A snapshot of just a few of the innovations in Mayo's history
The Mayo Clinic has a long history of innovation, from its introduction of the group practice model at the beginning of the 20th century to the launch of its dedicated innovation incubator, the Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation in 2008, which has resulted in the incubation of nearly 300 innovation projects.
In an effort to share how lessons from the Clinic's innovation work, three leaders of the CFI — Nicholas LaRusso, MD; Barbara Spurrier, MHA; and Gianrico Farrugia, MD — have co-authored "Think Big, Start Small, Move Fast: A Blueprint for Transformation from the Mayo Clinic Center for Innovation" (to be released later this month by McGraw-Hill Education.
In advance of the book's release, here is a snapshot of just a few of the innovations in Mayo's history:
1905 — First method of freezing tissue during surgery as a means of diagnosing cancer
1915 — First program in graduate medical education
1919 — First nonprofit practice aligned with medical education and research
1920 — First index to grade tumors
1935 — First hospital-based blood bank
1950 — Discovery of cortisone, which resulted in a Nobel Prize
1955 — First series of operations with a lung-bypass machine
1969 — First FDA-approved hip replacement
1973 — First CT scanner in North America
2002 — First multistate comprehensive cancer center
More recent innovations have included a pediatric phlebotomy chair and a telemedicine program for micro consults.