INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS
Founded in 2015 by a group of Saint Louis University School of Medicine students, SLU’s MEDLaunch allows participants to work in teams under the guidance of clinical and industry mentors to create new solutions to daily clinical problems. Each team has at least one medical student, one engineering student, and one business student. The year ends with Demo Day, on which teams make presentations to potential investors in hopes of getting funding for advanced prototyping, clinical trials, and manufacturing.
At Washington University School of Medicine, students are using stem cell research to help understand how cells function, how organisms develop and grow, what fails in the disease process, and how tissues are maintained throughout life. This knowledge can explain what goes wrong in disease and injury and, ultimately, generate effective therapies. Some recent research has attempted to combat such problems as diabetes, arthritis, and damaged heart muscle.
TELEMEDICINE
Mercy’s Engagement@Home program brings healthcare providers virtually to the homes of patients with chronic conditions who are in and out of the emergency department. Using a tablet and wireless monitoring equipment, doctors can get updates on patient status and note changes through Mercy’s electronic health record.
At SSM Health Cardinal GlennonChildren’s Hospital, SLUCare pediatricians can aid in diagnosis and treatment by exchanging medical info. New parents at the pediatric hospital can also see their infants in the NICU in real time, 24/7, using NicView, a small camera system that can be accessed by laptop, smart phone, or tablet.
TECH AND TREATMENTS
Missouri Baptist Medical Center’s Breast Health Care Center
Not only did the center receive a major facelift in 2015, but it also recently became a Level IV Certified Quality Breast Center of Excellence as designated by the National Consortium of Breast Centers—one of only 14 such centers in the U.S.
St. Anthony’s Epic MyChart Bedside
The hospital recently launched a pilot program to provide patients with tablets, allowing them to watch helpful educational videos.
SSM Health’s MRI/Ultrasound Fusion Biopsy
Available at St. Clare and DePaul hospitals, the technology fuses pre-biopsy MRI images of the prostate with ultrasound-guided biopsy images in real time.
SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital’s 3-D Printing Center of Excellence
In April, the center produced a replica of the skull of a 2-year-old boy that was missing half its bone as a result of trauma. Doctors were able to perform a virtual surgery ahead of time and design a 3-D–printed surgical guide for the actual procedure.
SSM Health SLU Hospital’s Micra Pacemaker
The world’s smallest leadless pacemaker was approved by the FDA last year and could reduce complications in cardiac patients. (It’s only about an inch long and is implanted directly into the heart’s right ventricle; traditional pacemakers are inserted under the skin near the collarbone and are considerably larger.)
