Daily Business Report-Nov. 14, 2016
An infant has her fingerprint scanned with a new biometric identification device designed to make children’s vaccinations more efficient and more effective. (Credit: UCSD)
Gates Foundation Awards $2.5M to Qualcomm
Institute for Infant Vaccination Identification
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded an additional $2.4 million to researchers at the Qualcomm Institute at UC San Diego to develop biometric identification suitable for infants and children in the developing world.
The project is expected to make children’s vaccinations more efficient and more effective by removing reliance on manual identification and recordkeeping, epitomized by the ubiquitous yellow vaccination card. In concert with other Gates Foundation initiatives to improve vaccinations globally, the combined effort could save the lives of 1.5 million children younger than five, every year.
“Imagine you’re a mom in Africa or India and you live 100 miles away from a health care center,” says project lead Eliah Aronoff-Spencer, a professor and expert in infectious diseases at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, an affiliate of the Qualcomm Institute and a principal investigator on the project. “Once a week a local clinic offers vaccinations. If that clinic can currently see 300 people per day, and you’re number 301, and your baby needs her measles shot, then she is needlessly at risk, because measles is a vaccine-preventable illness. If we can help that clinic see 350 or 400 people instead, then that’s a lot of parents who won’t have to worry.”
The team is developing new technologies to identify infants from birth to six months.
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Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center
Breaks Ground on $244M Tower
Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center broke ground on a $244 million, 197,000-square-foot hospital tower on Thursday, which will add 138 private patient rooms, six large operating rooms and a rooftop café.
“We’re committed to expanding Sharp Chula Vista as this bi-national community continues to grow,” said Pablo Velez, chief executive officer.
The total cost to build the new tower is $244 million — an increase from $239 million because of a $5 million approval to build a hybrid procedure room.
The project is Sharp HealthCare’s largest single investment to date and is being funded through philanthropic donations to Sharp HealthCare Foundation, bonds, cash reserves and the Medi-Cal Hospital Fee Program.
The design-build team for the project includes Hensel Phelps, SmithGroupJJR and AVRP Studios. The grand opening of the new hospital at Sharp Chula Vista is anticipated in 2019.
Sharp Chula Vista’s new tower will include:
- 138 private patient rooms, including 10 intensive care suites
- 5 high-tech surgical suites
- 1 unique and versatile hybrid operating room
- Redesigned main entrance and lobby
- Rooftop café with panoramic views of San Diego
- Additional space for support services, including pharmacy and kitchen
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Council to Vote on Plan to Build Nine
New International Cottages in Balboa Park
The San Diego City Council today will vote on a proposed plan to build nine new international cottages in Balboa Park.
The plan foresees building five structures — four duplexes and one stand-alone — for a total of nine new cottages. The new cottages will house members of the House of Pacific Relations, a nonprofit organization based in Balboa Park that promotes multicultural goodwill and understanding through educational and cultural programs.
Among member nations/cultures slated to use these cottages are Peru, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Korea, India, Palestine, and Turkey.
Approximately 600 square feet each and designed to be museums with the appearance of a private homes, these new cottages will join existing ones that offer visitors a glimpse of the culture, history and traditions of each member country. The international cottages are free and open to the public every Sunday between noon and 4 p.m.
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Community College District’s
3 Campuses Named Military Friendly
All three of the San Diego Community College District’s for-credit colleges — City, Mesa, and Miramar — have being named a Military Friendly School by Victory Media, publisher of G.I. Jobs, STEM Jobs and Military Spouse.
The Military Friendly Schools designation is awarded to colleges, universities, community colleges, and trade schools in the country to embrace veterans, active-duty military, and their dependents.
The district currently enrolls more than 12,000 veterans, active-duty military and military dependents. San Diego City College houses an on-campus Veterans Service Center that offers peer support and mentoring, referrals to resources throughout the community, and conducts meetings and workshops relating to veterans’ issues.
San Diego Mesa College, home to more than 2,000 student veterans, offers an array of services to active-duty and former military members. The college opened a new Veterans Resource Center in 2014.
San Diego Miramar College features a Veterans Affairs office that staffs a full-time veterans affairs specialist. The college has been awarded a sizable grant from San Diego Gas & Electric to develop the ‘Vets-2 Jets’ program, which offers varied grants to cover books, tuition, and living expenses.
