December 2024

Digital Health Co/Lab at the University of Kansas's mission is to advance digital health technologies and improve patient engagement, provider experience and quality outcomes. 

As we finish a successful 2024, we are proud to share some some key highlights and exciting updates from the Digital Health Co/Lab.   

Inaugural Innovators Day

We held our first inaugural Innovators Day on October 30. The event, attended by 100+ individuals from KU Medical Center, The University of Kansas Health System, University of Kansas and the local digital health ecosystem, celebrated our achievements in digital health and laid the foundation for future growth. Dr. Alex Chiu and Chris Wilson opened the day with a warm welcome and highlighted key 2024 milestones, including:

Leadership Transitions

We would also like to share changes in our Co/Lab leadership. Dr. Alex Chiu, Digital Health Co/Lab founder and co-Executive Director, is leaving the organization for a senior leadership role at the University of Washington. We are extremely grateful for the time and effort Dr. Chiu contributed over the last few years to get us to this strong position. Also, Dr. Emily Law will be transitioning out of her Co/Lab role to an Associate Director role within KUMC’s Implementation Science for Equity COBRE. We thank Dr. Law for her contributions and passion in advancing our efforts.

As we look forward, Chris Wilson will continue as Executive Director, and we are excited to announce the following leadership updates:

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Tony Sung, Professor of Medicine, Division of Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapeutics, as a Co/Lab Scientific Director. Dr. Sung has a growing research portfolio incorporating various aspects of digital health including wearable devices. Welcome Dr. Sung!   

We are also happy to announce that Dr. Frank Materia, Assistant Professor in Department of Otolaryngology and the Department of Population Health, has accepted a position of Associate Scientific Director with the Co/Lab. Dr. Materia currently serves as the Associate Research Director for Co/Lab and has been instrumental in our recent growth. 

As we look to 2025, we remain committed to advancing digital health innovation and fostering collaboration across disciplines. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making 2024 a successful year for the Digital Health Co/Lab!

To further develop our scientific and research focus on digital health, we also plan to add additional Scientific Directors and welcome your input. Please let us know if you have any suggestions or nominations or pass the below information to any members of your department that you think would be a good candidate: 

We are seeking mid-senior career researchers with expertise in digital health technologies and applications to join our Digital Health Co/Lab team as a Scientific Director. Our Scientific Directors have the opportunity to guide strategy and lead implementation of high priority, cross-disciplinary research and development. This opportunity includes salary support/supplement, devoted staff time and directed resources to advance medical innovation across OneKU. Co/Lab Scientific Directors should be prepared to devote 2-4 hours per week to provide strategic leadership, participate in Co/Lab team meetings, coordinate with internal partners and stakeholders, and facilitate targeted outreach to potential collaborators.  We are particularly interested in individuals with interest and expertise in implementation science, commercialization and education in digital health. 

We welcome your suggested nominations and applications. Interested researchers should send their CV and a 1-page statement of intent outlining their research interests, related qualifications and ideas for advancing innovation in medicine through OneKU to Jennie Andra at jandra@kumc.edu. As part of the selection process, we will seek department chair approval for the time commitment from the department for the effort. 

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS

Award Maximum
$10,000

Award Period
July 1, 2025-June 30, 2026

Application Deadline 
March 5, 2025 (5:00 PM CT)

Invitation to Present Pitch
April 2025 

Pitch Presentations
May 2025

Announcement of Awards
June 2025

The Digital Health Co/Lab at the University of Kansas (formerly the Center for Health Innovation) is pleased to offer Rising Investigator Digital Health Innovation Awards to foster the development of innovators starting careers in digital health research and commercialization. 

Funds may be used to create and refine prototypes, evaluate usability, evaluate effects of human factors, develop software coding, assist with regulatory filings, assess interface design, and test feasibility or preliminary efficacy. The outcomes of funded projects should help early career innovators: 

Digital Health Co/Lab hosts a monthly Digital Health Seminar, offering a platform for innovators at various career stages to showcase their work. These presentations include innovations, grant proposals, business plans and investor pitches. All meetings are virtual and free to attend.  

January 16, 2025 | 1-2 p.m. | Erica Cruvinel, PhD, MPH
Dr. Cruvinel, Research Assistant Professor in Population Health, will present on Team Science Approaches to Smoking Cessation Solutions.

February 26, 2025 | Noon-1 p.m. | Michelle Redmond, PhD, MS
Dr. Redmond, Associate Professor in Population Health, will present on eDECIDE a Web-Based Problem-Solving Interventions for Diabetes Self-Management: Lessons Learned followed by Q/A and open discussion

March 26, 2025 | Noon-1 p.m. | J. Adam Howerton, DO, PT
TBD

April 23, 2025 | Noon-1 p.m. | Olivia Veatch, PhD, MS
TBD

May 15, 2025 | 1-2 p.m. | Andrés Bur, MD, FACS
TBD

For the latest meeting updates and to submit a presentation request, visit our website. 

Do you know any Faculty who can benefit from advanced training in digital health product commercialization and/or development of SBIR/STTR proposals? Continuum Educational Technologies (CET), based out of KU Innovation Park, is recruiting beta testers of their web-based training platform. Becoming a beta tester will provide researchers, innovators and entrepreneurs access to educational modules focused on research translation, commercialization, entrepreneurship, and teaches users how to write more effective SBIR/STTR proposals. CET hopes to learn from beta users how to strengthen the platform and content for the future. 

If you are anyone in your department would like to participate, please contact Dr. Frank Materia, Associate Scientific Director of the Co/Lab, at fmateria@kumc.edu. 

Digital Health Co/Lab has put together step by step guides to help guide you through the stages of idea generation to commercialization.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

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