LEARNING BEYOND THE CLASSROOM

Timken Foundation Medical Design Innovation Center (MEDIC) provides space and tools for healthcare innovation

By Jeanne M. Hoban

The Timken Foundation Medical Design Innovation Center (MEDIC) at Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) supports the needs of bioinnovators across Northeast Ohio. Students from NEOMED and other nearby institutions, entrepreneurs, healthcare systems, medical device companies, and regional and state economic development organizations all can benefit from the collaborative meeting space, benches, equipment and machinery for device design, prototyping and testing, and education and other resources.

“This space is more than just a place for us to convene. This incredible space is a collaboration and brainstorming area. It’s become very popular with our students,” NEOMED President John T. Langell, M.D., said during a reception to officially open the collaboration space. He noted that the creation of the MEDIC was made possible by the generosity of the Timken Foundation of Canton.

“The Timken Foundation has been a partner of this University since its inception and has helped us achieve incredible things together,” he said.

The MEDIC space helps the University achieve its mission by extending learning beyond the classroom and providing opportunities to solve clinical challenges and improve health.

“The vision of this University is to create transformational leaders, not just physicians who understand healthcare delivery and that practice their skills, not just pharmacists who practice their skills, or dentists,” explained Dr. Langell, “but to create leaders who can go beyond the knowledge that we share with them to create new knowledge.”

The Timken Foundation MEDIC provides a space where creative teams of students, faculty, staff and other professionals can come together to improve healthcare through increasing access, enhancing delivery of care and developing new technologies.

“The Timken Foundation has enjoyed a long-standing relationship with NEOMED and has witnessed the impact they have created in Ohio’s healthcare community,” said Board President Robert Timken. “We are excited to support the new MEDIC project and the many students it will serve.”

The Timken Foundation MEDIC is the home to NEOMED’s master’s degree program in innovation. In that program, students work with clinical partners to identify healthcare challenges and develop possible solutions. Several graduates of the program have pursued patents for devices developed during the program.

The center also provides design and development space for competitors in the University’s annual NEOvations Bench to Bedside competition. Students in the Bitonte College of Dentistry will also benefit from the space as they learn applications of 3D printing and other technologies in their field.

“This space allows our students and regional entrepreneurs to come to NEOMED to design, develop and prototype innovations. We could not do this without the generosity of the Timken Foundation,” Dr. Langell expressed. “On behalf of the University and our Board of Trustees, thank you for giving us this capability. And now it is our job to deliver on the impact of what this could mean for our communities and for healthcare.”