UCLA Health has always been a home of “firsts.” From developing the world’s first functional PET imaging system to breakthrough immunotherapies and innovative health care apps, our staff and faculty are always looking for new and improved ways to advance our mission. Our innovative community continuously makes discoveries and redesigns care, with many of our system-wide tools and programs, such as CICARE and real-time occupancy dashboards, having been developed by staff and faculty here at UCLA. Each of these advancements, no matter how small, offers hope to our patients and our community.
We are always looking for new and creative ways to advance our mission. That’s why we want to hear from U!
UCLA Health has launched the UCLA Health Innovation Challenge to provide faculty, staff, trainees, patients, caregivers, volunteers, and UCLA students, the opportunity to help advance long-lasting health and wellness solutions. There are five submission categories:
Medical Technology/Digital Health: Interdisciplinary teams can submit an early-stage MedTech or digital health idea, design or prototype that solves a clinical or patient care need. Winners receive $2,500, $5,000, $10,000, or $25K-100K in seed funding. More >
IT Support for Care Efficiency: Suggest an IT solution/improvement that will enhance care delivery, accuracy, efficiency and/or operations. Winners receive a personalized IT upgrade such as a custom CareConnect feature. Eligibility: UCLA Health staff and faculty. More >
Patient Experience (CICARE): Apply to receive recognition or the opportunity to expand your favorite patient experience pilots. Eligibility: Employees, trainees, patients and caregivers. More >
Performance Improvement: Apply to receive recognition or the opportunity to expand your existing performance improvement efforts. Eligibility: UCLA Health staff and faculty. More >
Greatest Idea: We are always looking for new and creative ways to advance our mission. Please participate in our greatest idea challenge. All topics are welcome. Eligibility: Open to all. More >
The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2019. To learn more and to submit your ideas, see details below.
Summary:
An opportunity to create a new technology with seed funding.
Details:
Compete for seed funding for you / your interdisciplinary team to design, prototype or further develop a new medical technology, digital health or innovative solution. Small seed funding awards (up to $100,000) for early stage ideas to help with proof-of-concept projects solving a clinical/hospital/patient care need. Funds may be used as a precursor to the UCLA Innovation Fund, which supports projects with a patentable innovation. Funds may be used as a precursor to patent, copyright or licensing of a technology.
Examples include but are not limited to:
Disposable or surgical tool, point of care diagnostics, wearable / remote sensors, etc.
Final project(s) selected that help advance technologies will win seed grants and matchmaking where needed for MedTech prototyping. The result may serve as a precursor for submission to the UCLA MedTech Partnering conference or the UCLA Innovation Fund.
Eligibility:
UCLA Campus employees, trainees and students.
Prize:
Seed funding at the $2,500, $5,000, $10,000, or $25K-100K level. Multiple winners allowed in the lower cost categories. Based on availability.
Summary:
An opportunity to submit an idea that IT helps solve.
Details:
Compete to receive IT support to create a new workflow or patient care optimization to a clinical or operational IT application (including CareConnect) used at UCLA Health. Outline rationale of how enhancement could help with speed, accuracy and/or efficiency of clinical care delivery, operations, etc. This is an idea competition to suggest useful new applications or modifications to an existing clinical or operational tool, to eliminate a paper process and/or a suggestion for a new app to be housed in our UCLA Health App Store. The idea submitted should be compelling and able to be completed by our IT Department.
Examples include but are not limited to:
Increasing workflow optimization, creating a virtual health feature, creating enhancements for EPIC, etc.
Winning project(s) that help improve care efficiency will gain Health IT support.
Eligibility:
UCLA Health System or clinically related staff and employees.
Prize:
IT Support to create an enhancement or solution to a clinical, patient care or operational problem. Multiple winners allowed. Based on scope of request(s).
Summary:
Two opportunities
Details:
Compete to receive recognition and/or the opportunity to expand a patient experience project your team has already implemented. This is an opportunity to win recognition with prizes and/or support and resources from leadership for programs and initiatives that need to scale and have shown success for six months or more. Feedback in the form of a quote from patients or participants can help submissions.
Examples include but are not limited to:
Increased comfort for patients and families, MindBody wellness, exercise, nutrition, monitoring, etc.
Eligibility:
Teams that have implemented patient experience initiatives. Faculty, staff, trainees, patients, caregivers, volunteers, UCLA Health and UCLA Community are all welcome.
*Note if you have ideas that have not yet been implemented, please submit them through the Greatest Idea Challenge (hyperlink to category 5)
Prize:
Summary:
Two opportunities
Details:
Compete to receive recognition and/or the opportunity to expand a performance improvement project your team has already implemented. This is an opportunity to win recognition with prizes and/or support and resources from leadership for programs and initiatives that need to scale and have shown success for six months or more.
Examples include but are not limited to:
Aim to increase access, decrease costs, improve quality and ValU, efficiency processes in clinical care, clinical research, education, training, etc.
Eligibility:
Faculty, staff, trainees and their team members.
Prize:
UCLA Health supports a culture of feedback. Please submit your greatest idea(s) for enhanced experience or operations at UCLA Health. All faculty, staff, trainees, patients, caregivers and volunteers are welcome to submit. All topics are welcomed.
Prize:
