Six projects were selected for funding in the challenge, which invites participants to present innovative ideas and practices designed to advance health outcomes and improve the care experience.
The following is a letter from University of Maryland, Baltimore President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, and University of Maryland Medical Center President and Chief Executive Officer Bert W. O’Malley, MD:
This past summer, we proudly launched our fourth annual UMMC and UMB Innovation Challenge, a competition offering several opportunities for awards up to $100,000. Rooted in the shared University of Maryland Medical System and University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) value of Discovery, this challenge invites participants to present innovative ideas and practices designed to advance health outcomes and improve the care experience for patients, families, and health care practitioners.
A collaboration between colleagues at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) and UMB, this year’s challenge saw an unprecedented number of high-caliber applications from multidisciplinary teams, making it our most competitive selection process yet. We were particularly excited by the diverse proposals submitted under this year’s Request for Proposal category of Novel Medical Devices.
After an extensive four-month review process, six exceptional submissions were selected to receive funding. Over the next 12 to 18 months, these teams will use their award funding to test and implement their groundbreaking innovations.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all the applicants for their time and effort in applying to the Innovation Challenge, as well as to the Selection Committee and Innovation Challenge Leadership for their invaluable contributions. The passion and ingenuity showcased through these submissions underscore UMMC and UMB’s shared commitment to leveraging innovative solutions to shape the future of health care.
We are proud to announce the following six awardees:
$100,000 Awardees:
- Fiberoptic Arterial Catheter to Measure Real-Time Intravascular Oxygen Saturation & Blood Pressure – Michael McCurdy, MD; Haben Joseph, RN; Samuel Galvagno, DO, PhD, MS, MBA; Matthew D’Angelo, DNP, CRNA. MHPE
- Novel Ventricular Catheter for Drainage of Intraventricular Hemorrhage – Riccardo Serra, MD; Mark Luciano, MD, PhD; Erika Moore, PhD
$25,000 Awardees:
- Guideline-Directed Medical Therapy Titration Clinic for Patients with Heart Failure – Joel Alejandro, MD; Ifeanyi Gloria Egbunike-Chukwuma, PharmD, BCPS, BCACP; Carol Wade, RN, DNP, CRNP, HF-CERTa
- ECPR Preparation Education – Erin Niles, PA-C; Daniel Hasse, MD; Stefhan Dassoulas, RN; Kristen George, RN; Elizabeth Powell, MD; Kate Heacock, DNP
$100,000 Request for Proposal Awardees: Novel Medical Devices
- The FireFly System: Non-Contact Intraocular Pressure H – Amal Isaiah, MD, PhD, MBA; Adway Kanhere, MSE; Giuliano Scarcelli, PhD; Ivano D’Alessandro, BS
- A Novel Percutaneous Access Graft System for Improved Heart Patient Care – Aakash Shah, MD; Bartley Griffith, MD; Zhongjun Wu, PhD
Congratulations to all the awardees and thank you for bringing your unique and innovative approaches to life! We look forward to showcasing the progress of each team’s efforts over the next 18 months on the Innovation Challenge website.
We look forward to offering the Innovation Challenge Awards again in 2025 and collaborating with our talented colleagues to further enhance the care we provide to our community.