Principal Technical Program Manager

Rady Children's taps Walmart health exec to lead innovation. Nath will oversee AI, digital health and research strategy Yuika Yoshida October 29, 2026 Rady Children's Health has named Dr. Pravene Nath executive vice president and chief innovation and physician executive, effective Nov. 16. Bringing more than two decades of experience in academic medicine and digital health, Nath will oversee long-term strategy for emerging technologies as the pediatric health system looks to accelerate innovation. Nath comes to Rady from Walmart, where he led the retail giant's healthcare business. He also previously served as chief information and digital officer at Stanford Health Care, helping launch a digital platform that expanded patients' access to healthcare services. Rady Children's Health was formed in January 2025 through the merger of Children's Hospital of Orange County and Rady Children's Hospital San Diego. Want more from the best local business newspaper in the country? Sign-up for its FREE Daily eNews update to get the latest Orange County news delivered right to your inbox! One-Year for Only $99 * Weekly in-depth coverage in print and digital formats * Special Features: OC's Wealthiest, Top Priced Home Sales, Giving Guide, OC500, Charity Event Guide, Best Places to Work, Indispensables, Largest Charitable Gifts * The annual Book of Lists: Orange County's top companies across every industry

Somehow, the Legend of Zelda Switch 2 Walmart fumbled pre-order saga has gotten messier. It sounds like the retailer is holding sales back until next week Yesterday, several Legend of Zelda fans got the unfortunate news that their Walmart pre-orders of the new Triforce-adorned Switch 2 consoles were being canceled a day before they were supposed to arrive (which is today, October 29). Now, the day is here, and the situation has somehow gotten worse, with stores reportedly telling workers to expect delays and missing stock in the days leading up to the Ocarina of Time remake's launch next week. A redditor posted an internal memo being sent to Walmart employees regarding in-store pick-up for the Zelda Switch 2 systems, which says that some stores may not get the device today "due to a supply chain delay." Workers are instructed to provide "consistent communication" to customers who pre-ordered the Switch 2 while the impacted orders are still in transit. Workers who have tried to scan systems that have arrived at their locations are finding a point-of-sale block on the devices and are being told not to override the block which will remain in place until at least November 6, a full week after the device's announced launch date, to ensure that pre-orders are fulfilled. "We showed up at Walmart at 6 a.m., spoke to an electronics person, and was told that they were unable to scan the consoles they had in stock (three units)," the Reddit user writes. "They suggested waiting until 7, when their electronics section truly opened. At 7, the console would still not scan. The employee went into the back and came back with [the above internal memo]. Seems like this is happening at Walmart and other stores like Target, as well." As this is happening, people who pre-ordered from Walmart are still being hit with cancellations even on launch day, and now with holds like this on in-store consoles, it seems like finding one out in the wild isn't going to be much easier. A Kotaku reader reached out and told us that Walmart customer service claimed some orders were being canceled as part of a nebulous "store issue," but later received a call from the company's online delivery department saying they were able to secure the Switch 2 they ordered for pick-up. Hopefully they're not met with the same issue others trying to buy the system in stores are running into. Level up your inbox.

Walmart plans three more clinical trial centers. Walmart and Care Access announced plans Oct. 27, 2026, to open three additional clinical trial centers in Livonia, Michigan; Las Vegas, Nevada; and San Antonio, Texas, during the first half of 2027. The expansion will increase their joint research network from four to seven locations, with facilities offering health screenings and opportunities to participate in Phase 2, 3 and 4 clinical studies. The expansion has implications for pharmaceutical companies, clinical research organizations and healthcare providers seeking to recruit participants outside traditional research settings. By locating research facilities inside Walmart stores, the companies aim to reduce geographic and logistical barriers to participation. The initiative also reflects growing interest in community-based approaches to clinical research recruitment and patient engagement. Clinical trial centers expand across three states. According to the Walmart expansion announcement, the three new facilities will operate within existing Walmart stores in Michigan, Nevada and Texas. Walmart Healthcare Research Institute and Care Access expect to open the locations during the first six months of 2027. The companies did not disclose construction costs, staffing investments or individual opening dates. The announcement follows the opening of four initial research locations in Houston and Tyler, Texas; Dalton, Georgia; and Brandon, Florida. Walmart and Care Access marked the expansion with an Oct. 27 event at the Houston facility, located at 3506 Highway 6 South. The partnership was initially announced in January 2026. The planned locations include: * Livonia, Michigan - scheduled for the first half of 2027. * Las Vegas, Nevada - scheduled for the first half of 2027. * San Antonio, Texas - scheduled for the first half of 2027. The facilities will operate inside Walmart retail locations rather than conventional hospital-based research centers. Care Access will manage clinical operations, while Walmart Healthcare Research Institute will support awareness and access through the retailer's community presence. The companies said study availability and participant eligibility will vary by location. Research services include screening and education. The expanded network will support Phase 2, 3 and 4 clinical studies, according to Walmart. These research phases examine different aspects of medical interventions, including effectiveness, safety and outcomes following regulatory approval. The participating companies have not disclosed the number of studies expected at each new location. Care Access said the facilities will offer opportunities related to cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease and GLP-1 therapies, depending on local research availability. Visitors may also receive health screenings assessing selected risk factors. Available services can include advanced biomarker blood testing, including lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a), measurements. The centers will provide educational resources and individual consultations to help visitors understand available research opportunities. According to Care Access, participation is voluntary, and individuals can visit a facility without committing to a clinical study. Enrollment will depend on study-specific requirements and the availability of appropriate research programs. The clinical trial centers are intended to connect interested individuals with research conducted in accessible community settings. Care Access operates more than 200 clinical research sites worldwide and uses traveling clinicians and mobile health units to support studies. The Walmart collaboration adds retail-based facilities to that existing research infrastructure. Partnership targets clinical research access barriers. Walmart and Care Access identified distance, limited awareness and unfamiliar research processes as barriers that can discourage clinical trial participation. Their collaboration places study information and screening services in retail environments regularly visited by local residents. The companies expect this approach to make research opportunities easier to discover. "Expanding access to clinical research starts with making opportunities available in more communities," said Emily Aaronson, MD, chief medical officer at Walmart, in the October announcement. Aaronson said the additional locations build on the partnership's existing research network and support efforts to reach individuals who may not otherwise explore clinical study opportunities. Care Access CEO and co-founder Ahmad Namvargolian said the partnership builds on the company's existing research infrastructure and community relationships. Walmart's retail presence provides another channel for connecting potential participants with studies. However, neither organization disclosed enrollment targets or comparative data showing that the retail model improves recruitment rates. Eli Lilly is among the pharmaceutical companies supporting community-based research initiatives. Michael Franklin, the company's vice president of Community-Based Research and Innovation, said broader participation is important for generating evidence across different populations. According to Walmart's announcement, studies are enrolling through the centers, although specific trial protocols and enrollment figures were not provided. What comes next. Walmart and Care Access plan to open their three additional facilities by mid-2027, bringing the partnership's total to seven locations across five states. The companies have not announced further locations beyond the current expansion. Additional information about screening availability and participating studies will be provided through Care Access. Walmart Healthcare Research Institute will also continue nationwide outreach and recruitment activities intended to connect individuals with clinical studies already operating in their communities. This work extends beyond the retailer's physical research locations. Care Access will remain responsible for clinical operations at the jointly developed facilities. For pharmaceutical sponsors and research organizations, the expansion provides another potential recruitment channel for studies requiring broader community participation. Its effectiveness will depend on participant enrollment, retention, study completion and the operational performance of the retail-based sites. The companies have not reported comparative recruitment outcomes or financial results from the initial four facilities. The planned clinical trial centers represent a continued investment in moving selected research activities closer to where potential participants live and shop. Future reporting on enrollment, patient participation and operational performance will help determine whether the model reduces barriers to clinical research. For healthcare executives, the expansion offers an example of how retail infrastructure can be incorporated into medical research delivery without replacing traditional research institutions.