AMA building innovation center with health technology incubator
The American Medical Association (AMA) is the latest to get into the innovation business, as the normally staid organization has entered into a partnership with a recently launched healthcare technology incubator.
The AMA is joining with Chicago-based incubator Matter to create the AMA Interaction Studio at Matter, a simulated healthcare space for physicians and entrepreneurs to team up on the development and testing of new technologies.
Matter, funded with the help of a $4 million grant from the State of Illinois, will dedicate 450 square feet of space in Chicago’s iconic Merchandise Mart to the AMA Interaction Studio. The space, according to the nonprofit incubator, “is being envisioned to include modular furniture and advanced video and audio technologies that will allow users to better understand workflows and how new products and services will fit into a healthcare delivery environment of the future.”
AMA and Matter also will host workshops and simulations in the studio, with a focus on optimizing interactions between clinicians and patients. “Our goal is to help entrepreneurs identify and understand key challenges in patient care and foster the seeds of innovation that will deliver meaningful solutions for physicians,” AMA CEO and Executive Vice President James L. Madara, MD, said in a statement.
“The AMA's partnership with Matter will create an environment where entrepreneurs can directly collaborate with and gain insights from physicians and the healthcare community to improve and advance technologies, products and services that will improve the health of the nation,” Madara added.
Neil Versel joined TriMed in 2015 as the digital editor of Clinical Innovation + Technology, after 11 years as a freelancer specializing in health IT, healthcare quality, hospital/physician practice management and healthcare finance.