Michael Winkleman

Michael Winkleman has spent over two decades doing something most healthcare leaders never do — he actually listens.

As CEO and Founder of PatientX, Michael has stood inside surgery suites, sat in waiting rooms, and walked hospital hallways across the country, interviewing hundreds of patients and providers to capture what care really feels like from the inside. Not what the chart says. What the person experienced.

That work became CONNECT: The Patient's Voice — the first in a three-part series built on a belief Michael has carried his entire career: Listening is the intervention. Everything else follows.

He helps healthcare organizations turn what patients feel into what teams do — building trust, aligning leadership, and creating cultures where connection drives real outcomes.

Michael's work has been featured in 25+ publications, including Becker's Healthcare Review, and he speaks nationally on patient experience and communication strategy.

He lives in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where he leads PatientX alongside his wife, Kimberly — still chasing the same mission he started with: make sure patient voices shape what gets built next.