Monday, November 18, 12-1
American Heart Association Scientific Sessions
Health Innovation Pavilion
Philadelphia Convention Center

Mental health is a factor is development and management of chronic health conditions. Health technologies are being developed to address mental health and improve overall health. What role does technology play in this very personal issue?

This panel will be moderated by Dr. Lora Burke from the University of Pittsburgh. Lora will be joined by Dr. Evian Gordon from Total Brain, Dr. Chris Wasden from Happify, Dr. Veera Anantha from The Learning Corporation, and Dr. Mahima Muralidharan from Tiatros.

Lora E. Burke, PhD, MPH, FAHA, FAAN

Dr. Burke is a professor of nursing and epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh and has a secondary appointments in the Clinical Translation Science Institute. She was the founding Director of the Hub for Excellence in eHealth Research in the School of Nursing. She has a long-standing record of NIH funding to support her research program, which includes a series of clinical trials focused on behavioral strategies to improve adherence to treatment regimens targeting cardiovascular disease risk reduction and long-term weight loss. She incorporated the use of mobile technology to validate self-report measures and currently, her team is testing an algorithm for the delivery of personalized, real-time feedback in response to self-monitoring lifestyle behaviors in a NIH funded trial that aims to improve sustained engagement and long-term maintenance of behavior change. Her work has been recognized by The Obesity Society’s mHealth Interest Group’s Pioneer Award for Excellence in eHealth/mHealth Research.

Dr. Burke has been a longstanding AHA volunteer and earlier served as the Chair of the Council on Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health and the Council Operations Committee.

Evian Gordon, MD

Founder and Chairman Brain Resource Company and TotalBrain (2000). Founder of the largest standardized International Brain Database. Scientific Chairman and Founding Director, The Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Hospital. Director of BRAINnet.net. • Principal Investigator of the first study (iSPOT) to predict treatment response in Depression. Over 250 peer-reviewed scientific publications. H-Index of over 70. Recipient of the inaugural Royal Societies Eureka Prize for Interdisciplinary Scientific Research (2003). • Published the first book on Integrative Neuroscience, titled: “Integrative Neuroscience: Bringing together biological, psychological and clinical models of the human brain” (Harwood Academic Press: London, 2000). • Brain Database: Over 1 million Datasets from 6-100 years of age and in 10 Brain Disorders and over 40 leading US Corporates (including Boeing, AARP, Cerner). The diverse measures of the brain reflect: Cognition and Emotion; Screening for mental illness; Genetics, Brain Structure and brain function (EEG, ERP, fMRI). • Over 300 scientists and 300 publications are linked to the BRC International consortium and over 250 projects in the USA, Europe and Australia use the International Database via the independent U.S. Foundation BRAINnet.net.

Mahima Muralidharan, PhD

Dr. Mahima Muralidharan is a licensed clinical psychologist with extensive experience providing program management, clinical supervision and training, and psychological care for underserved adults, children and families in the United States and India. Mahima is the Chief Psychology Officer at Tiatros Inc. based in San Francisco. She has a keen interest in scalable therapeutics, equity and access to mental health care. She coordinated the school-based clinical training program at the Ann Martin Center in Emeryville, and teaches widely in the Bay Area. She is the co-founder of Cohear SF, an organizational consulting firm promoting workplace well-being. Dr. Muralidharan has an independent clinical practice in San Francisco.

Chris Wasden, EdD

As Head of HappifyDTx, Chris is leading the effort to bring Happify’s platform to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry. Recently he was a professor at the University of Utah where he ran its digital health game incubator. He is the co-author of two books on innovation, creativity, and leadership: Tension – The Energy of Innovation; and Solving for Why – Change Your Identity, Change Your Future. He is the named inventor on 12 issued patents, has been a founding leader in 10 startups, and has held leadership positions at JP Morgan and PwC. He holds a doctorate from George Washington University in Human and Organizational Learning, and an MBA from UCLA Anderson School.

Veera Anantha, PhD

Veera is a hands-on technology executive and business leader with a passion to bring positive change through the power of data and AI. At the Learning Corp, he oversees the development and delivery of an expanding line of next-generation digital therapeutics products and services. He created Constant Therapy, an award-winning mobile app that uses artificial intelligence to help tens of thousands of people living with neurological conditions regain essential life skills.