Health2Tech Chicago September 17, 2026
Health2Tech - a series of digital health events.
Join us on September 17th for an exclusive meetup in Chicago that brings together the brightest minds in the digital health space. Hosted by Sarah Porter & Alex Koshykov, this evening promises to be a confluence of innovation, inspiration, and invaluable networking.
🕕 Event Schedule:
5:30 PM - 6:00 Doors Open. Begin the evening with a warm welcome and a chance to settle in.
6:00 - 6:45 Panel on: “Earning Your Place: What it really takes to partner with payers and health systems”.
6:45 - 8:30 Networking. Connect, converse, and collaborate with peers driven by a common passion for advancing healthcare through technology.
🤩 About our Guest Speaker:
Amy Ravi is President and CEO of ExtendMed, a healthcare engagement platform and service provider for pharmaceutical companies and biotechs. ExtendMed deploys its private label platform to support clients’ virtual advisory boards, congress engagement, promotional education, publications and symposia, online focus groups and training, as well as clinical trial site communications – across a broad range of therapeutic areas. Prior to founding ExtendMed, Amy came from a hospital network setting, previously serving as director of corporate information at Rush University Medical Center. She graduated from Carleton College with a psychology degree and began her career as a sleep researcher studying the role that dreams play in managing depression. While at Rush, Amy earned her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Amy has also held an appointment on the graduate faculty of the School of Health Sciences at Rush University in Chicago and has guest lectured at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management on business leadership. She is a Springboard alumna and HBA member.
Melissa Klufio Peeler is an executive healthcare operator and Founder & President of Chesamel Health.
Chesamel Health is a boutique healthcare consultancy that partners with bold, mission-driven digital health, health technology, and health services organizations to turn their ambitions into sustainable results — helping them achieve adoption and scale with payers, health systems, and employers.
She brings 20+ years of experience across payer, provider, and health technology organizations, including Elevance Health, Oracle Health (Cerner), and Boston Children's Hospital. Most recently, as Vice President and General Manager at Carelon Health (a major division of Elevance), she held full P&L ownership for a $2B portfolio serving 27 million members and driving 25% membership growth.
Throughout her career, Melissa has scaled businesses, entered new markets, and built high-performing teams. She is known for defining bold strategy and driving it to execution, and for a leadership style that earns trust because she pays careful attention not only to results, but also to how they are achieved. Integrity in excellence is her hallmark.
She holds a BS in Computer Science from Stanford University and an MBA with a concentration in healthcare from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Melissa and her family live in the Chicago suburbs with a high-energy cockapoo who keeps everyone active. Having lived and worked across four continents, she enjoys traveling and experiencing new cultures.
Sara Sortal is SVP of Solutions & Implementation at Synapse Health, a high-growth, technology-enabled home medical equipment (DME) solution, where she leads payor solutions, implementation and data operations. Her career spans both sides of the healthcare ecosystem — from large, established systems like Advocate Health and AIM (Carelon), to fast-scaling, PE-backed companies like Synapse Health and Surgical Care Affiliates (SCA Health). That range gives her a practitioner's view of what it actually takes to build and scale solutions that work for health plans and providers alike, not just in theory but in the operational weeds. Sara holds an MBA from Kellogg and has built her career around building high-performing teams and streamlining systems that turn strategy into results. She brings a grounded, execution-focused perspective on what's required for startups to succeed in partnership with the incumbents around them.
🌟 Why Attend?
Meet like-minded individuals who are actively shaping the health tech landscape.
Share experiences, discuss challenges, and explore potential solutions with fellow founders.
Learn from the journeys of other entrepreneurs, discover something new, seek advice, and perhaps find the mentor or partner you've been looking for.
🤝 Who Should Attend?
Digital Health Founders at various stages of their startup journey.
Healthcare Professionals who are passionate about health innovation.
Investors looking to make impactful contributions to the digital health and medtech spaces.
🚀 Why Is This Event a Must?
Hear from thought leaders and innovators in the digital health domain (at every event, we'll have a new set of speakers).
Connect with peers, potential collaborators, and mentors.
Participate in engaging Q&As and discussions that can spark new ideas and opportunities.
🏙️ Venue Details:
Great location in the heart of Chicago, equipped to foster conversations and connections. Venue details will be shared with registered attendees. Because of limited capacity, we won't be able to accommodate everyone, so please register whenever you are sure you can attend.
Don’t miss this chance to be part of a community that’s driving the future of health tech. Reserve your spot now and join us in shaping the landscape of digital health for 2026 and beyond.
Partners
The Yard is a coworking space at the intersection of innovation, creativity, design, & play - with locations in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and DC - with a variety of shared and private workspace options.
About the organizer
Sarah Porter is the CEO and Founder of Boardwalk Health (formerly MedDefend). A startup focused on bridging gaps between patient and providers. The company aims to enhance clinical workflows and improve care for complex patients battling chronic conditions.
Sarah was misdiagnosed for 5 years, finally receiving her POTS diagnosis in 2022, fueling her passion for changing healthcare. Often, she speaks about my POTS & PCOS, and advocates for patients going through similar journeys.
Alex Koshykov is a co-founder of BeKey and a digital health expert who constantly shares news, introduces promising technologies, and promotes secure software & hardware for the healthcare industry on his YouTube channel. Additionally, he is a co-founder of YODD, a medical device startup.
Additional Information
By signing up, your email will be automatically added to the Health2Tech newsletter with news and upcoming events — but don’t worry, we won’t flood your inbox! ;)
Also, just a note that this event might be photographed or filmed. If we do capture some moments, Health2Tech may use the photos or videos for marketing and communication purposes. By registering, you're giving us the thumbs up for using your image for these reasons.