Lawrence will take the corner office at Livonia, Michigan-based Hygieia with responsibilities for leading operations, development, and global growth of the company and its d-Nav insulin management program. The FDA-cleared d-Nav system autonomously adjusts insulin dose recommendations to correspond to a patient’s changing insulin needs.
He joins with three decades of medtech leadership, including significant experience bringing products to market, restructuring and guiding companies through mergers and acquisitions, building global sales teams, raising venture capital, and overseeing operations, according to a news release.
Among Lawrence’s previous roles include CEO at CeQur, which makes insulin patch pumps for the type 2 diabetes market. Before that, he led the diabetes business at BD, which has since spun off to become Embecta.
“Doug has the perfect combination of experience and skill to shepherd Hygieia’s expansion in the United States and around the world,” Eran Bashan, Hygieia co-founder and board chair, said in the release. “Now, with Doug serving as CEO, we will work together to build the nation’s leading network of diabetes clinics. The world of healthcare delivery is rapidly changing, and Doug’s leadership will allow us to accelerate our go-to-market plan. We are looking forward to partnering with others to simplify insulin therapy and improve outcomes.”
Hygieia’s recent growth initiatives include the launch of the d-Nav clinical partnership program in May, international expansion with a licensing agreement in Israel and a partnership renewal with the National Health Service in Northern Ireland and the American Medical Association’s approval of two new Category III codes for autonomous insulin dose titration, which can be used with d-Nav.
“Diabetes is a global epidemic imposing tremendous costs on patients and health systems,” Lawrence said. “Late stage, insulin-dependent diabetes can be incredibly challenging for patients and their medical partners to manage effectively. I’m thrilled to join this talented, passionate team whose proven, FDA-cleared d-Nav Technology is poised to transform the safety and efficacy of insulin therapy and, in many cases, lower the overall cost of diabetes management.”
