New Orleans-based Ochsner Health System has launched an entity that will support companies working to revolutionize care. The organization also announced a three-year innovation challenge in collaboration with GE Healthcare.

innovationOchsner, or iO, will encourage new thinking around the best ways to enable patients to collect their health data and impact their care, according to a release. It will partner with other leading innovators both inside and outside of the healthcare industry to identify promising solutions and provide resources and support to develop concepts. iO will potentially provide an environment in which innovation for both patients and providers can be tested, and also may fund the future development and launch of successful ideas to the point that they are available to other patients and healthcare providers worldwide.

“As a national and global healthcare destination, and one that has been a driving force in this city’s rebirth after Hurricane Katrina, Ochsner is committed to continue bringing life-changing care and technology to the community,” said Warner Thomas, Ochsner Health System’s CEO. “Ochsner is evolving to meet the needs of a new world in healthcare, and putting effort and focus on finding new ways to transform the way we provide care will greatly impact the health of people today and tomorrow.”

Ochsner also is working with GE Healthcare and The Idea Village to launch a multi-year challenge to encourage additional innovation. The purpose of the three-year challenge is to "ignite brilliant moments in the future of healthcare by catalyzing a hotbed of healthcare innovation not only in New Orleans, but across the country," according to the release.

“This multi-year national challenge demonstrates our commitment to foster ideas that motivate sustainable innovation to the healthcare industry,” said Thomas.

The topics defined in this challenge will optimize some of the healthcare industry’s greatest opportunities by utilizing technology and technology concepts to address behavior management and chronic disease to transform healthcare outcomes. This first year will explore ‘wearable’ technologies, which have positively disrupted the health industry and will ultimately allow for more a personalized patient experience and care.

The challenge will last for three years to allow time to capture the engagement of the innovator community and provide ample time to develop robust, comprehensive solutions.

Ochsner Health System and GE Healthcare announced earlier this month a three-year commitment to The Idea Village as co-sponsors of what will be an annual Healthcare Innovation Summit at New Orleans Entrepreneur Week. The Idea Village is an organization with a mission to identify, support, and retain entrepreneurial talent in New Orleans.