A new chapter in vital organ care is unfolding as Vantive establishes its identity as an independent, purpose-driven leader in kidney care. With Trushar Patel stepping into an expanded leadership role across Europe, the company is accelerating efforts to transform dialysis through home-based therapies, digital innovation and deeper partnerships with clinicians. Drawing on experience across diverse healthcare systems, Patel highlights how these shifts are redefining patient experience and care delivery - starting with France as a proving ground for what’s next.
How has your international career shaped the way you approach leadership at Vantive today?
I have spent more than two decades in the medical device and healthcare sector, working across finance, commercial, business development and general management roles. From the outset, my career has been international, with leadership responsibilities spanning Western Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Earlier on, I worked extensively in France and the Benelux, before moving into broader regional positions, including serving as General Manager for Africa at Baxter, where I oversaw operations across the continent. For the past two years, I have been General Manager for Central and Eastern Europe, Turkey and Israel at Vantive. I am now transitioning into an expanded role as General Manager for Northwest Europe, covering France, the Benelux, the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Nordic countries. I have already been leading the French business for the past two months, with the full scope of the role becoming effective from 1 January. Returning to France is particularly meaningful for me. My previous experience here was more than a decade ago, in a finance leadership position, and coming back now as a general manager offers a different perspective on how the landscape has evolved and where progress is still needed.
Vantive itself is a newly independent healthcare company, fully standalone since early 2025 following the divestment of Baxter’s kidney care business to the global investment firm Carlyle. While the name is new, we build on more than 70 years of heritage in kidney disease and vital organ support. Today, our focus is squarely on kidney care — advancing chronic dialysis therapies like peritoneal dialysis and delivering acute treatments for critically ill patients in intensive care.
That independence matters. It gives us a clear mandate to focus where it counts – on vital organ care – concentrating investment, innovation and organisational effort on therapies that support kidney health and critical care for the most vulnerable patients. We are not here to continue business as usual. Our ambition is to accelerate home therapies, strengthen what we do in intensive care, and evolve how we support both patients and healthcare professionals. Being more focused also brings greater agility and a stronger sense of ownership. Kidney care is a demanding field, and it requires genuine commitment. When I spend time in the field with nurses, therapy specialists and medical teams, what stands out is the level of passion involved. That focus and engagement are central to how we want to shape the next phase of Vantive’s development.
What sits at the core of your mandate as you oversee diverse healthcare systems across Europe, and how does France fit into that picture?
The mandate is broadly consistent across markets, even though healthcare systems differ in structure and incentives. It centres on improving access to appropriate therapies for patients, while supporting clinicians and maintaining system sustainability. In France, this focus is most evident in home dialysis, particularly peritoneal dialysis, where uptake remains limited despite the country’s size and maturity as a healthcare market. Addressing this gap requires coordinated progress across education, care pathways and reimbursement, so that patients who are clinically suitable can access home-based therapies in a way that reflects both medical judgement and patient preference.
These priorities take on greater urgency in light of demographic and epidemiological trends. An ageing population, the growing prevalence of diabetes and the wider burden of chronic kidney disease are all driving demand for renal care. Expanding home treatment is therefore not simply a question of shifting care out of hospital, but of improving quality of life for patients while easing pressure on already constrained hospital resources. Digital capability has become a critical enabler in this context. Remote monitoring and data-driven support now allow patients to be managed safely at home, while also helping healthcare professionals work more efficiently at a time when shortages of doctors and nurses are increasingly acute.
Alongside chronic care, intensive care represents a second strategic pillar. Acute kidney injury is common among critically ill patients, and many require dialysis support that is both effective and well tolerated. Continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) plays a central role in these settings, particularly for haemodynamically unstable patients. Our objective is to act as a dependable partner to intensive care teams by providing therapies and tools that support sound clinical decisions in complex environments. Taken together, these priorities reflect a long-term approach focused on improving patient outcomes while strengthening the resilience of care delivery models.
How would you characterise the current renal care environment in France, and what has most struck you since returning?
What has struck me most is the sense of momentum. The French renal care market is highly dynamic, with a stronger and more explicit focus on home-based care than I have seen previously. Over recent months, home therapies have moved firmly into the mainstream of the discussion, supported by a growing body of evidence and a broader alignment among stakeholders. This shift is reinforced by a particularly mature digital ecosystem. Beyond the solutions we bring as Vantive, France has a dense network of start-ups developing digital platforms for hospitals and care delivery, which creates a level of innovation and openness that is less visible in many other markets.
Economic considerations are also playing a more central role. With healthcare funding under sustained pressure, there is a clearer understanding that home-based treatment can offer a more efficient alternative to hospital-based care while remaining clinically appropriate. This has helped reframe the conversation towards integrated care models that balance patient outcomes, quality of life and system sustainability, rather than focusing on individual interventions in isolation.
Beyond these immediate dynamics, France holds a distinct strategic position within Europe. It consistently ranks among the top five medical device markets and combines that scale with a strong industrial base. Our manufacturing site in Meyzieu, near Lyon, produces renal care products for global distribution, making France both a key commercial market and an important production hub within our European operations. Equally significant is the country’s clinical influence. French nephrologists and researchers are widely respected, and their work is closely followed well beyond Western Europe, including across francophone regions. Scientific forums such as the annual congress of the Société Francophone de Néphrologie, Dialyse et Transplantation (SFNDT) reflect France’s role as a reference point in kidney care, both clinically and academically. Taken together, these factors give France a strategic weight that extends well beyond market size alone.
How does Vantive’s portfolio in France address both home-based and acute kidney care needs today?
In France, our largest area of activity is home peritoneal dialysis, anchored in automated solutions such as Homechoice Claria and strengthened by the Sharesource Connectivity Platform. Designed for use in the home, this combination enables secure, two-way remote monitoring, allowing care teams to follow treatment data closely, assess adherence and trends, and adjust prescriptions remotely when clinically appropriate. This level of oversight supports earlier intervention, helps reduce complications and can extend the time patients remain successfully on therapy, while preserving independence and reducing the need for additional clinic visits.
Acute care in intensive care units is the second major pillar of our work. For patients with acute kidney injury, continuous renal replacement therapy is delivered through platforms designed in close collaboration with ICU clinicians to simplify workflows and support consistent therapy delivery. Beyond technology, we invest in capability building through Vantive Learning Services, offering on-demand education and virtual training to help ICU teams build confidence and deliver care effectively.Digital capability is becoming central to kidney care. Platforms such as Sharesource enable remote monitoring and data-driven therapy management in collaboration with clinics, while patient-facing tools like the MyPD app help strengthen engagement and continuity of care. As patients live longer and expect more flexibility, home dialysis plays a key role – allowing them to maintain routines, work, and travel when care is well planned. This reflects a broader move beyond equipment toward integrated care models that combine therapy, digital tools, and training to meet the needs of patients and healthcare professionals today.
Where does France stand on home dialysis adoption, and what needs to change to unlock further progress?
Home dialysis in France is established, but it remains significantly underutilised when viewed against comparable European markets. Countries such as the Netherlands have reached penetration levels of around 15 percent, with the Nordic countries even higher, while France remains closer to 6 percent. That gap points to clear headroom for growth. Moving the needle will require sustained effort across education, care pathways and, critically, reimbursement structures that still tend to favour in-centre treatment. Even a gradual shift towards 10 percent penetration would represent a meaningful change for patients and for the healthcare system as a whole.
What has changed notably compared with 15 years ago is the way we approach these challenges. Over the past 18 months, we have significantly strengthened our government affairs and market access capabilities, with dedicated teams now focused on patient access and policy engagement alongside our work with clinicians on the ground. Increasing adoption at scale cannot rely solely on clinical advocacy. It also requires structured, evidence-based dialogue with health authorities to address the systemic factors that influence treatment choices.
Economic evidence sits at the centre of that conversation. Across multiple studies, peritoneal dialysis is consistently shown to be around 18 percent less costly than haemodialysis, while offering clear quality-of-life advantages for many patients. Demonstrating this combined clinical and economic value is a priority in our discussions with policymakers. In parallel, we are working to ensure that digital tools, including remote monitoring, can be recognised within existing reimbursement frameworks, drawing on examples from countries where such approaches are already supported. While our core therapies are reimbursed today, part of the objective is to ensure that reimbursement levels and structures better reflect their broader value to patients and to the sustainability of the healthcare system.
How does your manufacturing footprint in France align with the country’s reindustrialisation and innovation ambitions?
Maintaining a manufacturing presence in a country where we operate commercially is strategically important, but it needs to be considered within a broader European context. As a kidney care specialist, Vantive operates a distributed industrial network designed to support global supply with resilience and consistency. In France, we have a manufacturing site in Meyzieu, near Lyon, which produces specialised haemodialysis filters and related components. These products are not limited to the domestic market but are supplied internationally, making the site a fully integrated part of our global renal care manufacturing network.
This French footprint sits alongside other specialised facilities in Europe, including sites in Germany and Ireland, each with a clearly defined role within the wider system. That model reflects the reality of modern medical manufacturing, where quality, efficiency and security of supply are achieved through specialisation and scale rather than centralisation. Within that framework, the Meyzieu site contributes skilled employment, technical expertise and a high standard of production, while anchoring our long-term industrial presence in France.
From a national perspective, this matters. Producing in France means we are not simply distributing imported products, but manufacturing locally and exporting globally, which supports employment and reinforces the regional industrial ecosystem. There is also a strong reputational dimension. Products made in France carry a recognised quality label internationally, something I consistently see reflected across markets. In that sense, our manufacturing presence aligns naturally with France’s reindustrialisation and innovation ambitions, while remaining fully embedded within a broader European and global supply strategy.
How are stakeholders responding to Vantive as a newly independent brand, and how are you shaping that perception?
Vantive is still a new name, but it carries a heritage that is very present. Many stakeholders naturally continue to associate us with Baxter, and that legacy brings credibility and trust. The difference today lies in our focus. We are positioning ourselves clearly as a therapy-driven, patient-centred organisation rather than a traditional device supplier, with greater emphasis on outcomes, on how therapies are supported over time, and on the role digital tools can play in improving everyday clinical practice.
A key part of that transition is how we engage with the medical community. We spend significant time in the field with physicians, nurses and care teams, listening to their experience and learning from how therapies are used in real-world settings. We do not assume we have all the answers. That listening mindset is shaping how we evolve our approach, allowing us to move beyond simply supplying products and towards acting as a genuine partner in improving renal care.
Digital innovation is driving change, but it’s only part of the story. We’ve also strengthened our government affairs and market access capabilities to ensure sustainable access to both established therapies and emerging digital solutions. Working closely with health authorities, payers, and non-profit organizations, these teams present clear clinical and economic evidence to show the broader system value of innovations like remote monitoring. Communications plays an essential role – engaging externally and raising awareness of patient needs so these conversations resonate beyond policy circles and reach the wider healthcare community. While the transition is ongoing and the Baxter legacy remains visible, this combination of focus, listening, and partnership is increasingly shaping how stakeholders view Vantive today.
How do you ensure that a more patient-centred, solution-oriented approach translates into everyday practice?
We’ve shifted our perspective: starting with the patient, not the product. Our goal is to build solutions that create value for patients, clinicians, and health systems – not just individual technologies. Listening drives this approach. Whether with key opinion leaders, health authorities, or in the field, we focus on where care can improve, not just how our portfolio is received. Kidney care is complex, and progress takes time, but our teams’ passion ensures this is more than a rebrand – it’s a commitment to patient-centered, solution-based care.
Looking ahead, what outcomes would define success for you over the next three years, and what role could France play in that journey?
Looking ahead, our goal is clear: Extending lives, expanding possibilities. We want home dialysis to become a standard part of care in France – because it offers patients greater flexibility, independence, and quality of life, while easing pressure on health systems. guided by clinical appropriateness and patient needs. Increasing adoption matters because it means more patients can access therapies that offer flexibility and improve quality of life. Alongside this, deeper digital integration will reshape kidney care, from data-driven pathways to remote oversight.
France is well positioned to play a leadership role in this evolution, and where innovation works here, it can be scaled beyond France. Above all, supporting patients and healthcare professionals remains our guiding priority – and that focus will shape our direction for years to come.
