CHOC continues to lead the way in technology and artificial intelligence in the world of pediatric medicine, with the second annual “Pediatrics 2040: Trends and Innovations for the Next 25 Years.” The conference was held in January at The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, bringing together some of the brightest – and even youngest – minds in health care and technology from over 100 institutions worldwide, including Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa.
Led by Dr. Anthony Chang, pediatric cardiologist and CHOC chief intelligence and innovation officer, the one-of-a-kind event explored emerging trends and future innovations with the objective to inspire and challenge attendees’ approach to care. Over 500 attendees participated in presentations on genomic and precision medicine, regenerative medicine and 3D printing, pediatric nanomedicine, medical devices and connected health, robotics and robotic surgery, artificial intelligence and big data, and innovations in health care delivery.
Keynote speakers included Dr. Anthony Chang; Dr. Daniel Kraft, physician and scientist, Stanford Medical School; Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson, pediatrician and executive director digital health, Seattle Children’s Hospital; Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, scientist and chairman and chief executive officer, NantWorks; and Dr. Peter Szolovits, professor of computer science and engineering, MIT.
“Innovation Beach,” one of the highlights of this year’s conference,
gave startup companies an opportunity to present their innovative health care products, ideas or solutions to a panel of judges. Innovations ranged from a hand-operated device that allows a medical provider to rapidly deliver a large volume of fluid through traditional IV access, to a humanoid robot used to interact with kids and help with pain management. The popular vote winner went to young innovators, Jake Haygood and Hampton Woods, high school freshmen from Georgia and members of international Children Advocacy Network (iCAN), for their RFID (radio frequency identification) wrist band, which can be read by hospital personnel and uploaded to a medical charting system.
First place went to Glooko, a Silicon Valley-based company that wowed the audience with their mobile, cloud-based system which helps diabetes patients and their care providers manage their diabetes more efficiently, while helping to improve outcomes and reduce costs.
Karishma Muthu, a 14-year-old intern from the Sharon Disney Lund Medical Intelligence and Innovations Institute at CHOC (MI3), stunned everyone when she won the best abstract in the artificial intelligence category. Other MI3 interns also participated by presenting their ideas and helping during the event.
This year’s conference also included patients and families who shared their stories, or showcased their own ideas or innovations. Through the “Young Innovators Workshop,” kids were introduced to innovation and worked in teams to learn the steps needed to turn an idea into a prototype. For many attendees, this was one of the most amazing aspects of the conference, and it will be continued going forward.
To participate in the next Peds 2040 conference, email Dr. Anthony Chang at achang@choc.org.
