On Nov. 28, Optum Labs, the research and development arm of UnitedHealth Group, and New York-based Cornell Tech announced via a press release the creation of a research hub to deliver improved, more equitable healthcare.
Optum Labs is providing funding in 2022-2023 that intends to drive innovative research in precision behavioral health, extended reality for aging in place, and equitable human and algorithmic decision-making.
The press release says that “The partnership will be led by Deborah Estrin, an associate dean and a Robert V. Tishman ’37 professor at Cornell University, and Tanzeem Choudhury, Ph.D., senior vice president at Optum Labs, and a Roger and Joelle Burnell Professor in Integrated Health and Technology at Cornell University, with the specific intent of transforming patient health outcomes and care by incorporating new types of health data from wearables and IoT devices and creating new types of remote intervention and care delivery using augmented reality and virtual reality actuation technologies with computational techniques.”
Choudhury was quoted in the release saying that “The Digital Health Research Hub is creating closer collaborations between world-renowned health technology researchers from academia and Optum Labs scientists. The new algorithms and computational systems resulting from this partnership have the potential to shape the future of digital health care solutions.”
Estrin was also quoted saying that “This is an exciting opportunity to work with Optum Labs experts to shape technical research in ways that will advance healthcare in real-world settings. Aligned with Cornell Tech’s mission for deep engagements with the healthcare ecosystem, this new research initiative will accelerate the translation of novel research into scalable tools for improving individual and community health.”
