#9 Why a collaboration between two unlikely sources can provide various insights and knowledge to help an organization grow

Two organizations have collaborated to gather scholarly research that can translate into practical solutions to improve both individual and community health.

While many may assume that those working in the healthcare industry would rather be independent and not share their work with anyone else, that is not true. Collaborating with other brands and companies is a key way to gain various new insights, and have someone in your network if you ever need a helping hand. OSF Healthcare and Bradley University have key examples as to why these collaborations are important to overall growth. 

OSF is a healthcare organization that includes a multidisciplinary team that inspires, mentors and partners, to transform care for patients and providers. With expertise in everything from ideation to commercialization, the division designs agile solutions, connecting everyday needs with inventive approaches and bold advances. Bradley University is a top-ranked, private university in Peoria, Illinois, offering nearly 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students opportunities, choices, and resources to build their futures.

The main purpose of the collaboration between these two organizations is to assist with creating scholarly research. OSF researchers from their innovations lab will be connecting with the clinical researchers from Bradley University in order to draft scholarly articles based on any findings within their industry. 

This partnership has various benefits, one major one being financials. According to their press release, “the OSF-Bradley agreement represents a $5 million dollar commitment over five years. The partnership commits each entity to contribute $500,000 each year to provide annual funding opportunities in the fall and spring for innovative, interdisciplinary projects addressing important healthcare challenges. The first request for proposals with awards up to $50,000 will be announced soon.” 

The vice president for strategy and innovation at Bradley University, Christopher Jones, has claimed that the school will be planning a trailblazer challenge as the first major effort from this partnership. Those at Bradley were able to submit their ideas to USF about solutions to the various challenges that the healthcare system faces. Some of these ideas that have since made it through to the final round of trial include: 

“OSF “Uber” (Submitted by Carissa Dodwell, Performance Improvement Specialist): Implement a transportation system to pick up or drop off patients, increasing appointment compliance.

Prescribed food delivery (Submitted by Cassi Adkins, Clinical Education Specialist for all of OSF HealthCare): Create a healthy grocery delivery system for our most vulnerable patients.

Partner with home health agencies to decrease ER visits (Submitted by Ellen Chaney, Innovation Coordinator for the Center for Information Management): Develop a way to keep individuals from being readmitted to the emergency room for conditions a home health agency could assist with.” 

This is a great way to get ideas from young adults who have strong opinions about the changes that they have witnessed in the healthcare industry and what they believe needs to be changed. 

Many healthcare organizations may be hesitant to collaborate with others, as it is a massive commitment. However, partnerships such as the recent connection between OSF and Bradley University show just how important these are. These partnerships allow organizations to share crucial data and resources in order to gain more detailed insights for their patients. Without this, the healthcare industry would not grow at the rapid rate it needs to ensure patients are getting the best care. 

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