Breaking Barriers, Building Access
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Why This Matters
Healthcare is at an inflection point. Rising costs, workforce strain, and growing patient needs demand bold action. At YNHHS, we believe innovation is the path to a future where care is more accessible, equitable, and sustainable—a system that works for patients, families, and caregivers alike.
The 2026 YNHH Innovation Awards invite you to shape that future. Your ideas can help us remove barriers, expand access, and create care models that meet people no matter where they are. Together, we can continue to break down barriers and build access to innovative care.
Funding
Awards:
- First Prize: 1 $50K award - and opportunity to validate solution in YNHHS data ecosystem
- Second Prize: 3 $50K awards each – prototyping, small pilot, concept validation
- Honorable Mentions: No funding, mention only
Pitch Competition
Awards will be presented after a pitch competition to be held May 26. See below for details.
Focus Areas
Access: Innovations that reduce friction and expand patient entry points (telehealth, remote monitoring, call center optimization, digital intake).
Goal: Shorten time-to-appointment, improve convenience, and reduce administrative burden.
Workflow Redesign: Tools that enable clinicians and staff to work at top-of-license, improving efficiency without replacing workforce.
Goal: Enhance quality and safety while reducing operational strain.
Decentralization of Care: Technologies that move care beyond hospital walls—home, community, retail, virtual wards.
Goal: Deliver the right care, in the right place, at the right time.
New Models of Care: Solutions enabling care previously impossible (e.g., advanced remote monitoring for Parkinson’s, novel digital biomarkers).
Goal: Leapfrog outcomes and experience through clinically rigorous innovation.
GenAI & Big Data: Encouraged where responsibly applied to improve accuracy, speed, or scalability. Address privacy, security, bias, and validation.
Goal: Unlock actionable insights and automation that enhance decision-making, personalize care, and scale innovation responsibly.
Eligibility
Must be a paid employee (full-time or part-time) or medical staff/University Faculty at Yale New Haven Health System or Yale University at the time of application and throughout competition and the entirety of the funding period.
Team Composition
(Encouraged but Not Required)
Applicants may form multidisciplinary teams that include clinicians, researchers, engineers, data scientists, etc. affiliated with their institution. Cross institutional teams are permitted as long as the primary applicant is affiliated with Yale New Haven Health
Review Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated based on:
- Enterprise Priorities & Vision (15%)
Alignment with YNHHS strategic goals:
- Unmet Need (15%)
Significance and clarity of the clinical or operational problem.
- Speed to Value (20%)
Likelihood of successful implementation within YNHHS (integration, compliance readiness).
- Novelty (10%)
Degree of innovation and differentiation from existing solutions.
- Scalability & Sustainability (10%)
Potential for broad adoption and long-term impact.
- Team Strength (20%)
Expertise, diversity of roles, and operational alignment.
- Equity & Patient-Centeredness (10%)
Inclusivity and accessibility for diverse patient populations.
How to Submit a Proposal
This section provides a summary of the fields required for your submission. We recommend drafting your proposal in a separate document before submitting.
This PDF submission guide provides an overview of the expectations and requirements for creating and submitting your proposal.
Download Submission Guide
*Submission Guide Updated 03/04/2026
Once you have completed your submission proposal, send it to Center for Health Care Innovation – [email protected]
Submission Requirements
- Length: 3-4 pages (plus optional 1-page figure/appendix)
- Formatting: Arial 11 pt, single spacing, ≥0.5″ margins
Include:
- Problem/Unmet Need & why it matters
- Solution Overview & innovation (mention GenAI/big data if used)
- Users/Stakeholders & feedback to date
- Stage, Progress & Readiness
- Implementation Plan & milestone enabled by funding
- Expected Impact & KPIs
- Risks/Dependencies & compliance
- High-Level Budget summary
- Prior/Existing funding and department sponsorship acknowledgment
Key Dates
- Proposals due: 03/31/2026
- Finalists notified: 04/10/2026
- Pitch competition: 05/26/2026
- Winners announced: 05/27/2026 during event at Yale Innovation Summit
FAQ
What types of costs are allowable in the Innovation Award budget?
Innovation Award budgets should support milestone‑driven development and testing. Allowable costs generally include project‑specific personnel effort, supplies, technology, consulting, and evaluation activities directly tied to proposed milestones. Ongoing operational expenses and costs not aligned with milestones are typically not supported.
Can past Innovation Award recipients apply again?
Yes. Past Innovation Award recipients are eligible to apply for future funding with new and distinct innovation project submissions.
Projects that have previously received Innovation Award funding are not eligible for repeat funding. However, we strongly encourage prior awardees to continue advancing innovation by proposing new ideas that are clearly differentiated from previously funded work.
This approach reflects the Center’s commitment to building a sustainable culture of innovation across YNHHS, while ensuring that limited funding supports a diverse portfolio of emerging ideas and teams.
Equal Opportunity Statement
The YNHH CHI 2026 Innovation Awards is an equal opportunity event that welcomes participants of all backgrounds. Discrimination based on race, religion, creed, color, citizenship, national origin, age, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic is strictly prohibited.
Intellectual Property
Ensuring adherence to the federal funding requirements as it relates to intellectual property and reporting will be the responsibility of the applicants home institutions. For more information, review your employer’s IP policies (e.g., Yale New Haven Health or Yale University).
Select Winners - 2024 YNHH Innovation Awards
