Health Council reveals winners of fourth annual Health Innovation Challenge

Today we announced the winners of the fourth annual Health Innovation Challenge. In September, we challenged college and university students to find innovative practices in Canadian health care, tell us why the innovations are working, and how they can be applied in the rest of the country.

Over 100 students across Canada participated, submitting a total of 74 essays explaining which innovative practices they think could change the future of health care in Canada. From a shortlist of 10, we will be awarding first, second and third in each of the individual and group categories.

Winning entries came from the University of Alberta, Dalhousie University, McMaster University, the University of Northern British Columbia and the University of Toronto.

“The winners of this year’s Challenge truly showed us the importance of sharing innovation” said John G. Abbott, CEO, Health Council of Canada. “They found some great practices that are working locally and we should pay attention to see if we can learn from them and use them in our own work.”

The Health Council of Canada identifies and shares hundreds of innovative practices from across the country on the Health Innovation Portal. Winning Challenge entries will be featured across the Council’s online properties. Winners also receive a cash prize and the chance to apply for a summer internship at the Health Council of Canada office in Toronto, Ontario.

Full Winners List: 

Category: Individual 

First Place 
Mary Qiu
University of Toronto
Preventing Acute Care Hospital Readmissions Through the Use of a Virtual Ward

Second Place Sophia Harrison
University of Northern British Columbia
A New Way Forward: Improving the Health Status of British Columbian First Nations with the Tripartite First Nations Health Plan

Third Place Jake Yorke
Dalhousie University
Collaborative Emergency Centres: Improving Access to Primary and Emergency Care in Rural Nova Scotia

Category: Group

First Place Aaron Lau, Alexandre Tran, Yvonne Tse

McMaster University
The McMaster PIPER Project: A Novel Approach to Interprofessional Education through Simulation-Based Learning

Second Place Haley Augustine & Rakesh Gupta
Dalhousie University
Chronic Disease Management Strategy: Diabetes Quality Collaborative

Third Place Kathryn Reid & Joshua Plante
University of Alberta
Changing Practice Paradigm through Innovative Policy