Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 June 3, 2014
CONTACT:
Shelia Porter (312) 814-3524
   
 
www.idph.state.il.us

MyPocketNurse Wins Grand Prize at Chicago Health 2.0 Spring Conference and Make-a-thon

Winner Will Demonstrate Concept at Health DatapaloozaTM Today in Washington, D.C.

CHICAGO – It was a day brimming with innovation, excitement and interaction around creative solutions to everyday health care problems as Chicago Health 2.0 hosted its “Make-a-thon” competition at their 2014 Spring Conference. The event focused on innovation opportunities catalyzed by the Affordable Care Act and challenged interdisciplinary teams to develop creative solutions to problems identified in health care.

The Grand Prize winner for this year’s challenge was awarded to the creators of a mobile app concept called “MyPocketNurse,” in the “Consumer Health and Wellness” category. Albert Pak and Muhammed Fazeel’s clever tool helps individuals easily manage and track their hypertension with the use of a smart phone. The app also illustrates the integrated use of APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) from Walgreens such as Prescription Refill APIs, and vitals, including blood pressure readings from higi stations.

Along with winning a $500 top prize award in their category, MyPocketNurse also received matching grand prize awards of $500 from both the Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology (ONC) and the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) for a total grand prize of $1,500. In addition, the winner will travel to Washington, D.C., today to demonstrate MyPocketNurse at the ONC’s exhibit booth during Health Datapalooza™, a premier national event focusing on innovations in health data.

"I was honored to judge such an exciting and interesting competition," said Michael Gelder, Governor’s Office of Health Innovation and Transformation (GOHIT) Executive Director and Make-a-thon judge. "It was impressive to see the level of creativity that went into each entry. I'm encouraged to see young innovators applying technology to health care needs."

The Chicago Health 2.0’s Make-a-thon was hosted in partnership with ONC and IDPH, along with participation from the City of Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH), Illinois State GOHIT, Chicago Area Health Information Technology Regional Extension Center (CHITREC), Fuze Health Physician Collaborative, Walgreens, and higi.

The Make-a-thon judges were Maya Uppaluru and Nayan Jain from the ONC, Michael Gelder and Mary McGinnis of GOHIT, Raed Mansour and Matthew Roberts from CDPH, Satyender Goel from CHITREC, and Sindhu Pillai, MD, from Fuze Health. Stephen Konya from IDPH together with Chicago Health 2.0 facilitated the judging process.

“We were excited to be a part of Make-a-thon,” said IDPH Director Dr. LaMar Hasbrouck. “Making health data readily accessible and encouraging innovation in health care through the use of technology is one of the ways IDPH is creating a more transparent environment. We are committed to improving data utilization to promote awareness of health issues and how to address them.”

All prize winners will be invited to present their concepts at a subsequent Chicago Health 2.0 event in mid June. The presiding Make-a-thon judges will provide feedback and guidance to the prize winners for continued iteration of their concepts.

IDPH continues to implement its Five Year Strategy 2014-2018 to maximize IDPH’s effectiveness, influence and value for promoting wellness, health equity, safety and improved health outcomes. Strategic plan priorities include developing and expanding partnerships; improving data utilization; reducing health disparities; improving regulatory compliance; and branding, marketing and communicating IDPH’s value.
http://www.idph.state.il.us/about/StrategicPlan_Final_2014-2018.pdf

 
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