Walter Kalmans

Walter Kalmans
President
Lontra Ventures

Prior to founding Lontra Ventures in 2008, Walter Kalmans was Vice President, Business Development for Oncology Therapeutics Network (OTN), a subsidiary of McKesson Corporation. During his tenure at OTN, Walter was responsible for OTN's relationships with manufacturers and for delivering value-added services that helped manufacturers sell more product. Prior to joining OTN, Walter held senior commercial positions with Vignette, a software company, and Becton Dickinson & Company. Earlier in his career, he did healthcare consulting for several top firms, including Quintiles, Booz-Allen & Hamilton and Accenture.

Walter earned a Bachelor of Science in Finance from the Wharton School and a Bachelor of Arts in Molecular Biology from the College of Arts & Sciences, both at the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a Masters in Business Administration from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University where he graduated as a JB Fuqua Scholar.

Posts by Walter Kalmans

Advocacy for Patients with Chronic Conditions

In an ideal world, patient care would be coordinated, and one doctor would serve as the trusted adviser for the patient. However, the harsh reality of the current system is that doctors are poorly compensated for advising patients, and fewer than half of patients have a long-term relationship with a primary care physician.

LinkedIn Etiquette: Making Distant Connections with Social Media

In my follow-up post about LinkedIn Etiquette I explain how to connect a friend to another friend’s friend, a 3rd connection. Unless all links in the chain are strong, getting a positive response is slim.

LinkedIn Etiquette and Social Media

I’m no Mr. Manners, but I wouldn’t dream of sending an invitation to someone I hadn't met before. But I've noticed that approaches differ. Has this happened to you?

Personalized Medicine - Implications for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers

In this series of blogs, we illustrate how personalized medicine is transforming the pharmaceutical industry. When one contemplates the complexity of the future environment, it becomes quite clear that existing discovery, development, regulatory, commercialization, and reimbursement frameworks are nowhere near prepared for the changes coming with personalized medicine.

Personalized Medicine - A Guide For Consumers

The real facts about Personalized Medicine? Find them here.

Blogging Your Way to Congress - How Knowledge and Insight Can Earn You a Seat at the Table

Who would have thought that a blog posted on Texas Enterprise in March could earn a person an invitation to testify before Congress in November?

Solving the Oncology Generic Injectable Drug Shortage – It's All About Economics!

Over the past two months, warnings about generic drug shortages have been issued by legislators, leading publications, and leading healthcare associations. Why the increased shortages? According to the press, generic drug industry consolidation and manufacturing/regulatory issues are the key culprits. However, I am fairly certain the key culprit is economics.

Copay Programs –Drug Coupons Improve Healthcare Quality and Lower Costs

Patients, Providers, Payers, and Pharma should take note! There are few ideas in healthcare that lower costs and improve quality.

Early Stage Palliative Care – Can it Improve Healthcare Quality and Lower Costs?

Roughly 30% of all healthcare expenses occur in the last year of a patient’s life. One way to reduce healthcare costs might be to opt for a branch of medicine called palliative care whose goal is to prevent and relieve suffering and to improve quality of life for people facing serious, complex illness.

Syndicate content