The Origins of Olera: Texas A&M University & Sling Health

The Origins of Olera: Texas A&M University and Sling Health

Olera was born out of a need that we saw during our time at Sling Health, a med tech incubator originally started at the University of Washington in St. Louis.

In the Fall of 2019, in the middle of my biomedical engineering Ph.D. program, I worked with several other graduate students to launch a local chapter of the incubator at Texas A&M. We brought together students from medicine, engineering, and business to tackle medical problems collaboratively. It was more than just theory; we set out to create real-world solutions.

Meeting Logan & Forming the Team

Logan DuBose, an MD/MBA student at the time (now a medical resident at George Washington University), came on right from the start and we immediately hit it off. We found common ground in our vision to leverage medical technology to improve human health. Particularly, we bonded around the challenges present in the aging space and senior care, emphasizing dementia and Alzheimer's disease. In many white-board sessions in the Zachary Engineering building at Texas A&M Univerisity over the next weeks and months, we went on to brainstorm various solutions to struggles faced by family caregivers of older adults in need of care.

However, as we delved deeper, we saw a broader issue – the entire process of senior care was not only unaffordable for many, but it was also difficult to navigate. We thought we could help, so we expanded our scope beyond Alzheimer's caregivers to all senior caregivers. That's how Olera came to be.

Our idea struck a chord. It won a $2.3M grant from the National Institutes of Health. It was a validating moment, but the journey had just begun and there was work to do.

Olera Then and Now

Over the past few years, we have spoken to over 200 families to deeply understand their needs. With these learnings we have developed our current platform and today, Olera connects families to local senior care resources and guides them through the intricacies of the senior care process. We know from personal experience how important this is, and we're here to make it smoother. We're grateful for where we are and eager for where we're going.

Author Bio

TJ Falohun, co-founder and CEO of Olera, is a biomedical engineer by training and is passionate about developing novel digital health and medical technologies. TJ is a Texas Business Hall of Fame inductee and a recipient of the prestigious Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation. His passion for innovative medical technologies drives him to revolutionize the healthcare and senior care industry.