Spark: A Quality Innovation Incubator 

2027 Cycle Applications are live and are due by 10/15/2026. Please click here to access the form.

Overview

A 9‑month incubator designed to accelerate project teams in developing, piloting, and evaluating innovative solutions aligned with health system quality priorities. The aim is for the teams to develop and produce structured deliverables and pilot the solutions. Midway, teams may potentially apply for limited funding to build out their pilot, and at the end of the program, all teams pitch to a panel which will award the President's Prize for Quality and Patient Safety and funding for the winning team to continue implementation and scaling.

Spark Objectives:

• Assess & align — Clarify the problem, conduct a current-state assessment, and align with system priorities
• Design — Shape the innovation concept and build a measurement plan
• Implement & pilot — Build a rigorous implementation plan, then pilot and iterate based on early data
• Scale — Continue adapting based on ongoing data, evaluate pilot outcomes, and build a sustainability and scale strategy

Target Audience

MD, RN, PharmD, other healthcare clinicians, and administrative/operational staff