The Ion, the innovation hub in Midtown, has added Houston Methodist as its first health care-focused partner.
The hospital will build out a roughly 1,200-square-foot space in the Ion modeled after the Center for Innovation Technology Hub in Houston Methodist's Texas Medical Center hospital, according to an Aug. 11 announcement.
The TMC hub opened in January 2020, occupying roughly 3,500 square feet at 6565 Fannin St. At the time, Houston Methodist told the Houston Business Journal the hub would be used to explore the many ways technology can be employed in clinical settings, both in a hospital and at home. That included virtual reality headsets to showcase imaging of the human anatomy and to provide a fun distraction for patients, microphones to record and transcribe conversations between doctors and patients to create post-visit summaries, new furniture with power sockets, integration with Amazon's Alexa virtual assistant and Apple's HealthKit, and more.
Houston Methodist also plans to use the lessons learned from that hub and its broader Center for Innovation to design and construct what's being called a master-planned campus for the future in Cypress. The new 400-bed Houston Methodist Cypress Hospital will be the health care system's ninth. It broke ground in June and is expected to fully open in 2025.
Click through the slideshow below for a look at the Center for Innovation Technology Hub in Houston Methodist's Texas Medical Center hospital.
Tech Hub at Houston Methodist Feb. 2020
Houston Methodist's Tech Hub at the Ion will be a smaller replica of the TMC space. It will be used for informational and educational programming, networking with fellow tenants and entrepreneurs, participating in on-site mentoring and pitch competitions, and hosting open houses for the community.
“Having a footprint at the Ion will not only provide the Ion’s network and Houston community with a window into what we are doing for patients, consumers and providers, but also gives the Ion community and rising innovators an opportunity to bring its own ingenuity and ideas to life with ours,” said Michelle Stansbury, vice president of innovation and IT applications at Houston Methodist.
Rice Management Co. developed the Ion on behalf of Rice University. Rice and Houston Methodist also have collaborated on other efforts, such as the Center for Translational Neural Prosthetics and Interfaces, which aims to to bring together scientists, clinicians, engineers and surgeons to solve clinical problems with neurorobotics.
Also, the Houston Methodist – Rice University Center for Human Performance currently is under construction on Rice's main campus. That 6,000-square-foot center will allow physicians, academic researchers and university students to conduct research and other initiatives related to exercise physiology, injury prevention and rehabilitation by working with student-athletes, trainers and coaches.
“By enhancing opportunities for our network of academics, businesses, entrepreneurs and innovators to collaborate across the Ion District and globally, we’re creating a more resilient future economy for our region,” said Bryson Grover, investment manager of real estate development for Rice Management Co.
Based on its 3,045 local licensed beds as of fall 2021, Houston Methodist is No. 3 on the HBJ's 2021 Largest Houston-Area Health Care Systems List.
