Ignite Fund Sparks Novel Solutions to Unmet Needs
Michael Ferguson, MD, (left) demonstrates to MaineHealth Vice President of Innovation Susan Ahern (right) how augmented reality goggles can be used to practice resuscitating a baby in distress.
Every innovation starts with a vision. And, two pediatricians at The Barbara Bush Children’s Hospital at Maine Medical Center (BBCH) believe that a change in perspective, via augmented reality goggles, could allow rural physicians to train for low-frequency but high-risk neonatal resuscitations without having to travel to a million-dollar simulation lab.
“Most people know augmented reality from a kid’s game – Pokemon Go! You see the little characters on the road, but they’re not actually there,” said Michael Ferguson, MD, a pediatric intensive care specialist at BBCH. “What we’re doing is creating augmented reality simulation using headsets that allow teams in any location to practice resuscitating a baby in distress and then play video of the simulation back to learn how to improve their care.”
Dr. Ferguson and Mary Ottolini, MD, the George W. Hallett, MD, Chair of Pediatrics at BBCH, were some of the first recipients of the MaineHealth Innovation Center’s Ignite Fund with their idea for the Augmented Reality Technology for Medical Simulation (ARTforMS) goggles. The Ignite Fund provides up to $20,000 in seed capital to advance innovations. It also helps innovators connect with collaborators and technical experts who help propel their ideas forward.
“Without the structure and support that the Innovation Center and the Ignite Fund provide, we wouldn’t have been able to make the appropriate connections to build on our ideas,” Dr. Ottolini said.
Drs. Ferguson and Ottolini are now working with Case Western University and the Roux Institute at Northeastern University on improvements to the ARTforMS prototype before piloting it at MaineHealth hospitals.
Some of the other ideas receiving funding through the Ignite Fund include:
- A Diabetic AI Retinopathy Screener, to decrease a preventable form of blindness in diabetic patients by screening the eye during their regular annual visits
- navigatER, a HIPAA-compliant phone and tablet app that allows patients in the emergency room to receive real-time updates on the clinical progress of their emergency visit and expected course of treatment
- The Johnny Jumper, a patient gown with snaps down the side to allow for controlled care team member access and improved patient privacy
“As a learning health system, MaineHealth is creating the health care of the future,” said Susan Ahern, vice president of Innovation at MaineHealth. “The Ignite Fund is an important way we support our innovators structurally and financially.”
