In 2013, Mackenzie Health embarked on an exciting journey to transform our organization’s capacity to engage in innovative healthcare delivery. We built an applied innovation vision and the infrastructure to create and propagate sustainable change within our organization, and to spread it more broadly at the healthcare system level. Over the subsequent two years, we built partnerships with industry and academia and established an evaluative focus on implementation, usability, adoption and scalability of disruptive innovations, predominately in healthcare technology, but also in evidence-based practice changes and alternative service delivery and procurement models. The partnerships were built on a common vision of healthcare innovation and were critical to the success of our early innovation initiatives.
To provide a strong foundation for healthcare technology innovation, Mackenzie Health also committed deeply to building the advanced technological infrastructure necessary to support innovations in information, communications, and automation technology within healthcare (ICAT Healthcare).
Mackenzie Innovation Institute (Mi²) is positioned as a leader in healthcare applied
innovation with a focus to ensure sustainability and long-term success.
Mi² Strategic Road Map
Our strategic priorities are achieved with support from the Mackenzie Health, Mackenzie Health Foundation and commitment and dedication of staff, clinical champions, and our partnership network.
Mackenzie Innovation Institute (Mi²) has a clear vision with significant milestones in the years ahead – amongst them to support and prepare for the new Mackenzie Vaughan Hospital, while continuing to develop and scale our innovation initiatives.
Our strategic directions revolve around three key mandates:
Disruptive innovations are ideas that redefine current industries. Mi² will be a healthcare innovation centre that will promote a culture of disruptive innovation amongst industry partners by facilitating communication between different stakeholders and by creating a workspace where experimental and innovative ideas can flourish. The results of these strategic partnerships will improve and simplify healthcare processes using cost efficient solutions.
Mi² will continue to develop and implement Internet of Healthcare Things (IoHT) solutions, one of which is a secured network of devices that are interconnected and that exchange data and communicate unobtrusively. Each device has the capability to operate independently while simultaneously working as a part of larger system. This interconnectivity creates the capability for ambient intelligence, an environment where the devices are sensitive to the needs of the users. One capability of IoHT, is that it can breakdown the information silos that isolate people and systems and remove distractions and unnecessary notifications thereby allowing clinical staff to perform their duties efficiently.
To improve health outcomes, healthcare systems need to be critically examined. Design thinking methodology will be utilized in order to find opportunities for change and improvement at different levels. This problem solving procedure promotes viewing problems from the user’s perspective and is characterized by idea generation, prototyping and testing. To further support potential healthcare redesign, evidence based practices will be utilized to drive sustainable change.
Technology and solutions are simply tools to solve the problem, essential to the process and success of health system redesign is the engagement of appropriate stakeholders who are crucial in defining the current state creating the design, operationalization and refinement of healthcare solutions. Mi² will actively disseminate and translate knowledge to ensure that healthcare solutions can be scaled and spread globally.
In order to build capacity for innovation, there must be an environment of enthusiasm, engagement and one where individuals are not afraid of taking risks. Mi² will add value by working with partners to instill curiosity and ‘out of the box’ thinking; traits necessary to maintain an appetite for innovation. By working closely with external stakeholders, Mi² will gain a deeper understanding of not only what is needed but the characteristics of the organization so as to better tailor solutions. Extensive work with partners will allow Mi² to become a trusted source in innovation capacity building.
