Beyond the goal of improving care quality, efficiency and patient and provider satisfaction, medical innovation is having larger affects on economies, suggests Delos "Toby" Cosgrove, MD, president and CEO of Cleveland Clinic.
In a LinkedIn post, Dr. Cosgrove writes how Cleveland's economy was, and continues to be, bolstered by innovations coming out of hospitals and educational institutions.
"Regions grow by producing products for export outside the region and by creating new jobs. Northeast Ohio's medical centers and universities attract patients and students from across the nation and around the world," Dr. Cosgrove writes. "Healthcare alone employs more than 81,000 local people, paying $4.5 billion in income. Northeast Ohio's institutions of higher education have an almost $6 billion impact on the regional economy."
What's more, when healthcare organizations and educational institutions collaborate, the effect is even more pronounced, according to Dr. Cosgrove. He points to the partnership between Cleveland Clinic and Case Western Reserve University in which the organizations are building a health education campus. "Eventually, we hope the seven-acre site will become the center of a vibrant, international medical student village between the Cleveland Clinic and CWRU campuses," he wrote.
Dr. Cosgrove also mentions the technology companies spun out of medical centers and universities, such as Cleveland Clinic's own Explorys that was acquired by IBM in April 2015. More than 700 biomedical companies are in Northeast Ohio, which has attracted the attention of investors, according to Dr. Cosgrove.
"The benefits of this process extend well beyond the traditional technology hubs of the east and west coasts, to the states and cities in between," Dr. Cosgrove wrote. "Medical innovation is leading an industrial renaissance that has the potential to revitalize cities, create jobs and improve patient care across the board."
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