Redefining Stroke Recovery | Interview with Kandu Health CEO Kirsten Carroll

Produced by: Medsider | Published: September 27, 2024

Kandu Health, a digital health company based in California, has developed a platform to assist stroke survivors with aftercare. Healthcare for stroke patients is primarily focused on acute care to limit the damage caused by the stroke. However, the company has identified that stroke survivors are frequently underserved after hospital discharge, and in many cases are left to cope with the psychological and physical fallout of the stroke with minimal support.

Kirsten Carroll is turning the tables on this grim landscape. Her startup, Kandu Health, is a groundbreaking company that aims to change how we handle post-stroke care, bringing hope to survivors and their loved ones, who are also affected by this cataclysmic experience. 

Armed with a degree in biomedical engineering and a double master's in business and public health, Kirsten's journey took her through marketing and strategic roles at Boston Scientific and Stryker. Then, she shifted to the world of startups at Imperative Care, where she launched their Patient-at-Home initiative, the precursor to what would be Kandu Health. 

Kirsten and her team have already seen remarkable success. Out of the first 40 people to participate in Kandu’s program, over 85% were living independently by the time they graduated. The company expects to see results in larger cohorts presented at industry conferences this winter. 

Kandu is already bringing forward a radical change in stroke recovery and the team is excited to see the numbers scale up. “To take that from 10 to 100 to 1,000 to 100,000, if we can maintain this level of impact and do it at a bigger and bigger scale, I absolutely cannot wait," says Kirsten.