Meet the Winner of the 2014 Calkins Scholarship: Florentina Teoderascu

Congratulations to Florentina Teoderascu, the winner of the 2014 David Calkins Memorial Scholarship! Florentina is a University of Toronto medical student whose passion to improve medicine began the day she witnessed a misdiagnosis in the pediatric intensive care unit where she was working. Her essay describing the quality improvement project she led in response has earned her a full ride to the 26th Annual IHI National Forum in December. IHI awards the scholarship to one full-time health student each year in memory of David Calkins, a former IHI fellow and health improvement champion. Read Florentina’s full essay here.

Divergent and Convergent Thinking on a Whiteboard

You’ve heard of brainstorming. But did you know it’s just one way to get a team to think creatively? And how do you narrow down your ideas once you’ve generated them? Bob Lloyd, Director of Performance Improvement at IHI, explains the bell curve of divergent and convergent thinking in our latest video for Whiteboard Month. Check out the video and try these techniques at your next team meeting.

What We’re Reading: The Innovation-Education Gap in Health Care

Health care leaders say they need people who can drive change and innovation. But health care administration programs aren’t teaching those skills. In an article in Harvard Business Review, three business experts write that change in health care will require change in health care education. The authors argue that partnerships between business leaders and academics can help train students to solve problems through innovation, just as business schools have done in teaching entrepreneurship. 

Essay Contest: Share Your Ideas for Better Care at Lower Cost

Do you have a bright idea that will help you and your colleagues deliver better care at lower cost? Describe your innovation in a 500-word essay for the chance to present your work at the American College of Physicians 100th anniversary meeting in Boston, MA, next April. The nonprofit advocacy group Costs of Care and the ABIM Foundation are hosting the essay contest, the second annual “Teaching Value and Choosing Wisely Challenge,” as an opportunity for students, postgraduate trainees, and faculty. Learn more about the Challenge here, and learn more about quality, cost, and value in health care in our course QCV 101: Achieving Breakthrough Quality, Access, and Affordability.

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