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Left to Right: Dr. Stanley Hazen, Joseph Iannotti, MD, PhD, Chief of Research and Academic Officer, Cleveland Clinic Florida, Dr. Serpil Erzurum, and Frank Papay, MD, Chair, Dermatology & Plastic Surgery
On September 18, 2025, Cleveland Clinic Innovations (CCI) hosted an intimate celebration at the Intercontinental Hotel Falcon Room. The event honored caregivers whose creativity and collaboration are shaping the future of patient care. Throughout the evening, caregivers focused on meaningful connections and recognizing the spirit of innovation that drives Cleveland Clinic to bring innovative technologies to patients across the globe.
The program began with welcoming words from D. Geoffrey Vince, PhD, Chief, Cleveland Clinic Innovations, Department Chair, Biomedical Engineering, who set the tone: “Everyone in this room is a serial inventor. It’s something that we really want to celebrate, this innovative spirit and how we tie innovation into everything we do.”
Serpil Erzurum, MD, Executive Vice President, Chief Research & Academic Officer, Chief, Cleveland Clinic Research, The Alfred Lerner Memorial Chair in Innovative Biomedical Research, emphasized the importance of teamwork and perseverance: “You give birth to new ideas, and then the hard labor you put into it… The value of the Innovations team is remarkable because it’s not just ideas, it’s about how you make those become a reality.” She credited colleagues across Research, CCI, Legal, and commercialization for processes that “are working really exceptionally well.”
That purpose, ideas that become impact, came through in conversations with the inventors themselves. Christopher Nguyen, PhD, FSCMR, FACC, Director, Cardiovascular Innovation Research Center (CIRC) and Associate Professor of Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, described prolific invention as a mindset anchored to patients: “Once you really think about what we’re doing for a patient… ideas start to flow,” he said, adding that the community he’s found here “confirms… it’s all about improving patients’ lives.” For David Chen, PhD, Associate Director, CIRC and Director of AI, CIRC, inventing is “a natural part of answering clinical questions” inside a culture that is “very patient focused,” where you “see problems and holes” in care and feel compelled “to answer them.”
Several inventors pointed to the long, sometimes winding road from disclosure to product. Aaron Fleischman, PhD, Director, BioMEMS and Nanotech Laboratory, called the recognition meaningful precisely because “it can be a slog,” noting he has a product in commercialization today that began two decades ago, an odyssey sustained by unmet needs, steady iteration, and the prospect of helping patients. “It will… help people and improve patient outcomes, and that’s what we’re here for,” he said. Nancy Albert, PhD, CCNS, CHFN, CCRN, NE-BC, FAHA, FCCM, FHFSA, FAAN, Executive Director and Associate Chief Nursing Officer, echoed the grit required: curiosity sparks ideas, but “it’s a lot of time and effort to bring something to life,” and the real difference comes from being “willing to stay the course” until the research shows clear value.
Others highlighted the environment that makes sustained invention possible. Deborah Kwon, MD, FACC, FSCMR, FASE, Director of Cardiac MRI and Associate Professor of Medicine Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine, described a place that consistently “pushes the envelope” in disruptive ways to reach more patients, crediting Cleveland Clinic with bringing together “the right people at the right time in the right setting” and providing resources that create an “amazing atmosphere” for progress. Stanley Hazen, MD, PhD, Chair, Department of Heart, Blood and Kidney Research, Cleveland Clinic Research and Co-Section Head, Preventive Cardiology & Cardiovascular Rehabilitation, added that Cleveland Clinic’s culture rewards “being innovative” and offers “the freedom to pursue something completely different and new”. Flexibility has allowed his work to follow findings “off the beaten path” when that’s where patient impact might be greatest.
For clinician‑inventors, innovation is also a way to extend care beyond today’s standard. Jacob Scott, MD, DPhil, DABR, Staff Physician-Scientist, Translational Hematology & Oncology Research, put it plainly: delivering the best of what exists now “is an honor to do, but it’s not good enough.” The ability to return to the lab to, “invent something new and bring that back to my patients,” turns difficult moments at the bedside into commitments to future solutions, “maybe for you, maybe for your children, maybe tomorrow or the next day.”
Three special recognitions were presented during the program:
The evening underscored a practical truth: when clinical teams, researchers, and CCI connect early, at the very first “there’s a better way” moment, ideas tend to move more smoothly through evaluation, IP, and development into practice. The remarks highlighted how coordination across the enterprise continues to mature, making collaboration clearer and more navigable for caregivers. Inventors also emphasized the perseverance required to validate value and the benefit of an environment that brings the right people and resources together. Clinician-inventors noted that this collaboration helps address gaps in today’s standard of care by enabling lab work to cycle back to patient care.
The gathering offered a clear view of the culture that powers Cleveland Clinic inventions: patient-first problem-solving, disciplined validation, and the latitude to pursue promising lines of inquiry when evidence points in a new direction. Rather than a formal showcase, the evening reflected how solutions often emerge here, incrementally, through close partnerships and steady iteration. These are the qualities that make collaboration productive and outcomes-focused.
