2023 Wisconsin Biohealth Award Recipients Announced

The Awards Celebrate Innovation and Excellence in Scientific and Business Achievement

MADISON, Wis— BioForward Wisconsin is pleased to announce the recipients of the ninth annual Wisconsin Biohealth Awards, recognizing exceponal scienfic and business accomplishments within the state’s thriving biohealth industry. These presgious awards honor individuals who connue to lead the charge in innovaon and success in Wisconsin’s biohealth sector. They will be presented during this year’s Wisconsin Biohealth Summit—an event that recognizes and celebrates the state’s biohealth industry.  

This year’s recipients include:  

HECTOR F. DELUCA SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 

Presented to: Dr. Thomas Grist – Professor and Chair, Department of Radiology, UW School of Medicine and Public Health

Dr. Thomas M. Grist is a disnguished figure in the field of medical imaging. With a strong background in biomedical engineering (Marquete and GE HealthCare) and medicine, (MCW) he has made significant contribuons to the development and applicaon of MRI through his four decades of collaborave work in Wisconsin.   Dr. Grist’s eighteen years of leadership as Chair of the Department of Radiology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has led to remarkable growth in research, educaon, and clinical pracce. His pioneering work and his commitment to translang imaging technologies into clinical applicaons have earned him numerous accolades and patents and resulted in several new Wisconsinbased companies.

WISCONSIN BIOHEALTH BUSINESS ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 

Presented to: Chris Miskel – CEO & President, Versiti

Chris Miskel has exhibited exemplary leadership in the healthcare industry, parcularly in his role as CEO and President of Versi. His deep-seated dedicaon to paent advocacy and fostering a thriving work environment for his team has given rise to a culture of innovaon and progress within Versi. Under his stewardship, Versi has reached significant milestones, expanded its reach, and achieved impressive annual revenue. Chris’s extensive healthcare experience, coupled with his strategic vision, has le an enduring mark on the landscape of biohealth business.

“These two recipients exemplify and embody what these awards represent,” said Lisa Johnson, CEO of BioForward. “Dr. Thomas Grist’s groundbreaking work in cardiovascular imaging seamlessly aligns with this year’s summit theme, ‘The Next Generaon of Personalized Medicine.’ His contribuons have been instrumental in advancing precision diagnoscs and treatment. Addionally, Chris Miskel’s exceponal leadership and unwavering commitment to his team make him a truly deserving recipient of the Wisconsin Biohealth Business Achievement Award. It’s an honor to recognize these remarkable individuals for their outstanding achievements for innovaon within Wisconsin’s biohealth sector but also underscores Wisconsin’s posion as a hub of excellence in both scienfic innovaon and business leadership.”

The awards ceremony will take center stage at the Wisconsin Biohealth Summit, on October 17, 2023, at the Overture Center for the Arts in Madison, Wisconsin.  

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“The Summit serves as a pivotal and unifying plaorm, bringing together esteemed industry leaders, cung-edge researchers, and innovave thinkers to delve into crucial discussions aimed at tackling the most pressing health challenges of our me,” explained Johnson. “The Summit is designed to funcon as a cornerstone for networking, facilitang knowledge exchange, and fostering collaborave synergy among industry experts that reinforce and forfy Wisconsin’s enduring leadership posion in the biohealth sector and the emerging field of personalized medicine.”

The Wisconsin Biohealth Summit is made possible by the generous support of sponsors, including UW

Health, Findorff, Hausmann Group, Mortenson Construcon, CZ Strategy, JP Cullen, CAI, Kraemer

Brothers, All of Us Research Program UW-Madison, Winland Electronics, Strang, SARA Investment Real

Estate, University of Wisconsin Master of Science in Applied Biotechnology, MERI, Master of Science in

Biotechnology Program School of Medicine and Public Health UW-Madison, Faith Technologies,

Arrowhead Pharmaceucals, Vogel Bros. Building Co., Fisher Scienfic, Aldevron, Exact Sciences, GE

HealthCare, Illumina, Mallinckrodt Pharmaceucals, MilliporeSigma, Promega, Alliant Energy, Catalent, Cellular Dynamics, Cyva, Eurofins, Isthmus Project, Labcorp, Morgridge Instute for Research, PhRMA, PPD, TeraMedica, University Research Park, WARF, and Yahara.

For more informaon about Wisconsin Biohealth Summit and Awards, or to register to atend, please visit www.bioforward.org/bioforward-wisconsin-biohealth–summit–2023.

About BioForward

BioForward Wisconsin represents more than 230 member organizations across an integrated network of health solution leaders, including research institutions, biotech and biopharma, digital health, healthcare systems, medical device, and diagnostics. It is an action-oriented association that focuses on initiatives to strengthen the state’s biohealth industry. Learn more about BioForward Wisconsin at www.bioforward.org.