joining the FFMI team, Jon was the Director of Continuing Medical Education and Continuing Education Operations at the South East Area Health Education Center, part of the National AHEC Organization. While there, Jon developed, implemented, and evaluated Continuing Medical Education programs for physicians and other practicing healthcare professionals. Prior to that role, Jon was a special project manager in Graduate Medical Education at New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, NC, where he assisted with the management of four Resident Physician Training programs. Jon completed his undergraduate degree at Adrian College, his Master’s in Education at East Carolina University, and is currently pursuing a doctorate at the University of Michigan Dearborn.
Ashley Schork, MNM
FCVC Innovation Senior Program Manager
Ashley Schork, MNM, joined Fast Forward Medical Innovation and the Frankel Cardiovascular Center in 2022 and is responsible for managing all aspects of the FCVC Innovation Program, such as Aikens Innovation Academy, the FCVC Innovation Challenge, and the FCVC Innovation Webinar series.
Before this role, Ashley spent over six years working at the University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute (LSI) administratively managing several research centers in the areas of structural biology, cryo-electron microscopy, drug discovery, and high-throughput screening. Prior to the position at LSI, Ashley worked at Arbor Research Collaborative for Health providing administrative support to NIH and PCORI-funded nephrology studies. Ashley has both her B.A. and a Masters in Non-Profit Management from DePaul University.
Steph Steltzer
Innovation Fellow
Steph joins the FCVC Innovation team in 2025 as an Innovation Fellow, where she leverages her experience in assisting startups and venture capital by actively supporting the life science innovation ecosystem. She is committed to bridging bench research with clinical application and commercialization.
She earned her Bachelor’s degrees in Molecular Biology and Applied Math in Biological Systems from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 2018, and worked as a Research Associate at Tenaya Therapeutics in South San Francisco until 2021. She is currently pursuing a PhD in Physiology within the Orthopaedic Surgery department. Her research focuses on cell behavior in tendon and enthesis development in the context of regeneration potential using novel therapeutics, biomaterials, and in vitro 3D microphysiological systems.
Innovation Champions
Innovation Champions
Luciano Delbono
Dr. Luciano Delbono is a Vascular Surgery resident at University of Michigan. He received a B.S. from Wake Forest University in Biology with an interest in Chemistry. Prior to obtaining his M.D. from Wake Forest University, he played soccer professionally for North Carolina FC and GBK in Finland and went on to work in finance at Hanesbrands Inc., helping integrate and automate the financial systems of mergers and acquisitions. Luciano is interested in biomedical design, attending the Aikens Academy and FFMI, and excited to combine his vascular research interests with innovation.
Diane Drago
Diane Drago has served on the University of Michigan Cancer Center’s Patient and Family Advisory Board (PFAB) as a family member since it was created in 2011. Her husband was a patient at the Cancer Center for nearly four years during which he was cared for by a number of UMHS specialties, including cardiology. Diane also serves as a member of UMHS’ Department of Internal Medicine’s Quality Council. Professionally, Diane owns and manages Diversified Management Services, LLC, a conference and event planning firm, which has an extensive health care clientele.
Tammy Ellies
Tammy Ellies, MBA, PMP, is the Manager of the Clinical Experience and Quality team in the Department of Internal Medicine. In this role, she oversees quality improvement projects and facilitates quality improvement educational activities for the department. Tammy has over 23 years of healthcare process/quality improvement and project management experience, working for health plans Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and M-CARE prior to joining Internal Medicine. She has a B.S.E. in Industrial and Operations Engineering and an MBA from the University of Michigan, and certifications in Project Management (PMP) and Lean Healthcare.
Stephanie Spehar
Dr. Stephanie Spehar is an internal medicine resident at Michigan Medicine with an interest in cardiology. She received her B.A. in Organizational Studies at the University of Michigan with a focus in health management in policy. Prior to obtaining her M.D. at the University of Pittsburgh, she worked as a consultant at The Advisory Board Company where she advised hospital executives and cardiovascular service line leaders on strategic planning, program development, and clinic investment strategy in the value-based era. During residency she has participated in the Health Administration Scholars Program and has a special interest in quality improvement with a focus on social determinants of health. After finishing residency she will serve as a chief resident of the Internal Medicine program.
Liz Spranger
Liz Spranger is a Continuous Improvement Specialist Lead on the Clinical Experience and Quality team in the Department of Internal Medicine. In this role, she provides overall management of clinical quality and process improvement projects. She integrates teaching quality improvement methodologies when facilitating projects and she mentors faculty, trainees, and staff within the Department to develop improvement skills. Liz has 12 years of healthcare process and quality improvement with Michigan Medicine and another 18 years of procurement and project management experience with the University of Michigan and other corporations. She has a B.A. in Materials and Logistics Management; Major in Purchasing with concentrations in Operations Management, Physical Distribution Management, and Transportation Management from Michigan State University. She also has a certification in Lean Healthcare.
Jaye Starr
Jaye Starr is a Michigan Medicine chaplain resident serving the CVC ICUs who holds her M.Div. equivalency from Hartford Seminary and B.A. in Theatrical Design from Smith College. She is active nationally in the field of Islamic chaplaincy including having published Mantle of Mercy: Islamic Chaplaincy in North America (Templeton Press, 2022) and serving on the board of the Association of Muslim Chaplains. Outside of her chaplaincy work she enjoys facilitating Alternatives To Violence Project workshops inclusive of refugees and seeing the world through the eyes of her children, one of whom as Down syndrome.
Nikki Taylor
Nikki Taylor is the Clinical Nurse Specialist for 4c Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Unit and CVC 5 Cardiovascular Moderate Care Unit at the Frankel Cardiovascular Center. Nikki began her nursing career working as a dual unit cross trainer on 7c cardiac stepdown unit and 7d cardiac intensive care unit. She values her experience there because she worked with inspiring nurses and physicians who helped develop her into the nurse she is today. Nikki has worked on various projects/committees at UMHS such as implementation of electronic charting systems, central line bloodstream infections on 7d and transfer of accountability from ICU to stepdown. She is also active in the community by working through her church to help reduce health disparities.
Carali Van Otteren
Carali Van Otteren, MHSA, BSE, is the Business Process Consultant Lead for the Cardiovascular and Neurosciences subsegment of the Adult Hospitals. She has attained over a decade of experience in data analysis, continuous improvement, and project management throughout her time in this role and her prior role, Industrial Engineer in the Continuous Improvement division of the Quality department. Carali is responsible for creating and maintaining data reports and dashboards that support daily hospital operations and special projects. She has led improvement initiatives aimed at improving length of stay, readmission rates, procedural efficiencies and other institutional priorities. Carali’s operational experience includes activating incremental patient care locations in times of surging capacity, facilitating annual capital funding processes, and leading various efforts related to the launch of the D. Dan and Betty Kahn Health Care Pavilion. Carali obtained both her Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering and Master of Health Services Administration degrees from the University of Michigan.
Gardner Yost
Dr. Yost was born in New Jersey and raised in Chicago, IL. His undergrad studies at Cornell University were in Biology, Food Science, and Viticulture and Enology. After competing with the United States Under 23 Men’s National Rowing team, he proceeded to complete a Master's degree in Bioengineering at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he primarily studied left ventricular assist device function. He completed his medical degree and sub-track in medical innovation at the University of Illinois at Chicago. During his residency at the University of Michigan, he has continued to pursue his interest in surgical device innovation and has developed a novel sternal closure device with support from the Coulter Translational Partnership. During his academic development time, he pursued his interests in surgical device development as a Surgical Innovation Fellow.
Christopher Zimmerman, PharmD, ACHIP
Christopher Zimmerman, PharmD, ACHIP, is currently Coordinator for EHR Clinical Decision Support (CDS) with Health Information and Technology Services at Michigan Medicine. He has spent many years working on CDS and was on the original team implementing computerized provider order entry at Michigan Medicine. Chris has published and presented in this field and collaborated on many innovative cardiology-focused CDS projects with the departments of cardiology and cardiovascular medicine.
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