Baycrest-led Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI) announces partnership with National Bank to advance market-ready healthcare innovations

CABHI's Mentorship, Capital and Continuation (MC²) program accelerates scale-up of market-ready innovations to support aging population

TORONTO, Sept. 18, 2018 /CNW/ - Currently, it can take an average of 17 years for research evidence to reach clinical practice.¹ The Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI), led by Baycrest and in partnership with National Bank, has today announced the launch of a new Mentorship, Capital and Continuation Program (MC²) to accelerate innovations for the aging population, from bench to bedside more quickly and efficiently. The invitation-only program will enable CABHI to identify promising projects in its pipeline that are ready for scale-up. CABHI will also continue to help these projects via collaborative advisory services and additional investment in the innovations.

"The partnership with National Bank on the MC² program will help to further accelerate market-ready innovations that can improve the quality of life of older adults with dementia and their caregivers," says Dr. William Reichman, President and CEO of Baycrest.  "Through this initiative, CABHI and National Bank will provide additional supports for innovators to enable them to take their market-ready solutions to that next level, and in turn allow for products and services to become more widely accessible to the aging population in Canada, and beyond."

Through MC², CABHI is building on the impact of its core programs, to offer resources that encourage adoption and procurement of innovations across the healthcare sector in Canada and worldwide.

MC² will involve two phases:

• Phase 1 will connect selected CABHI-funded project teams with advisors who have industry, clinical, and research expertise to help them develop a strategy to enhance, scale, spread, and sustain their innovation.
  
  
• Based on the results of Phase 1, CABHI will provide financial support, help broker connections to end-users, and offer a suite of services to move innovations towards adoption and procurement.

Through this collaboration, selected projects may benefit from access to financial advisors and services at National Bank and as part of its network.  National Bank representatives will also serve as reviewers in CABHI project selection panels and advise on key industry trends.

"National Bank is pleased to be the inaugural partner of CABHI's MC² program," says Louis Vachon, President and CEO, National Bank. "CABHI is a leader in accelerating innovations in aging and brain health. Using our resources and talent to support innovative ideas from entrepreneurs who can drive impactful advancements, in Canada and beyond, is part of our core mission. We also see in this partnership an opportunity to make a difference in the life of a great number of individuals and families, and this always makes us very proud."

¹ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3241518/

CABHI gratefully acknowledges the support of its funders, the Government of Canada through the Public Health Agency of Canada, the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and the Baycrest Foundation.

About Baycrest
Now in its 100^th year, Baycrest is a global leader in geriatric residential living, healthcare, research, innovation and education, with a special focus on brain health and aging. Fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, Baycrest provides excellent care for older adults combined with an extensive clinical training program for the next generation of healthcare professionals and one of the world's top research institutes in cognitive neuroscience, the Rotman Research Institute. Baycrest is home to the federally and provincially-funded Canadian Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation, a solution accelerator focused on driving innovation in the aging and brain health sector, and is the developer of Cogniciti – a free online memory assessment for Canadians 40+ who are concerned about their memory.  Founded in 1918 as the Jewish Home for Aged, Baycrest continues to embrace the long-standing tradition of all great Jewish healthcare institutions to improve the well-being of people in their local communities and around the globe. For more information please visit: www.baycrest.org

About Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI)
A solution accelerator for the aging and brain health sector, CABHI provides funding and support to innovators for the development, testing, and dissemination of new ideas and technologies that address unmet brain health and seniors' care needs. Established in 2015, it is the result of the largest investment in brain health and aging in Canadian history. CABHI is a unique collaboration of health care, science, industry, not-for-profit and government partners whose aim is to help improve quality of life for the world's aging population, allowing older adults to age safely in the setting of their choice while maintaining their cognitive, emotional, and physical well-being. For more information on CABHI, please visit: www.cabhi.com.

About National Bank of Canada
With $258 billion in assets as at July 31, 2018, National Bank of Canada, together with its subsidiaries, forms one of Canada's leading integrated financial groups.  It has more than 23,000 employees in knowledge-intensive positions and has been recognized numerous times as a top employer and for its commitment to diversity.  Its securities are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: NA).  Follow the Bank's activities at nbc.ca or via social media such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

For a French version of this release, please visit: http://www.cabhi.com/mc2_launch_fr/

For more information, please visit www.cabhi.com.

SOURCE Baycrest

For further information: Media Contact: Arielle Zomer, Senior Communications Specialist, CABHI, 416-937-5741, [email protected]; Andy Levy-Ajzenkopf, Baycrest, 416-785-2500, ext. 5527, [email protected]