Loyola University Chicago and MATTER launch 2022 Loyola Chicago Health Equity Quest

CHICAGO, IL – August 2, 2022
Loyola University Chicago’s Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health and MATTER today launched the 2022 Loyola Chicago Health Equity Quest. The competition will advance innovative solutions that address health disparities and climate change and prepare them for the Live Pitch on October 27, 2022.

Climate change poses detrimental threats to public health, and its effects are exacerbated for certain communities based on factors such as socioeconomic status, race and ethnicity, gender, and access to care. We are therefore called to invite innovators to help answer the question:

How might we empower communities with innovative solutions to address health disparities and climate change

From developing more sustainable products and processes to providing care to those affected by climate change, the U.S. healthcare system plays a vital role in accelerating progress to combat climate change. Loyola and MATTER invite innovators across industries and disciplines to submit forward-thinking and creative solutions, ideas, or concepts for technologies, methodologies, and services that create more sustainable health delivery or reduce or treat the health effects of climate change.

“At the Parkinson School, we are called to take action to ensure all communities achieve their full potential for healthy lives,” said Elaine Morrato, DrPH, MPH, CPH, founding dean and professor of Loyola University Chicago’s Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health. “We are leveraging our partnership with MATTER to accelerate innovative solutions that will address health inequities in communities exacerbated by climate change.”

Up to 10 finalists will be selected from the application pool to participate in a two-week sprint. During the sprint, they will meet with Loyola University Chicago and MATTER teams and mentors to hone in on their value proposition, work to advance their solution and prep for the Live Pitch on October 27, 2022. During the Live Pitch, finalists will pitch their solutions to the public including corporate organizations, investors and more for a chance for up to three teams to split $75,000.

“MATTER is committed to helping make health more accessible and equitable for all,” said Steven Collens, CEO of MATTER. “This competition will help us generate, surface and support solutions to reduce the burden that climate change has on the health of underrepresented communities.”

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About MATTER

At MATTER, we believe collaboration is the best way to improve healthcare. The MATTER collaborative includes more than 700 current and alumni startups from around the world, working together with dozens of hospitals and health systems, universities and industry-leading companies to build the future of healthcare. Together we are accelerating innovation, advancing care and improving lives. For more information, visit matter.health and follow @MATTERhealth.

About Loyola University Chicago’s Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health

Loyola University Chicago launched the Parkinson School of Health Sciences and Public Health in Fall 2019 to educate the health entrepreneurs of the future and impact health care accessibility and equity nationally. The Parkinson School offers 19 degree programs and three certificate and internship programs in four areas of study: Public Health Sciences, Healthcare Administration, Health Informatics and Data Science, and Applied Health Sciences. The School builds on the foundations of Loyola’s nationally recognized Stritch School of Medicine and its Biomedical Programs, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, and Loyola’s partnership with Trinity Health (known in the Chicago area as Loyola Medicine). To learn more about the Parkinson School, visit LUC.edu/Parkinson or follow us on Twitter via @LoyolaParkinson or Instagram via @luc.parkinson.