Friday, April 11, 2025, CLEVELAND - Food insecurity is a growing issue in our country and Greater Cleveland is not spared with 1 in 7 people identifying as food insecure, meaning they don’t know where their next meal will come from. In its 3rd year of addressing barriers to health and well-being, the University Hospitals Healthcare Transformation IDEATOR just wrapped up its 2-day think tank and solutions workshop at MidTown Collaboration Center, announcing two winning ideas to combat food insecurity that will now receive development funding.
Nearly 60 thought leaders from University Hospitals and NEOMED, including frontline caregivers, educators, students, community health experts and clinical operations professionals, focused on the challenges associated with accessing adequate and nutritious food.
“When individuals and families can’t access the nutritious food they need, there is a ripple effect that impacts their overall well-being,” said Celina Cunanan, MSN, ARPN-CNM, Chief Health Impact Officer at University Hospitals. “This is where collaboration becomes vital. Imagine the transformative potential of combining perspectives to create solutions that ensure everyone has the resources they need to thrive.”
Innovators spent two days developing solutions, then pitched them to a panel of judges and audience made up of UH and NEOMED employees and students, investors, subject matter experts and partners from Northeast Ohio. Their solutions ranged from after school programs, community cooking classes and mobile food resources to mechanisms to stretch food assistant funds and technology to seamlessly match moms to opportunities.
Winners include:
- Team NutriSnap (1st place - stretch food assistance funds)
- Team GoWell (2nd place – mobile access to nutritious food and wellness services)
Areas of focus in previous years include gun violence as well as infant and maternal mortality.
“This is not just a healthcare event, this is a community event,” said David Sylvan, Chief Strategy, Innovation & Marketing Officer, University Hospitals; President, UH Ventures. “We never shy away from the most complex, complicated and vexing topics that have challenged industry leaders, politicians, and citizens for generations. Food insecurity cannot be solved in 2 days, but if we can combine the right brainpower, perspectives, experts, institutions and innovation frameworks together with some dedicated time, we’re confident we can conjure pathways or process considerations for real impact.”
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