By Kelly Connelly
Innovative Leader
Baycrest A centre of excellence for innovations in aging
Ontario
Dr. William Reichman
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Headquartered on a 22-acre campus in Ontario and fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, Baycrest is the global leader in developing and providing innovations in aging and brain health. Baycrest is unique in the world, combining a comprehensive system of care for aging patients, one of the world’s top research institutes in cognitive neuroscience, dedicated centres focused on mitigating the impact of age-related illness and impairment, and unmatched global knowledge exchange and commercialization capacity.
Biotechnology Focus / June 2011
The world is bracing for an unprecedented demographic shift that will see the number of persons aged 60-andolder grow by over a billion in the next 40 years. Those in healthcare science and innovation, including Baycrest, see a tremendous opportunity to help public and private stakeholders find solutions to the challenges of an aging population. Baycrest is quickly becoming a leader in developing technology-based solutions. The sprawling 1.2 million squarefoot campus in Toronto is driving innovation through a bold new organizational structure that strongly encourages commercialization opportunities for its science and care innovations through business partnerships. “Baycrest is evolving into a dynamic entrepreneur-centric model for translating science into innovation,” said president and CEO Dr. William Reichman. Baycrest plans to launch a new company that will introduce a comprehensive and uniquely competitive portfolio of aging-oriented products, goods, consulting and development services to the international marketplace. Companies and countries are now turning to Baycrest to help develop products and system solutions for the aging population. The entrepreneurial spirit is evident throughout this world-class academic health sciences centre. Creative ideas for “next” care products are being nurtured by entrepreneurs-in-residence in the Innovation, Technology and Design Lab. It’s the place where researchers and healthcare experts, and other types of professionals such as engineers and anthropologists, work collaboratively with in-house entrepreneurs, as well as partners from industry, to turn great ideas into revenue-generating product solutions for the marketplace. “We are building our considerable strengths to develop innovations and next practices that will consolidate our international reputation and attract to
our doorstep more of the world’s top neuroscientists, geriatric medicine specialists, educators and global partners,” said Dr. Anthony Melman, chair of Baycrest’s Board of Directors. One of Baycrest’s greatest strengths is its world-renowned cognitive science institute, the Rotman Research Institute (RRI). An international review panel of highly-respected scientists has ranked Baycrest’s RRI among the top cognitive science programs in the world, which makes it a “wonderful resource” for targeted brain fitness product development efforts with both governmental and private investors.
‘Ontario hotspot’ “Baycrest has the great advantage of being located in Ontario, which is a recognized global hotspot for brain innovation,” said senior scientist Dr. Randy McIntosh, vice-president of Research at Baycrest and RRI director. To enable Baycrest to fast-track its cutting edge cognitive science into therapeutic commercial products, the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation provided $10 million in matched funding with private philanthropy in 2008 to create the Baycrest Centre for Brain Fitness (CBF). The CBF’s mandate is to commercialize evidence-based technologies and interventions aimed at early detection and prevention of aging-related memory decline, repair and rehabilitation of function. One of the diagnostic prototypes is INCAS, a computer tablet testing platform that helps clinicians conduct neurological assessments of patients. The tablet-based interface is convenient for clinicians and patients and allows for more accurate and timely assessment of cognitive function. More recently, Cogniciti – a for-profit startup founded by the Baycrest CBF and Toronto-based MaRS Innovation to commercialize Baycrest’s expertise in cognitive training solutions – is devel-
