Pediatric Surgery Innovation Fellowship

The Pediatric Surgery Innovation Fellowship at U-M is designed for post-graduate professionals with advanced degrees in medicine or engineering. The fellowship program assembles a team of talented post-graduates in medicine (MD, DO), engineering (Masters and above), dentistry and business (MBA) to develop medical technologies which will significantly impact human health. The “anti-disciplinary” nature of the program blurs the boundaries of these disciplines as the fellows work together as a team. The action learning approach begins with a deep understanding of the unmet medical need and progresses through design, prototyping, regulatory and business planning on the way to full commercialization.

This fellowship offers:

• Learning in teams: The fellowship matches trainees from engineering and pediatric surgery trainee design or business to form a year-long team as they study problem spaces in pediatric health care and then devise opportunities for new devices or other improvements.
• Support for commercialization: Drawing on the resources and expertise within the Michigan Pediatric Device Consortium and U-M’s Fast Forward Medical Innovation initiative, we’re well-positioned to guide innovations from conception to commercialization. Trainee teams are encouraged to form their own companies over the course of the fellowship, and you’ll receive training in the business of medical innovation as well as the science.
• Time for research: Ideas generated as a result of the design process naturally dovetail with research and publication opportunities for trainees, with many fellows in the program publishing their work by the end of the program.

Innovation fellows are assembled into interdisciplinary innovation teams comprised of medical and dental residents, engineers of different disciplines, scientists in biomedical disciplines and business professionals. These groups collaborate in a process of nascent biomedical innovation and development, starting from a broad, thematic focus, such as musculoskeletal disease or cardiovascular medicine.

The teams go through a systematic process involving didactic education, full clinical immersion for problem identification and verification, innovation, intellectual property evaluation, market research, prototyping, early-stage testing, and technology distribution planning. Fellows are under the auspices of UM clinicians, engineers and business school faculty, but also tap the specific expertise available from technology transfer professionals and industry R&D leaders, as well as regulatory, reimbursement and financial experts.

Fellows' efforts are expected to lead to new, innovative solutions to address major clinical and surgical needs, with outcomes to include invention disclosures, patents, licensing of technologies, company startups, and, ultimately, commercialization that positively impacts healthcare.

Biomedical Innovation Fundamentals

• Front-end innovation training
• Medical domain specific curriculum with academic and industry thought leaders
• Formal training in human-centric observation techniques
• Identifying opportunities through clinical immersion
• Needs identification, concept generation and concept selection
• Design and prototype lab hands-on training
• Intellectual property strategy
• Research and development strategy
• Regulatory and reimbursement strategy
• Business strategy and business plan development
• Personal interactions / tours with industry

The fellowship partners with the Michigan Pediatric Device Consortium (M-PED), led by program director Dr. James D. Geiger, to provide training and research opportunities for fellows.

The cornerstone of the fellowship is the curriculum, designed to complement a thematic focus (opportunity space such as, cardiovascular medicine, ophthalmology, geriatric medicine), but built on an innovation platform. The curriculum provides the necessary tools to enable Fellows to collaborate in a process of nascent medical innovation and development.

The curriculum is comprised of three phases — Innovator's Foundation, Opportunity Exploration, and Opportunity Execution — each geared toward the advancement of skill and thought to transform knowledge into innovations that improve health.

Eligibility

Post-graduate professionals with medical, doctorate, or master's degrees with a background in medicine, engineering, life sciences, public health, dentistry, or relevant business experience are eligible to apply. Physicians in their residency and who are interested in medical innovation are strongly encouraged to apply.

Eligibility by Discipline

• Engineering: Advanced degree or bachelor's degree with equivalent work experience. Fellowship is one year.
• MBA: Work experience pre- or post- MBA in a health-related industry is preferred but not required. Fellowship is one year.
• Medical: Should have completed a minimum of two clinical years in an accredited residency program. Participation in a procedure-oriented specialty is preferred but not required.

Additional Requirements

• Candidates must be a U.S. Citizen or Permanent U.S. Resident.
• Applicants should thrive in an intense, creative, and collaborative environment and be exceptionally self-motivated.
• Candidates will be judged on their demonstrated leadership, training, academic accomplishments, creativity, and real-life experiences. 

How to Apply

We accept applications for the fellowship program beginning in November for the following calendar year program. For example, applications will be accepted on a rolling basis beginning in November for the following fellowship year. Please contact Jon Campbell (jpcampbe@med.umich.edu) if interested in applying for the Pediatric Surgery Innovation Fellowship program.