University of Illinois Partnership
Opportunity
In 2013, the Jump Trading Simulation & Education Center opened its doors, thanks in part to a $25 million donation and a partnership between OSF HealthCare and the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria (UICOMP). The center's relationship with the U of I system expanded in 2014 with the creation of an endowment that funds projects between OSF HealthCare clinicians and engineers at the Urbana-Champaign campus working to find new solutions to commonly known health care issues and problems. As OSF Innovation came to fruition in 2016, there was an even larger opportunity to tap into the top-ranked university's resources.
"OSF HealthCare is committed to doing its part to help design a better future. Core to our Mission, we understand the value of fresh perspectives and seek to work with innovators outside our walls to maximize solutions that bring value to our patients and communities."
- Michelle Conger, Chief Strategy Officer for OSF HealthCare.
Solution
OSF Innovation was launched to embrace change and take on the most difficult challenges in health care. A major part of the innovation agenda is for Mission Partners to contribute their own ideas to solve health care challenges. OSF Innovation also partners with external incubators, accelerators and corporations to discover technology, products and services that can meet the needs of the organization. Valuing fresh perspectives from the academic community as well, the multidisciplinary group sought to leverage the U of I partnership further in new and different ways.
Impact
Outside of the existing partnerships with UICOMP and UIUC, OSF Innovation has a formal agreement in place with the University of Illinois Chicago's Biomedical Visualization graduate program where UIC grad students work with the Jump Medical Visualization team to develop new solutions in clinical education and research development. Various teams within OSF Innovation welcome interns from throughout the U of I system to work on various projects annually. OSF HealthCare, in 2018, became the first corporate partner in Discovery Partners Institute, a new Chicago facility led by the U of I, that's expected to play a significant role in the future of health care at home and across the world. And OSF is partnering with the U of I and others to develop a Peoria Innovation Hub that's part of the Illinois Innovation Network (IIN), a statewide initiative led by the U of I System to drive innovation along with economic and workforce development across the state.
The Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship
In 2013, the Jump Trading Simulation & Education Center opened its doors, thanks in part to a $25 million donation and a partnership between OSF HealthCare and the University of Illinois College of Medicine Peoria (UICOMP). The idea was that this collaboration could improve outcomes and lower health care costs through innovative simulation training that begins in the early years of medical school. The partnership has proved valuable with the development of a variety of simulation events that are making a positive impact on training and health care delivery.
The center's relationship with the U of I system expanded in 2014 with the creation of the Jump Applied Research for Community Health through Engineering and Simulation or Jump ARCHES endowment program. The $62.5 million fund provides grants to OSF HealthCare clinicians and engineers from Urbana-Champaign campus working together to develop new tools, devices or processes to enhance clinical outcomes as well as simulation and education.
With the launch of OSF Innovation, there was an even larger opportunity to tap into the top-ranked university's resources.
Taking the Partnership a Step Further
OSF HealthCare implemented the OSF Innovation agenda in 2016 to help the organization embrace change and take on the most difficult challenges in health care. That year, OSF Innovation opened within the Jump where multidisciplinary teams could collaborate to generate ideas, problem-solve and create solutions around advancing simulation, making the aging feel ageless, building a path for those off the beaten path and empowering those who feel powerless.
OSF Innovation takes a three-pronged approach to finding solutions in health care including internally, externally and through team invention. The multidisciplinary group encourages Mission Partners to contribute their own ideas to solve health care challenges. It also partners with external incubators, accelerators and corporations to discover technology, products and services that could meet the needs of OSF HealthCare.
Expanding its external partnerships to include academia was an easy choice considering the well-developed relationship with the U of I System. Known as a leader in academic research and having internationally connected faculty, there was no question the university could help OSF HealthCare not only advance innovation but to stay up-to-date on cutting edge developments through research capabilities and knowledge base.
Partners in Innovation
The relationship with U of I has evolved over the years to include all three campuses of the system. OSF Innovation has a formal agreement in place with the University of Illinois Chicago's Biomedical Visualization graduate program were there is a regular exchange of professional development. As part of this effort, UIC graduate students help the Jump Medical Visualization team develop projects to enhance clinical education and research development, including the development of interactive mobile applications with augmented reality.
Various teams within OSF Innovation welcome interns from throughout the U of I system to work on various projects annually. In 2017, the Healthcare Analytics team brought three U of I interns on board to advance a readmission model that helps OSF HealthCare predict which patients are at most-risk for hospital readmissions. Their charge was to find a way for the model to be applied specifically to the heart failure population. While the intern team developed a model that matches the results of the OSF program, their work proved valuable and opened the doors to many other collaborative projects.
OSF HealthCare, in 2018, became the first corporate partner in Discovery Partners Institute, a new world-class research and education center in Chicago led by the U of I that will bring hundreds of top researchers and thousands of students to the city to work with industry and government to tackle real-world challenges. As part of the partnership, DPI classes are already working with the Complex Solutions Innovation team, a part of OSF Innovation, to address key questions around serving the poor, rural, and elderly patient populations in Illinois.
The latest announcement is a partnership with the U of I and others to develop a Peoria Innovation Hub that's part of the Illinois Innovation Network (IIN), a statewide initiative led by the U of I System to drive innovation along with economic and workforce development across the state. The Peoria Hub, which will be located at the former Thomas recently vacated by Illinois Central College, will essentially reimagine the city's opportunities for entrepreneurs, students, innovators, creators and residents. Encompassing nearly 53,000 square feet, the facility will be dedicated to finding solutions to improve the wellness of underserved populations, and advance systems related to food, farming, and transportation – specifically autonomous mobility.