Rationale: The rapidly evolving field of digital health has great potential to enhance biomedical research, education and clinical care. Development in this new space is largely being driven by the tech sector, where projects may lack proper clinical focus or scientific rigor and generally do not include health outcome measures to assess effectiveness or impact. UCSF can play a vital role in ensuring that digital health ideas are appropriately targeted to real clinical problems and that they result in meaningful impact, by improving health, improving care, and lowering costs. We propose the i2i Translational Digital Health Program to foster UCSF and industry collaborations to initiate, develop, and test impactful and cost-effective digital technology to improve biomedical research, education, and clinical care.

Plan: This i2i proposal is to identify and develop the critical resources and programs necessary to facilitate and accelerate the “idea to impact” trajectory for digital health innovators both within and outside UCSF, in a multidisciplinary way that combines sound scientific methods with technology, design, business strategy, fundraising, IP, regulatory and marketing expertise. This first year of i2i will focus on the following:

1. Establish a focal point for CTSI Digital Health initiatives, with multidisciplinary internal/external partners
   • Create an intersection for collaboration between UCSF Digital Health initiatives (e.g., BMI, ISU, QB3, ITA, SOM, Institute for Reducing Health Care Costs and other innovative efforts at UCSF).
   • Create strong UCSF presence in Digital Health to external partners, working with Virtual Home on a website, with campus on social media, with Development officer, etc.
   • Explore and establish external partnerships (e.g., UCs, CITRIS, investors, companies, public health).
   • Host Annual UCSF Digital Health Summit: to showcase “ideas” and “impacts,” convene partners
2. Identify and implement needed processes and resources for accelerating “idea to impact”for the main types of digital health projects, e.g., projects aiming for a) internal (e.g., RAP) and external grants; b) operational deployment to improve health locally to globally; and c) commercialization. We will:
   • Convene a series of meetings with faculty/trainees, staff, and various external partners (e.g., investors, tech companies, start-up incubators, design firms, etc.) to define hurdles, needs, objectives
   • Work with ITA and other groups to define models for supporting each type of project, and implement initial steps with FAQs, standard agreements, etc. as appropriate
3. Build a vibrant and supportive Digital Health i2i community
   • Establish an external Digital Health consultant panel, modeled after T1 Catalyst, to serve as consultants to UCSF, grant reviewers on RAP proposals, i2i Advisors, etc., with networking events
   • Establish an internal consultant panel of research, clinical, education, technology, and informatics experts to serve as consultants grant reviewers, Services, i2i Advisors
   • i2i Web presence - with Virtual Home, enhance UCSF Profiles (digital health keywords), Digital Heath Innovators Forum, links to useful collaboration tools, survey needed resources, crowdsourcing i2i tips
   • Quarterly or bi-monthly multidisciplinary “Eye to Eye” roundtables featuring specific research or clinical “problems” and potential digital “solutions,” presented to an audience of External and Internal Panel members, to foster relationships and potentially ignite Digital Health projects.
4. Define and implement recharge and IP models for internal and external consultation We will work with Consultation Services, ETR, ITA, etc. to adapt and develop processes for UCSF faculty consulting to industry, for industry consulting to faculty/staff, and for staff (e.g., ISU, ITA) consulting to faculty

Criteria and Metrics of Success: digital health website with communications plan and metrics; defined internal pathway/processes for idea transfer; implemented recharge mechanism for Consultation Services; 20 external consultants panel members, from range of disciplines and public/private; 15 internal consultants panel members; Annual Summit, 4 “Eye to Eye” events; 2 new external partnerships

Cost and justification: Staff support 0.4 FTE $40,000K; website and communications: $20K; Symposium and “Eye to Eye” roundtables: $10,000 with sponsorships to defray; external consultants panel $5,000.

Total: $75,000. The sustainability model will include recharge, shared royalty/licensing programs, partnerships with clinical enterprise/external groups, UCSF Digital Health Consulting Panel (to external parties), and philanthropy, with self-sustainability anticipated in 3 years.

Collaborators: Sim/Sawyer (BMI), Lee (ETR), Pletcher (CS), Yuan (Virtual Home), Lium (ITA), Melese (SOM), Crawford (QB3), Jorgenson (ISU)