Health Innovation Research Day
The 2026 application period is now open!
Registration and abstract submissions are currently being accepted. See below for more details.
About the Event
Health Innovation Research Day (HIRD) will be held at the Illini Union on April 3rd, 2026 between 11:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. The conference is a celebration and exhibition of precisely what makes the partnership between the world's first engineering-based college of medicine and the Carle Health system unique.
We welcome anyone from our community - faculty, staff, students, and clinicians included - to register at no cost. Carle Health residents and CI MED students are invited to submit abstracts to be considered for one of two poster sessions and one of four oral presentation sessions.
Announcement of
Approved Abstracts
Tuesday, March 10
Digital Poster
Submission Deadline
Monday, March 23, 11:59 p.m.
WADE FAMILY GRAND ROUNDS SPEAKER
Dr. Dhanu Thiyag
MD, MPH, FACOG
Dr. Dhanu Thiyag is an Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Affiliate Faculty of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Michigan. As a clinician-scientist, she focuses on designing and clinically evaluating medical devices and simulation-based educational programming specifically for the goal of women’s health equity. This is crucial as medical devices and programming not designed for the context of use are typically neither sustained nor disseminated.
Examples of her work include devices for cervical cancer screening to diagnosing postpartum hemorrhage as well as simulation-based education to prevent cesarean deliveries to conducting less invasive gynecology surgery. She also focuses efforts on capacity building for women in engineering and clinical research with efforts in Ghana, Rwanda, and the USA. She has been recognized for her efforts with a University of Michigan Outstanding International Collaboration Award and as a STAT Wunderkind.
Contact Us
The Office of Research and Innovation is available to answer questions regarding abstract submission and conference participation. Reach out today.