Season 2 Premiere: Return of the Parentrepreneurs!

We’re kicking off Season 2 by spotlighting parent-innovators who turned lived experience into action. This episode brings together founders who are reshaping pediatric mental health, literacy, and NICU care through empathy, technology, and perseverance.

Hafeezah Muhammad, founder and CEO of Backpack Healthcare, shares how her son’s mental health crisis led her to build a technology-enabled, family-centered mental health platform that serves children as young as four and supports parents, caregivers, and clinicians together.

Carla Small, founder of Sprout Labs, explains how science-backed literacy tools and AI can identify dyslexia early, personalize instruction, and prevent years of academic struggle and declining self-esteem.

Phil Martie, founder of Nicolette, reflects on his NICU journey as a parent of premature twins and how it inspired him to build tools that turn complex hospital data into clear, empowering insights for families navigating neonatal intensive care.

Together, these conversations highlight the power of early intervention, empathetic design, and technology that meets families where they are, before crises deepen and systems fail them.


🎧 Join us and subscribe for more: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...


Episode Resources:
→Medicaid (https://www.medicaid.gov/)
→Orton-Gillingham Approach (https://www.ortonacademy.org/resource...)


Learn more from the previous ‘’parentrepreneurs’’ episodes:
→The Mighty Parentrepreneurs (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...)
→Autism: Tools to help doctors and parents (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...)


Connect with Hafeezah Muhammad:
→Backpack Healthcare Website (http://www.hellobackpack.com)
→Backpack Healthcare Facebook (  / backpackhealthcare  )
→Backpack Healthcare Twitter (  / hellobackpack_  )
→Backpack Healthcare Instagram (  / hello.backpack  )
→Backpack Healthcare LinkedIn (  / hellobackpack  )
→Backpack Healthcare TikTok (  / hello.backpack  )
→Hafeezah Muhammad LinkedIn (  / hafeezahmuhammad  )


Connect with Carla Small:
→Sprout Labs Website (https://www.sproutlabs.com/)
→Sprout Labs LinkedIn (  / readwithsproutlabs  )
→Sprout Labs Instagram (  / readwithsproutlabs  )
→Carla Small LinkedIn (  / carlaesmall  )


Connect with Phil Martie:
→Nicolette Website (http://www.nicolette.com)
→Nicolette LinkedIn (  / nicolette  )
→Nicolette Instagram (  / nico.board  )
→Phil Martie LinkedIn (  / philmartie  )


Connect with us:
→Children's Hospital L.A. Website (https://www.chla.org/)
→Children's Hospital L.A. Instagram (  / childrensla  )
→Children's Hospital L.A. LinkedIn (  / childrensla  )


The content, views, opinions, and information presented on this podcast do not reflect the views of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles or of the sponsors of the podcast. CHLA does not endorse the views, opinions and information presented on this podcast and CHLA specifically disclaims any legal liability or responsibility for the podcast’s content.


#PediatricCare #MentalHealthInnovation #EarlyIntervention #ParentLedInnovation #HealthTech #EdTech #ChildMentalHealth #DyslexiaAwareness #NICUCare #PatientEmpowerment #FamilyCenteredCare #AIforGood #HealthcareDesign #DigitalHealth #FutureOfCare