PCOM allocates $5 million to primary care innovations

The Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) Foundation is allocating $5 million to a new venture capital fund created to support innovations in primary care.

Preliminary plans for the Primary Care Innovation Fund, set up through PCOM’s foundation, are to invest in companies that have established products and services that are focused on primary care. PCOM is the first osteopathic medical school to establish such a fund, according to a statement from the school.

“The osteopathic philosophy focuses on prevention and maintaining wellness. Through the Primary Care Innovation Fund, PCOM can extend that philosophy by investing in innovative opportunities nationally to improve and maintain patients’ quality of life,” said Jay S. Feldstein, DO, the PCOM president and CEO, in the statement.

Goals for the fund include:

• Developing innovations that benefit PCOM alumni by addressing the quality, accessibility and affordability of health care for their patients.
• Opening doors financially for current students, faculty, staff and alumni who have a product or service appropriate for funding consideration.
• Establishing a revenue stream for PCOM that is not tuition-based.

PCOM will consider investment opportunities from across the country, but will focus on the Philadelphia and Atlanta areas. PCOM’s branch campus is located in Suwanee, Georgia.