The History of NurseHack4Health

In mid-April 2020, SONSIEL (Society of Nurse Scientists, Innovators, Entrepreneurs & Leaders) was a young and emerging nursing organization. As the President of SONSIEL, I had just finished our SONSIEL Nurses Virtual Meetup. These meetups had started in the earliest days of the pandemic, with nurses from across the United States joining Zoom calls to discuss what they were witnessing as the Covid pandemic unfolded. Nurses called in as they headed into their shifts, left their shifts, or were on their shifts, sharing their frontline experiences.

I will never forget a nurse on the call saying, "No one else is here; it is just us nurses. No one else comes to the floor; everything we know is failing us." Suddenly, nurses began pouring out their souls and stories, talking about what was failing and what they were doing when everything they had been trained to do was falling short in the face of the worst pandemic in 100 years. They began sharing: 

"This is how we are making PPE: using socks and air filters." 

"This is how we are connecting tubing so it extends outside of the patient's room so we don’t have to enter as frequently." 

"This is how we are using iPads to communicate with families." 

"This is how we have changed our rounding to mitigate infection exposure." 

The nurses went on and on, sharing how they were essentially innovating to save lives when their previous methods were no longer feasible.

I left that call realizing that nurses were innovating on the frontlines of the pandemic, and I knew we needed another nurse hackathon. I decided to call two of my colleagues: Lynda Benton, then the head of nursing at Johnson & Johnson (J&J), and Molly McCarthy, then the Chief Nursing Officer (CNO) of Microsoft. I explained to them what I was witnessing on SONSIEL meetup calls, and I explained the value of having a virtual nurse hackathon to address these nurses’ concerns. 

It was the earliest days of the pandemic, and the world was in chaos, but I knew if any company could provide us with the technology we needed for the first virtual nurse hackathon in history, it would be Microsoft. As it happened, Microsoft was the only technology company with a CNO who had made a strong commitment to the nursing profession. I also knew that since the earliest days of the nurse innovation movement, J&J had been an organization at the forefront of supporting nurse-led innovation. J&J had collaborated with SONSIEL for our first in-person nurse hackathon in 2019 and I knew their support would be critical to our success.

“As nurses, we hold the power to transform healthcare through innovation.”

It was a testament to their dedication that, in under four weeks, SONSIEL, J&J, and Microsoft hosted our first NurseHack4Health (NH4H) on May 15-17, 2020—a virtual nurse hackathon where thousands of nurses around the world participated. It was the first of four NurseHack4Health virtual nurse hackathons held during the course of the pandemic. 

What is a Nurse Hackathon?

A nurse hackathon is an event where nurses, along with other healthcare professionals, technologists, designers, and stakeholders, come together to collaborate intensively on challenges that nurses face every day. The goal is to develop innovative solutions to improve patient care, healthcare delivery, and the nursing profession. These events typically involve:

1. Problem Identification: Participants identify pressing issues and challenges faced in healthcare settings.
2. Team Formation: Multidisciplinary teams are formed to bring diverse perspectives and expertise to the problem-solving process.
3. Brainstorming and Ideation: Teams brainstorm ideas and propose innovative solutions to identified problems.
4. Prototyping: Teams create prototypes or mock-ups of their solutions, ranging from new medical devices, software applications, workflow improvements, or policy suggestions.
5. Mentorship and Guidance: Experienced mentors and experts provide guidance and support to teams throughout the hackathon.
6. Presentation and Judging: Teams present their solutions to a panel of judges, who evaluate the ideas based on criteria such as feasibility, innovation, impact, and scalability.
7. Awards and Recognition: Winning teams may receive awards, recognition, grant funding, and other resources to further develop and implement their solutions.

Nurse hackathons foster creativity, collaboration, and rapid innovation, empowering nurses to take an active role in shaping the future of healthcare.

What is the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon?

NurseHack4Health has evolved since the pandemic, and today also includes the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon. The NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon empowers nurse-led teams within health systems to innovate, fostering collaboration and creativity to improve healthcare environments globally.

Here’s a breakdown of the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon in a nutshell: 

• Event Purpose: A virtual event for nurse-led interdisciplinary teams to develop and present innovative solutions.
• Focus: Address systemic and sustainable changes for a thriving workforce and healthier work environments.
• Activities:some text
  • Brainstorming: Identify pressing workplace and well-being challenges in healthcare.
  • Collaboration: Interdisciplinary teamwork is encouraged across various professions, departments, and health systems, maximizing creativity and innovation
  • Solution Development: Create practical and innovative solutions to these challenges.
  • Support: Coaching is provided throughout the process to encourage leadership and nurse-led innovation
  • Pitching Proposals: Present ideas to a panel of judges for evaluation.
• Goal: Receive up to $150,000 in grant funding to implement promising projects.
• Opportunity:some text
  • Applications: Close August 2, 2024.
  • Pitching: Top entries pitch their solutions on October 15, 2024.
  • Funding: Opportunity to receive up to $150,000 in grant funding to bring solutions to life.
• Eligibility: Open to non-profit/501(c)3 designation health systems or those with a fiscal partner.
  

The NH4H Pitch-A-Thon Will Change Your Life

A hackathon changed my life, and I know it has changed the lives of countless other nurses. We encourage nurses from around the world to apply to the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-thon because when nurses innovate, they change healthcare and patient lives for the better. As nurses, we hold the power to transform healthcare through innovation. Embrace your creativity, apply to the NurseHack4Health Pitch-A-Thon, and be a catalyst for change in our profession and the world.

Learn more about the NH4H Pitch-A-Thon here. Applications are due August 9, 2024.

‍

Rebecca Love is President Emeritus of SONSIEL.

‍This article is sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.