At Deep Blue Medical Advances, we continue to accelerate and innovate, applying optimal leadership and clinical expertise to achieve our goals of improving surgical processes and patient outcomes. As a group of seasoned professionals with well over a century of collective experience, we use our team’s expertise to advance clinical care in abdominal surgery.
Howard Levinson, MD, Inventor/Founder, Chief Medical Officer, Director
Dr. Levinson serves as the Chair of Plastic Surgery Division, Eastern Virginia Medical School / Sentara; President, ASPS Plastic Surgery Foundation. He is also a speaker and clinical author.
Bill Perry, CEO, Director
Mr. Perry brings 27 years of experience in medical device start-ups including having led or contributed to multiple exits, venture financings, an IPO, 17+ medical product introductions, 20+ business development deals, and multiple regulatory approvals.
Lou Fuqua, Senior VP of Operations & Quality
Mr. Fuqua has over 25 years of experience in medical device start-ups and has a track record of success with 10+ new product introductions, multiple regulatory clearances, international manufacturing partnerships, and Quality Systems implementations.
David Ruppert, Ph.D., Director of Research & Development
Dr. Ruppert, with over 20 years of product development, brings vast technical experience in mechanical and biomedical engineering to translate ideas into finished products through computer simulation, experimental methods, material characterization, and product testing.
Rich Ciufo, Vice President, Sales
Bringing 19 years of med device and hernia-related experience, Mr. Ciufo has built and led talented teams, successfully launched new products, contributed to the growth of startups, and employed his strong interpersonal skills to help multiple organizations accomplish their goals.
Dave Murrell, Area Vice President
Mr. Murrell brings several years of hernia sales / clinical support and medical device sales to Deep Blue, and a track record of crafting relationships with key accounts.
Chris Ryan, Regional Business Director
Mr. Ryan is an accomplished and driven sales leader with over 23 years in medical devices sales -- 15 years of those with early startups. He values innovative technologies that are advantageous to patients and clinicians.
Emily Allred, Regional Business Director
Ms. Allred brings a tremendous amount of experience from the medical device space, where her focus and driven dedication to the sales process has yielded success. She is always focused on best practices for the physician, and most of all, what is best for patient care.
Board of Directors
Mike Bates, MBA, Angel Investor, Band of Angels, Life Science Angels
Brent Duncan, Ph.D., MBA
Howard Levinson, MD, Inventor/Founder, Chief Medical Officer, Director
Neil Meyer, General Partner, BayMed Venture Partners
Bill Perry, MBA, CEO, Director