TORONTO – There will be no shortage of OCE-supported health technology innovators at the upcoming Discovery 2018 conference. Bringing together the best and brightest minds in industry, academia, investment and government to showcase leading-edge technologies, best practices and research, Discovery will give healthcare industry collaborators and partner institutions the opportunity to engage with the wider innovation ecosystem in Ontario.

“At Discovery, we are excited to be showcasing technologies created as a result of the healthcare programs that we administer on behalf of the Province,” says Dr. Tom Corr (pictured), OCE’s president and CEO. “Working with the healthcare sector in supporting the development of new technologies, we are helping to make Ontario a global leader in health innovation while providing the better care for the province’s patients.”

This year’s Discovery Conference runs April 30-May 1, 2018 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. For more information, please visit https://www.ocediscovery.com/

As a leading research-to-commercialization vehicle in Ontario connecting academia and industry, Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) helps advance innovation across many sectors. With today’s need to reflect the values of Ontario’s Patients First: Action Plan for Health Care by connecting patients with the right care closer to home, improving the quality of care, and bringing value to the healthcare system, OCE has made support for innovations in healthcare technology a priority.

From tablet applications that bridge communications between patients and care providers, to new and innovative tools that inform decisions regarding falls prevention, the level of investment deployed by OCE in this sector in 2016-17 was second only to that of communications technology and exceeded that of manufacturing and clean technology.

OCE manages and administers two major programs on behalf of the Ontario government that are aimed at helping research, develop, implement, and commercialize healthcare-focused technologies.

REACH (the Resources for Evaluating, Adopting and Capitalizing on Innovative Healthcare Technology), launched in 2015, is an $8.22million grant funding program designed to help Ontario healthcare providers more rapidly adopt ground-breaking medical technologies.

While Ontario hospitals and Shared Services Organizations (SSOs) are showing a strong appetite for innovation, there are many challenges associated with introducing innovative new products and services into healthcare systems. Focusing on innovation procurement, REACH helps to identify and procure innovative technologies focused on solving system challenges with the healthcare system and building capacity and expertise within hospitals in applying alternative and more flexible methods of procurement.

The Health Technology Fund (HTF), introduced in 2016, is a $20-million fund that supports development of made-in-Ontario health technologies by accelerating evaluation, procurement, adoption and diffusion in the Ontario healthcare system. Administered by OCE on behalf of the Office of the Chief Health Innovation Strategist (OCHIS), HTF fosters partnerships between publicly funded health service providers, patients, academia and industry to drive collaboration that improves patient outcomes, adds value to the health system and creates jobs in Ontario.

“The need to keep improving healthcare solutions is extremely important for both the patients of today and the future,” says Jennifer Moles, innovation procurement manager, OCE. We are able to move this agenda by further connecting industry and health service providers to collaborate.”

“Through these health-focused programs, we are investing in not just our health, but also the economy of the province, as we help drive innovation and create jobs in the process,” says Dr. Tania Massa, director, innovation procurement, OCE.

For more information about OCE healthcare related programs, please visit http://www.oce-ontario.org/programs/commercialization-programs.