Tullis Health Investors

Managing Partner at Tullis, John focuses on technology-enabled healthcare services, drug delivery innovation, and medical device platforms, working closely with CEOs on strategy and growth. He joined Tullis in 2009 after 12 years in corporate development, including a role leading global M&A at Ryder System.

Barbara Bierer is a hematologist-oncologist and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), where she co-founded and leads the Multi-Regional Clinical Trials Center focused on ethics, conduct, and regulation of international clinical trials. She previously served as Senior Vice President for Research at BWH from 2003 to 2014, founding the Brigham Research Institute and Brigham Innovation Hub. She joined Tullis as an advisory board member in 2004 and later became a venture partner, contributing to deal sourcing, review, due diligence, and investment management.

David Leffell is the David Paige Smith Professor of Dermatology, Plastic Surgery, and Otolaryngology (emeritus) at the Yale School of Medicine, where he founded and led the section of Dermatologic Surgery and Cutaneous Oncology. He spent 15 years as CEO of the Yale Medical Group and served as deputy dean for clinical affairs, working on electronic medical records and clinical practice development. He earned his medical degree from McGill University and completed residencies in internal medicine, dermatology, and dermatologic surgery, and at Tullis he leads the scientific and clinical evaluation portions of the investment process.

Patrick S. Miles has been chairman and CEO of Alphatec Holdings (Nasdaq: ATEC) since October 2017 and has more than 30 years in the orthopedic industry. He previously held senior roles at NuVasive, including vice chairman, COO and president, and earlier worked in marketing at ORATEC Interventions, Medtronic Sofamor Danek, and Smith & Nephew. He joined the Tullis advisory board in November 2025 and serves as a venture partner; he holds a BS in Finance from Mercer University.

Tina Nova is a molecular diagnostics entrepreneur and inventor on numerous scientific patents who supports Tullis Health Investors across deal sourcing, due diligence, and investment management. She co-founded Genoptix, took it public, and sold it to Novartis in 2011, and later led Decipher Biosciences, which was acquired by Veracyte in 2021. She has also held leadership roles at Molecular Stethoscope, Illumina's oncology unit, and Nanogen, which she co-founded. She holds a BS in biological sciences from UC Irvine and a doctorate in biochemistry from UC Riverside.

Darlene Franzé has worked at Tullis Health Investors for over 30 years as a project manager and member of the GP. She serves on the firm's compliance, deal, investment committee, and leadership teams, and manages inbound deal flow and the due diligence process from introduction through investment. She also directs human resources and benefits administration for the management company and organizes the firm's internal and external meetings, programs, and events.

Julia Mende works at Tullis Health Investors, where her responsibilities cover accounting, finance, fundraising, and deal research. She joined the team part-time while completing her master's degree and moved into a full-time role in 2024. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Integrative Neuroscience and an MBA with a concentration in management information systems, both from Binghamton University.

Melanie Oldeman coordinates limited partner communications and manages fundraising administration at Tullis Health Investors, having rejoined the firm in 2018 after a prior 14-year tenure there. In the interim she spent seven years providing marketing communications services to finance and healthcare clients, worked as a marketing manager at HealthSouth Corporation, and served as director of corporate communications for Professional Sports Care Management. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in management with a marketing concentration from Manhattanville University.

Naseer Robinson is a fund controller at Tullis Health Investors, which he joined in 2020, handling accounting and finance responsibilities. He previously worked as a senior accountant for an industrial-focused private equity firm and as a state-level tax auditor. He earned a Bachelor of Science in accounting and finance from York College of Pennsylvania and an MBA with a finance concentration from Lynn University.

Steven Gindi is CFO of Tullis Health Investors, where he oversees the financial operations of the management company and funds, handles regulatory compliance, and works with the managing partners and investment team. He joined Tullis in 2025 after serving as CFO of Corinthian Capital, LLC, a middle-market private equity firm, where he led accounting, reporting, cash management, and the firm's outsourced compliance program, and sat on the board of Excelin Health Inc. He holds an MS in Taxation and a BS in Accounting from the University at Albany, SUNY, and is a licensed CPA in New York.