We focus our grantmaking efforts on advancing leading edge, nursing-driven interventions that target the needs of marginalized populations. The pipeline of grants we offer (Emergent Innovation, Innovations in Care, and Innovation Dissemination) are designed to fuel great ideas wherever they are in their development.
We invite you to learn more about our programs – including RFPs and application information – below.
The Hillman Innovation Dissemination Program (HID) aims to expand and enhance the scaling efforts of established nursing-driven interventions with proven outcomes that target the needs of marginalized populations. The Hillman staff work closely with grantees to tailor the scope of the work. This can take many forms: a large-scale evaluation to demonstrate effectiveness to potential community and government partners; the development of a tool that would help interested health systems gauge the viability and cost effectiveness of adopting the proposed intervention; or helping to stage a targeted communications effort intended to influence policy makers.
These discretionary awards (by invitation only) provide funding and external endorsement to spur the development of promising work. Funding amounts range from $25,000 to $300,000.
Hillman education programs are designed to cultivate, inspire, and inform the next generation of nurse innovators dedicated to making healthcare more effective, equitable, and trustworthy.
Together with the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, we created this course so that nurses, no matter their experience, setting, or location, could join us in designing a healthier, more equitable future. Operating at the nexus of care delivery and care consumption, nurses have a boots-on-the-ground understanding of healthcare’s strengths and limitations that encompasses both the provider and patient point of view. This unique perspective – along with a holistic approach to care that recognizes social and structural drivers of health – gives nurses an unparalleled vantage point from which to design solutions to some of healthcare’s greatest challenges.
We believe that nurses are a powerful force for change. When nurses innovate, everyone benefits. We invite and encourage you to explore the Design Thinking for Health online platform.
Launched in 2011, The Hillman Scholars Program in Nursing Innovation (HSNI) is an accelerated integrated BSN-to-PhD program that equips the next generation of nurse scientists with the skill sets required to drive health care transformation. HSNI offers extensive opportunities to develop the knowledge and know-how necessary to address large-scale health care challenges. From designing a mobile app to help patients take their medications correctly and on time, to redesigning care for patients with multiple health challenges, Hillman Scholars learn to work at the intersection of science, feasibility, viability, and need. They emerge prepared to create scalable interventions that confront the most complex issues facing healthcare systems today. Over the last decade, The Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation has supported scholars at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the University of Michigan. Learn more at hillmanscholars.org.
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To help us in the evaluation and analysis of projects, all proposals, documents, communications, and associated materials submitted to The Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation (collectively, “Submission Materials”) will become the property of the Foundation and will be shared with other members of the Advisory Committee, Board of Directors, and other funding partners or potential funding partners. We will report publicly on the number of applications received.
The proposals, in addition to analysis by our staff and consultants, may be subject to confidential external review by independent subject-matter experts, potential co-funders, and (for educational purposes only) participants in the Hillman Scholars Program for Nursing Innovation. Please carefully consider the information included in the Submission Materials. If you have any doubts about the wisdom of disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, we recommend you consult with legal counsel and take any steps you deem necessary to protect your intellectual property. You may wish to consider whether such information is critical for evaluating the submission, and whether more general, non-confidential information may be adequate as an alternative for these purposes.
We respect confidential information we receive. Nonetheless, notwithstanding your characterization of any information as being confidential, we may publicly disclose all information contained in Submission Materials to the extent as may be required by law and as is necessary for potential co-funders and external reviewers to evaluate them and the manner and scope of potential funding, consistent with appropriate regulations and their internal guidelines and policies.
