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Innovation Acceleration Program

IDEO's Rodrigo Martinez believes we all have the power to improve people's lives by gleaning small insights from everyday interactions

“What is the purpose of healthcare?” To a room full of doctors, nurses and other healthcare experts at Boston Children’s Hospital, it was a startling question—justifying why they save lives was not part of their everyday experience.

“It may seem like a crazy question but it’s important to ask why we do what we do,” said Rodrigo Martinez, life sciences chief strategist from the international design firm IDEO, during a monthly Innovator’s Forum at the hospital. “Is it to care? Is it for us to feel better? Is it for us to have less emotional trauma in our lives?”

One audience member admitted that a lot of his time in the Emergency Department is spent reporting what he does. “During an eight hour shift, I may spend a significant amount of time recording all the things I’ve done to help a patient, but that’s time I’m not with the patient.” Martinez nodded. Full story »

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Valentine's Day is Innovation Day (image: Richard Giles/Flickr)

In a series of 17 short TED-style talks next Tuesday, February 14, clinicians and scientists from Children’s will present new products, processes and technologies to make health care safer, better and less expensive. The event, from 1-5 p.m. Eastern, is sponsored by the Innovation Acceleration Program. It’s now running a wait list, but you can also watch the live stream or track the proceedings on Twitter (#iDay) or via @science4care. Here’s a small sampling of next week’s presenters; for details, read the press release or view the full agenda.

Diagnosing lazy eye when it’s most treatable: in preschoolers

If lazy eye, or amblyopia, is caught early – ideally, before age 5 – it’s easily treated by patching the “good” eye, forcing the child to use and strengthen the weaker eye. But if it goes unnoticed, the weak, unused eye can slowly go blind, Full story »

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