Project Overview
NACHC’s Center for Community Health Innovation announces the Innovation Incubator 2024, powered by the global healthcare company Abbott. This program was first established by NACHC and Abbott in 2023 to support and guide health centers in using a human-centered design approach to improve health equity on a specific topic/area.
This year the incubator will align with social drivers that are essential to good health – and the focus for 2024 is on improving health equity through access to nutritious food. With initial seed funding, access to leading experts, and training on human-centered design principles, selected health centers will design and test their solutions – all with the broader goal of sharing what works with health centers nationwide.
Award Amount: $30,000 (plus travel stipend)
Application is closed! Thank you for applying.
Program Timeline: April-October
More Information
More About the Program
The aim of NACHC’s Innovation Incubator is to select and support a cohort of eight health centers to imagine, build and test sustainable solutions for their unique populations.
This year NACHC invites innovative thinking on how health centers can improve access to nutritious food, with the goal of generating innovations that can improve clinical care and outcomes for patients, regardless of their zip code or their ability to pay for health services.
The aim of NACHC’s Innovation Incubator is to select and support a cohort of eight health centers to imagine, build and test sustainable solutions for their unique populations.
What is an incubator?
An incubator aims to foster and sustain innovative solutions that improve population health. Once the problem is understood, the idea or solution can be developed through the incubator program using curated online resources, coaching and mentoring, and subject matter expertise. The content areas include value proposition, stakeholder mapping, business plan development, communications, and sustainability.
The health centers involved in the cohort will have the opportunity to pitch their solutions to a group of experts for a chance to receive a prize with additional funding. NACHC’s goal is that by the conclusion of the program, every member of the cohort will have the skills and expertise to refine the solution they have designed and attract new funders and partners to implement and sustain the innovation. After the NACHC Innovation Incubator concludes, NACHC will compile and disseminate the solutions for other health centers, Primary Care Associations (PCAs), and Health Center Controlled Networks (HCCNs).
Who should participate?
Health centers (FQHCs and FQHC-LALs) who are current NACHC organizational members in good standing, and who have not yet taken part in the NACHC Innovation Incubator 2023, are eligible to apply. Teams who are interested in solving a problem or barrier around nutritious food should apply. Health centers do not need to be an expert in innovation skills at the time of application. A demonstrated need and clear goals for participating in the incubator are key factors in the assessment of applications.
Application is closed! Thank you for applying.
Application Questions
For any questions, please reach out to NACHC’s Innovation team at innovation@nachc.com.