Igniting Innovation in Healthcare: A Novel Collaborative Multidisciplinary Approach in a PICU

Generating innovation in the healthcare setting faces a number of challenges when compared with industry counterparts. More than ever, innovation occupies a critical element for healthcare organizations aspiring toward clinical, research and strategic excellence, although it may not exist as a priority due to a number of barriers. There are several strategies in other industries from which healthcare organizations can borrow, such as using nontraditional methods of problem solving, group ideation, and cross-pollination. As a high-intensity environment facing diverse challenges and conditions, the PICU is primed for building and generating innovation, which can be facilitated by implementing many of these strategies. This article describes an innovation program created to exercise a multidisciplinary approach for generating novel solutions in our PICU. Using nontraditional methods and ideation, this program has generated innovative solutions in an otherwise traditional setting, revealing new opportunities for growth, value generation, and collaboration between healthcare and the community.