GE, Ochsner and The Idea Village Launch ‘Wear Your Health’ Challenge

Ochsner Health System, GE Healthcare, and The Idea Village have launched the “Wear Your Health” challenge, which seeks to identify wearable technology concepts that can transform healthcare outcomes by addressing behavior management in patients with chronic disease.

Photo by flickr user Carlos Hergueta.

Photo by flickr user Carlos Hergueta.

The challenge is part of a multi-year initiative the three organizations launched in this past March to address the healthcare and lifestyle issues affecting a large part of the U.S. population.

According to a release, the challenge  seeks to engage entrepreneurs and innovators across the U.S. –with a special focus on the local New Orleans entrepreneurial community – to think about the best ways to address the evolving needs of healthcare, encourage lifestyle modifications, and help impact individual health.

“In recent years, wearables have been disrupting the healthcare industry,” said Brad Jergenson, CMO, U.S. & Canada at GE. “The ‘Wear Your Health’ challenge is a great opportunity to bring not only prototypes, but ideas, to life. The goal is to drive the future of chronic disease management by empowering patients to lead healthy lifestyles through connectivity and technology…”

Following this first phase of the challenge, which will identify up to 10 winners for a cumulative prize pool of $10,000, phase two will select three finalists who will receive additional development funding from a discretionary prize pool of $15,000.

The program will culminate with a winner announced during New Orleans Entrepreneur Week, March 11-18, 2016. Individuals interested in participating can submit their idea(s) at here until September 15 at 5:00 PM Central.