July 13th, 2026
In the Spotlight: Dr. Greg Baker & Dr. Brandon Wilde of Toothsure
Happy Monday, friends! After a bit of a hiatus, we are finally back to getting some episodes out again, and I am pumped to get the feed rolling with some great interviews.
This week, I sat down with Dr. Greg Baker and Dr. Brandon Wilde, co-founders of Toothsure - a medical device company out of Hazard, Kentucky.
I usually try and distill a startup down into a single well defined problem that they solve, and for Toothsure, it’s a big one: hospital-acquired pneumonia is the number one hospital-acquired infection in the US. With 30-40 million hospital admissions every year, even a half-percent infection rate means thousands of people getting seriously ill - sometimes fatally - from something that often starts in the mouth. Greg spent 37 years as a practicing dentist doing consultations in Eastern Kentucky hospitals, nursing homes, and ICUs, and he kept seeing the same problem: patients with poor oral care getting infections they never should have gotten. When his own mother spent a week in the ICU and the extent of her oral care was a cup of water to rinse her mouth, Dr. Baker knew it was time to find a better way.
The problem isn't the nurses. Current oral care kits are cumbersome, multi-step, 24-hour systems that fall to the bottom of the triage list fast. So Greg, who also has an engineering background, spent two years interviewing ICU nurses at Hazard ARH, UK Healthcare, AdventHealth, and Pikeville — and designed something they'd actually use: OralVac and OralVac+, preloaded toothbrushes with measured-dose delivery and built-in suction. By removing time and friction, Toothsure is able to improve patient outcomes by preventing infections that originate from the mouth.
The other thing that stayed with me after this episode is Greg’s passion for what he’s building and Eastern Kentucky as a whole. Greg has self-funded several hundred thousand dollars, brought in friends and family, landed Keyhorse Capital, and secured a seven-figure state grant for the business. In April, the Governor's office announced Toothsure's $7.3M manufacturing facility coming to Perry County, creating 60 jobs at $55.25/hour in a region still recovering from coal's decline. His words: he wants to build something that outlasts him.
What We Discussed
The infection hiding in plain sight - Why hospital-acquired pneumonia is the #1 hospital-acquired infection, and how better oral care can lead to better patient outcomes.
Designing for the overwhelmed nurse - Two years of ICU nurse interviews shaped every feature of OralVac. A masterclass in listening to your end user.
The FDA gauntlet as a moat - Toothsure is a combination drug-led device - a harder path that burned them on one consultant, but keeps competitors far behind. Clearance targeted for Q4 2026.
Funding a med device company from Hazard - Self-funding, friends investing "in me, not the product," Keyhorse Capital, a seven-figure state grant, and SOAR opening doors along the way.
We hope you enjoy this episode! If you have any thoughts after listening, feel free to shoot me a message at [email protected]
Have a great week, friends!
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