A chief innovation officer – sometimes called a chief strategy officer – is still a relatively new position at hospitals. One Texas Medical Center-based organization wants to bring the professionals in these positions together so they can help each other.
Healthcare Innovators Professional Society (HIPS) kicked off its nonprofit aimed at providing chief innovation and chief strategy executives a place to get to know their colleagues across the country.
HIPS is headquartered in the TMC Innovation Institute’s TMCx+ incubator space.
The idea for HIPS came to Toby Hamilton, M.D., while he was heading Emerus Hospitals, a company that operates micro-hospitals around the nation. Hamilton was developing joint venture relationships with other healthcare systems, working with their chief innovation and strategy officers, and realized these executives needed a way to bounce ideas off of each other.
HIPS is the process of inviting select members to be a part of the council, known as the Council of 33. Membership is exclusive, Hamilton said, meaning that members will not be from competing hospitals, whenever possible.
In addition to providing these executives with a support system and a peer sounding board, HIPS will offer its councilors white papers, case studies and HIPS-specific blog content developed for and shared only with the HIPS community. Other benefits include access to leading healthcare incubators and accelerators as well as a diverse network of capital providers.
The organization’s first event for members will be held October 2-4 at the TMC Innovation Institute.
