Evan is a Research / Testing Scientist and 24 Year veteran Adjunct Faculty Member at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.  He has performed research and published in pharmaceutical, cardiology, sterile field, wheelchair, and pressure injury (ulcer) areas.  Evan holds 21 Patents, and enjoys working with students as an educator.

He also serves as the Director of the EC Service Test Laboratory that provides medical device testing to support surface, wheelchair cushion, pharmaceutical, vascular access, and tissue interface industries. EC Service Test Laboratory has recently completed certification for ISO 17025:2017 as a Test and Calibration Laboratory.

Evan is active in International Standard development for Wheelchair Cushions, Support Surfaces, and performs Wound Dressing tests at the National and International level.  He recently completed his 4th term as a member of the Board of Directors of NPUAP and is currently serving as a Board Member of the IWII.  Evan served as the Co-Chair of the NPUAP S3I for 9 years.

Evan’s hobbies include cycling, furniture making, constructing archery bows, and fishing with his grandchildren.

Dr. Windy Cole is a native of the US. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Cincinnati where she graduated summa cum laude. She is also and honors graduate from the Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine. Dr. Cole has practiced in Northeast Ohio where she serves as Medical Director of the Wound Care Center, University Hospitals Ahuja Medical Center and Adjunct Professor and Director of Wound Care Research at Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine. She has been a dedicated wound care advocate for two decades with interests focused on medical education, diabetic foot care, wound care, limb salvage, & clinical research. Her passion to help others has led her participate in humanitarian efforts including a medical mission to Jordan in 2018 to aid the large Syrian refugee population seeking asylum from civil war. Dr. Cole has published numerous articles on these topics and is a sought-after speaker both nationally and internationally. She is a feature writer for Podiatry Management and Today’s Wound Clinic as well as a contributing writer for Podiatry Today.

She is a wound care advocate on the forefront of technology-driven research. She sits on the advisory board of multiple emerging biotech companies and has been integral in collaborating on innovative research protocols in the space. Most recently, her work was chosen as the top-scoring oral abstract in the category of clinical research at the Symposium for Advanced Wound Care in October 2019 for her efforts utilizing the MolecuLight camera titled  “The Use of an Advanced Fluorescence Imaging System to Target Wound Debridement, Decrease Bioburden, Improve Healing Rates, and Provide Positive Revenues in an Outpatient Wound Care Setting”. She is an early adopter of the DermaPACE technology and is currently enrolling patients with diabetic foot ulcers for an extended case study intended for publication later this year. Other technologies currently being studied in her research clinic include continuous topical oxygen therapy, electroceutical wound dressings, remote ischemic conditioning, and near infrared spectroscopy.

Prof. Amit Gefen received the B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering and M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Tel Aviv University in 1994, 1997, and 2001, respectively. During 2002-2003 he was a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania, USA. He is currently a Full Professor with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of Tel Aviv University. The research interests of Prof. Gefen are in studying normal and pathological effects of biomechanical factors on the structure and function of cells, tissues and organs, with emphasis on applications in chronic wound research. In 2007-2008 he was a visiting scientist at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, where he developed tissue-engineered model systems to study pressure ulcers. To date, Prof. Gefen published more than 200 articles in peer-reviewed international journals, many of which on mechanobiology, cell and tissue Biomechanics, with applications that are mostly in chronic wound prevention.

He was awarded the best paper awards by journals such as Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing and Medical Engineering & Physics. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Clinical Biomechanics (published by Elsevier), and has also edited several books (published by Springer and others), and several Special Issues in journals such as the Annals of Biomedical Engineering, Journal of Biomechanics, Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering and more. He is also editing a book series on Mechanobiology, Tissue Engineering and Biomaterials (published by Springer), and has served as an Associate Editor or at Editorial Boards of several international journals which are ranked at the top of his field, e.g. PLoS One, the Annals of Biomedical Engineering, the Journal of Biomechanics, Medical Engineering & Physics, Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials, the Journal of Tissue Viability, Ostomy Wound Management and the Journal of Wound Care, to mention a few. In 2015, he was awarded the Editorial Excellence Award by the Annals of Biomedical Engineering and the Biomedical Engineering Society in the USA. Prof. Gefen has been the President of the European Pressure Ulcer Society (the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel, EPUAP, www.epuap.org) in 2013-2015.

He is a member of the World Council of Biomechanics and a Fellow of the International Academy of Medical and Biological Engineering and the European Alliance for Medical and Biological Engineering. Prof. Gefen was awarded the Pressure Care career award by the World Union of Wound Healing Societies in 2016 and the Experienced Investigator Award of EPUAP in 2017. His research is funded for example by the Israel Science Foundation, Israeli Ministry of Health, Ministry of Science, Ministry of Defense, and national and international biomedical industries. Prof. Gefen is advising and reviewing for funding bodies worldwide including the European Commission. He also serves as the Chair of Scientific Advisory Boards of large international corporates.

Darren is a Board Certified Podiatrist who has been in practice for over 7 years.  In addition to addressing all standard pathology of the a foot and ankle surgeon he has found a passion in treating lower extremity ulcers most often seen in Diabetics.  Additionally, he has a strong focus on neuropathy and nerve entrapment often seen in conjunction with his wound patients.

Darren worked as a wound care specialists at the Intermountain Medical Center wound clinic in Salt Lake City Utah for 4 years after which he transitioned his wound care clinic to his own private practice.  While at the IMC wound clinic he participated in the recently published study “A confirmatory study on the efficacy of dehydrated human amnion/chorion membrane dHACM allograft in the management of diabetic foot ulcers: A prospective, multicentre, randomised, controlled study of 110 patients from 14 wound clinics”.

He is currently serving as the President of UMS, (Utah Musculoskeletal Specialists) and remains active in his local and national Podiatric associations.

Darren’s hobbies include fly fishing, backpacking, mountain biking and racquetball to name a few.  He rarely gets to do any of these as the bulk of his time is enjoyed with his wife and 5 children.

Aoife is an Associate Professor within the Centre for Biomechanics and Rehabilitation Technologies at Staffordshire University, UK. Her research interests are in the area of clinical biomechanics, with a focus on diabetic footwear, assistive technology, gait analysis and plantar pressure measurement. She graduated from the University of Limerick, Ireland with a BSc in Sports and Exercise Science. Following this she completed a Masters in biomechanics at Dublin City University, Ireland and her PhD examining prescription footwear with a focus on diabetes and materials at Staffordshire University. From 2011-2015 she was a Marie Curie Research Fellow on the EU funded DiaBSmart project.

Gustav Jarl is an Associate Professor and Certified Prosthetist and Orthotist. His work as a clinician and researcher focuses on offloading devices for preventing and healing diabetic foot ulcers as well as patient adherence to using these devices.

The key research interests of Jan Kottner are skin and tissue integrity and preventive skin care with a special focus on skin physiology, skin barrier restoration and maintenance as well as efficacy of skin care interventions and pressure ulcer prevention in aged and care dependent subjects. He is involved in university teaching since 2007 and he became the Scientific Director of the Clinical Research Center for Hair and Skin Science at the Department of Dermatology and Allergy at the Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin in 2011. Since 2017 he is Visiting Professor at the University Centre for Nursing and Midwifery, Gent University. He published widely in the field of nursing, health and medicine especially focussing on skin and tissue viability. He is an active member of national and international societies and boards.

Gang Li is Professor in the Department of Orthopedics and Traumatology, Faculty of Medicine at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He earned an MBBS at the Fourth Military Medical University, Xian, China (1991), and a D. Phil at the University of Oxford School of Medicine, England, UK (1998). The focus of his research are on studies of the biological mechanisms of distraction osteogenesis, stem cell biology, circulating mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), the use of MSCs for cell therapy applications, musculoskeletal tissue regeneration and repair. He has published more than 190 peer-reviewed SCI articles with citations over 4500 and H index 40; 15 book chapters, edited 3 books on tissue engineering, bone biology, distraction histogenesis, and Ilizarov techniques.  He is a council member of Chinese Orthopaedic Research Society; Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Society, Chinese Association of Biomedical Engineering; Co-Chairman of ILLRS and ASAMI China Branch.  He is associate editor for Journal of Orthopaedic Translation; editor for Calcified Tissue International, Bone and Joint Research, and Bone.  He holds honorary or visiting Professorship at many prestigious universities such as Monash University, Australia; University of Malaya, Malaysia; Sichuan University, China; South-East University Medical School, China; The Airforce Medical University, China; Guangdong Medical University and Jilin University, China.  His work received serval awards including the 1st Class Research Award in Science and Technology, Ministry of Education, China; 2nd Class Award in Medical Science and Technology, China Medical Association; 1st Class Award in China Medical Science, China International Exchange and Promotion Association for Medical and Healthcare.

Ellie began working for the National Health Service in 1977. Her nursing experience within the hospital environment included medical, surgical and coronary care. Following several years within a specialist cardiac unit (CCU), she undertook a career change to community nursing in 1988. Ellie was appointed District Nursing Sister in 1994 and obtained her Specialist Practitioner qualification in 1997, beginning as a Community Practice Teacher in 1998.

Ellie conceived and introduced an innovative, social Leg Club model for lower limb management in the community in 1995, and has since disseminated the concept worldwide. She left the NHS to become an independent specialist practitioner and clinical consultant in December 2002. In January 2003, she was appointed Associate Lecturer (CRICP, Thames Valley University, London) and in December 2003 Visiting Fellow, Queensland University of Technology. Ellie established The Lindsay Leg Club Foundation, a registered charity, in September 2005.

Ellie has published more than 80 articles, predominantly concerning the psychosocial Leg Club Model and person-centred care, for such periodicals as the British Journal of Community Nursing, Primary Intention, Wounds UK, the Journal of Wound Care and Nursing Standard, and she is a frequent contributor to the Wounds UK and British Journal of Nursing Journals.  She is regularly invited to speak at UK and international conferences and study days.

Ellie has received multiple awards for her Leg Club model, including the 2001 British Journal of Nursing Award for Clinical Practice, the Nursing Standard Nurse 2003 (Wound Care) Award, the 2007 British Journal of Nursing Award for Health Promotion, and the 2007 Wounds UK Award for Innovation in Patient Care.

In 2011, she received national recognition for her contribution to nursing when she was awarded one of the professions highest distinctions – The British Journal of Nursing Lifetime Achievement Award. She continues to facilitate the introduction of Leg Clubs in the UK, Australia and Europe.

In 2015, Ellie was awarded an Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to nursing. The honour recognises the years of hard work and commitment to the Leg Club model which is recognised as a viable, replicable and cost-effective way to treat people with lower limb problems.

In 2018 Ellie was conferred a Fellow of the Queen’s Nursing Institute (FQNI)

In August 2018, she received international recognition from The Arias Medical Foundation and The Scientific Institute of Higher Education, Mexico by being presented with an Award for Excellence.

In November 2018, she was honoured by the International Society of Paediatric Woundcare (ISPeW) and received an Education Award for Excellence in Wound care and become the first ISPeW honorary board member.

Neil McIntyre joined the Lindsay Leg Club Foundation as a trustee at the beginning of 2018. Previously, Neil was a senior manager for BT Group plc, a British multinational telecommunication holding company responsible for research and development. He gained a PhD from the University of Surrey for his research work on high-speed devices for BT's next generation transmission systems, before going on to become a departmental manager. Here he was responsible for the development of computer systems to support operational staff, establishing close working with offshore IT suppliers, enabling automation and cost efficiencies for running BT's networks.

With his background of databases and data handling, in his role as trustee he undertook to lead the work of analysing some of the extensive data held within the Leg Club database developed by the late Richard Lindsay. The work has revealed some interesting aspects of Leg Club performance and ulcer healing findings. With fellow colleagues a research paper based upon the information gathered as a result of the methodology applied lead to a publication in a leading wound care journal.

Alisa Morss Clyne is currently an Associate Professor in the Fischell Department of Bioengineering at the University of Maryland. Prior to joining the University of Maryland in January 2019, she was an associate professor of Mechanical Engineering at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA. Dr. Clyne is director of the Vascular Kinetics Laboratory, which investigates integrated mechanical and biochemical interactions among cells and proteins of the cardiovascular system. She is particularly interested in how endothelial cell mechanotransduction changes in a diseased environment, and how fluid shear stress and substrate mechanics affect glucose metabolism and transport.

Dr. Clyne received her bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University in 1996. She worked as an engineer in the GE Aircraft Engines Technical Leadership Program for four years, concurrently earning her Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati. In 2006, she received her Doctorate in Medical and Mechanical Engineering from the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology. In 2014, she completed the Executive Leadership in Academic Technology and Engineering (ELATE) program.

Dr. Clyne received the NSF CAREER award in 2008, an AHA National Scientist Development Grant in 2010, and the BMES-CMBE Rising Star award in 2011. She has received research and educational funding from NSF, NIH, AHA, Department of Education, the Nanotechnology Institute, and the State of Pennsylvania, and she has published in diverse journals including Lab on a Chip, Journal of Biomechanics, Annals of Biomedical Engineering, Tissue Engineering, Biophysical Journal, PLOSOne, Journal of Biological Chemistry, and Circulation. She is a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the American Heart Association, and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. She is also a member of ASEE, BMES, NAVBO, and SWE. Her teaching focuses on engineering applications in biological systems, and she founded several programs to enhance diversity within engineering.

Prof. Najafi is currently serving with the Baylor College of Medicine (Houston, Texas), Department of Surgery as a tenured Professor, Director of Clinical Research in the Division of Vascular Surgery, and Director of Interdisciplinary Consortium on Advanced Motion Performance (iCAMP). He completed his Ph.D. in Bioengineering followed by a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Biomechanics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Tech and in Neuroscience at Harvard University. He has two decades of experience in designing bio-inspired sensors for objective evaluation of healthy state of patients with locomotor dysfunctions, over 200 scientific publications in peer reviewed journals or conference proceeding, 20+ issued, pending, or provisional patents, and have been Principal or a key investigator on over 50 industrial, national and international grants ($50M+). He worked with a wide network of clinical and bioengineering collaborators across the globe primarily in the clinical areas of falls, frailty, gait, cognitive impairment, diabetes, wearable and digital health. He received multiple prestigious awards including the most Influential Health and Medical Leaders award in the category of achievement in designing medical devices.

Jane Nixon is Professor of Tissue Viability and Clinical Trials Research and Deputy Director at the Institute of Clinical Trials Research. In 2016 she was appointed as an NIHR Senior Investigator and in 2017 was awarded an MBE for her contribution to health research. She gained a Masters in 1996 and PhD in 2001 whilst a senior nurse in the NHS.  She moved to the University of Leeds as Deputy Director of the Clinical Trials Research Unit in 2002. Jane has had a longstanding career in clinical trials research, first as an NHS based Chief Investigator and since 2002, as Deputy Director of the Clinical Trials Research Unit.

In the pressure ulcer prevention field Jane has strong national and international collaborations and has undertaken two large multi-centre mattress trials, epidemiological research, systematic reviews of risk factors and quality of life, outcome measurement and instrument development and has been involved/led sections of the international US National Pressure Ulcer advisory Panel/European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel pressure ulcer prevention guidelines. Jane has secured £5.3 million in research funding for 13 pressure ulcer prevention research awards (including 10 as Chief Investigator). In 2008 Jane led the successful collaborative £2million, 5 year NIHR Programme Grant application entitled Pressure Ulcer PRogranne of ReSEarch (PURPOSE). This included work in pressure ulcer pain, severe pressure ulcers, risk factors, risk assessment and quality of life, with a strong practice focus. The work is now complete and provides the foundation for practice change over the next 10 years in areas including patient safety, serious incident investigation and patient management. In 2012 Jane was successful in gaining a further NIHR HTA trial grant (£1.8 million) to undertake a third mattress trial comparing high specification foam and alternating pressure mattresses in 3000 high risk patients (PRESSURE 2). The trial completed recruitment in 2016 and is currently in the publication and dissemination stage.

Jane is past Chair and Treasurer of the Tissue Viability Society (TVS) and current President of the European Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel (EPUAP). She currently serves on national Trial Oversight Committees, is a member of the NIHR Dermatology Specialty Group, Health and Social Care Information Centre Present on Admission Expert Reference Group and the French Clinical Research Infrastructure Network (F-CRIN) Scientific Board.

Dr. Sara Nunes Vasconcelos is a Scientist at the University Health Network in the Toronto General Hospital Research Institute. She holds an Assistant Professor appointment at the Institute of Biomaterials Biomedical Engineering and a cross-appointment at the Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology at the University of Toronto. Her translational research program aims to develop regenerative medicine strategies, and use bioengineering approaches to study cardiovascular diseases and for drug testing. Dr. Nunes obtained her PhD from the State University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and completed postdoctoral training under Dr. James Hoying, PhD at the University of Louisville and later with Prof. Milica Radisic, PhD at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Nunes received several awards and fellowships for her work, including the prestigious Early Researcher Award from the Ministry of Research Innovation and Science in Canada in 2018, the Scientist Development Grant from the American Heart Association, USA in 2011 and the CMBE-BMES Young Innovators in Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering in 2019. She has developed new vascularization techniques to support functional tissues for organ regeneration and is pioneering the work to create mature vessels with specific arterio-venous identities in pre-vascularized, 3D engineered tissues with emphasis on how diabetes affects vascularization. Her work on human cardiac tissues-on-a-dish, named biowires, has opened a new area of research in human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocyte maturation and drug testing which catalyzed further mechanistic and translational research in this area worldwide. She holds funding from CIHR, NSERC, CFREF, Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research, and JDRF-USA. She serves as a committee member for CIHR, and also serves as Ad Hoc member for NIH study section (myocardial ischemia and metabolism).