Chief of Innovation and Founder, Veterans Health- MIT Hacking Medicine Hackathon and Make-a-thon
Tampa VA Medical Center/ Veterans Health Administration
Dr. Sandal has 15+ years of experience leading transformational programs and innovation initiatives across academic, non-profit, and federal sectors. Before joining VA, Dr. Sandal held prominent research roles, including serving as Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Utah School of Medicine in Salt Lake City, UT from 2011 - 2014. Dr. Sandal served as Innovation Specialist at the Memphis VAMC from 2019 - 2022 and held several other national and local facility innovation roles with VHA Innovation Ecosystem. From 2020 - 2022, Dr. Sandal was selected as the VHA Entrepreneur-in-Residence and Executive Management Fellow where she spearheaded the VUHC Initiative in January 2022.
Dr. Sandal currently serves as a faculty member for MIT’s Catalyst program. Dr. Sandal has an M.B.A. from Northwestern University-Kellogg School of Management, a Ph.D. in Biotechnology from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research Institute, India, and an M.S. in Life Sciences from Kanpur University, India.
Dr. Sandal is a recipient of the 2023 Service to the Citizen Award, an award that recognizes public servants who demonstration excellence in their delivery of services that impact the public’s lives. She is also the recipient of the 2023 Dr. Robert L. Jesse Award for Excellence in Innovation for her outstanding work with the VUHC Initiative. The Dr. Robert Jesse award is presented to VA employees who have demonstrated brilliance enabling the discovery and spread of health care innovation that exceeds expectations, restores hope, and builds trust within VA.
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Tuesday, March 25, 2025
9:00am – 10:30am CT