Health Cities is an independent Canadian not-for-profit dedicated to advancing healthcare by co-creating practical, novel solutions with partners across the health continuum. We engage clinicians, innovators, industry partners, and government to strengthen care delivery and improve health outcomes for individuals and their communities.

We validate and scale novel care models in real-world environments to de-risk adoption of innovative solutions and tools that enable effective integration into existing services. Health Cities helps create a sustainable, accessible, and future-ready healthcare landscape across Alberta and beyond.

To support this mission, Health Cities opens Calls for Innovation aligned with ongoing projects. Responding to a Call for Innovation gives solutions the opportunity to be tested, validated, and scaled in real-world health environments, creating meaningful impact for patients, providers, and communities.

How the Call for Innovation Works

  • Challenge Posted: Health Cities publishes details of a priority challenge looking for a market-ready solution.
  • Submit Your Solution: Innovators submit their solution through our application process, explaining how it meets the challenge need.
  • Evaluation: Submissions are assessed with our innovative healthcare providers using clear criteria focused on impact, feasibility, and alignment with health system priorities.
  • Shortlist & Presentations: Submissions aligning with project are invited to present their solution to Health Cities and partners for deeper evaluation.
  • Validate: Selected innovations are integrated with project to validate solutions in a real-world setting.
Why Participate

Innovators benefit by:

  • Testing and validating solutions in real-world settings.
  • Building relationships with health system partners.
  • Accelerating impact and scaling adoption across communities.
View our open Calls for Innovation below. 

Open Calls for Innovation

There are no active calls for innovation at this time.

Future Projects

If you are interested in participating in future Health Cities projects, please submit your information in the form below. Future areas of interest include primary care, community health, women’s health, Indigenous health, mental health, and rural & remote health. 

Submit a General Expression of Interest

Previous Calls for Innovation

CLOSED: Health Cities Call for Innovation: Mobile Software for Diabetes-Related Health Data Collection and Reporting

Health Cities is seeking expressions of interest from vendors offering mobile software applications that allow individuals living with chronic conditions (i.e., diabetes) to collect readings from home monitoring devices, display these raw values in an organized format, and export the data for upload into primary care EMR patient portals.

The goal of this Call for Innovation is to identify solutions that:

  • Operate on iOS and Android smartphones or tablets
  • Connect to home monitoring devices
  • Collect and present raw device readings in a clear, organized format suitable for clinical review
  • Generate PDF reports that can be uploaded into existing EMR patient portals
  • Do not require EMR integration
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This Call supports PCNs across Alberta exploring virtual care and remote diabetes monitoring workflows.

About the Provincial Diabetes Program

The Provincial Diabetes Program is a Government of Alberta–funded effort,  led by Health Cities, aimed at transforming the prevention and management of type 2 diabetes through innovative solutions. The initiative will collaborate with care providers across Alberta to implement tools and care models that support both prevention and ongoing management of type 2 diabetes. Its goal is to validate and scale these solutions within primary care and strengthen the health system’s ability to address diabetes effectively. Palliser Primary Care Network (PCN) will be an initial partner in this work, helping to validate the innovation through the Palliser PCN Virtual Diabetes Monitoring Project.

About the Palliser PCN Virtual Diabetes Monitoring Project

The Palliser PCN Virtual Diabetes Monitoring Project aims to improve ongoing monitoring and management for patients living with diabetes by enabling them to track key health metrics using remote monitoring devices. The project will conduct a call for innovation to identify suitable software and test the feasibility of capturing data on patients’ personal mobile devices using the chosen application. Patients will then upload this data in PDF format to their EMR portal when prompted by their care team. The project will pilot this workflow in two EMR environments.

Software Requirements

Requirements: 

  • State any other compatible devices that manage chronic conditions (i.e., blood glucose meters, blood pressure monitors, weight scales)

Requirements:

  • Full support for iOS and Android smartphones/tablets
  • Ability to use on a variety of patient-owned devices (phones and/or tablets)
  • Application available via standard app stores or enterprise distribution
  • No specialized hardware required

Requirements:

  • Ability to automatically collect readings from connected devices
  • Presentation of raw readings in a structured, organized format appropriate for diabetes management

Requirement: 

  • Ability to export or download reports in PDF format

Requirements: 

  • Commercially available
  • Identify experience with EMRs commonly used in Alberta and specifically state which EMRs are currently used. 
  • No EMR integration required

Requirements: 

  • The software can be used by patients in Alberta
  • The solution meets Canadian regulatory, privacy, and security standards
Closing Date: February 11, 2026.
(CLOSED) Submit your Expression of Interest

CLOSED: Enhancing Clinical Decision-Making with AI-Powered Support Systems

In Partnership with Can Health Network

Primary care providers across Alberta are facing increasing pressure to make timely, accurate decisions while managing vast amounts of patient data and administrative tasks. This can lead to decision fatigue and potential errors. AI-powered clinical decision support systems (CDSS) offer a solution by integrating and analyzing diverse data sources, providing evidence-based recommendations, and automating routine tasks. This project aims to improve clinical efficiency, reduce errors, and enhance patient outcomes through intelligent, real-time decision support. The selected company will have the opportunity to validate their solution in real-world clinical settings and contribute to improved patient care and operational efficiency in Alberta.

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This Call for Innovation is being posted in collaboration with Health Cities to seek out qualified Canadian companies who can meet the following desired outcomes. Health Cities will assist in identifying clinical implementation sites in Alberta through its network of partners. CAN Health and Health Cities reserve the right to not move forward with this project at its full discretion and, in particular, if there are no qualified Canadian companies that can reasonably meet the desired outcomes.

(CLOSED) Submit your Expression of Interest

CLOSED: Alberta Age Smart Home Care Project: Enhancing Aging in Place through Innovation

This project aims to reimagine the concept of aging in place by implementing innovative solutions that support older adults to live independently, safely, and comfortably in their own homes.

Addressing the challenges of aging in place, like health care access, home safety, and social connectivity, is vital. We invite companies interested in partnering to demonstrate their innovative solutions in the homes of older adults throughout Alberta.  

The objectives of this project are to:  

  • Evaluate the impact of innovative solutions on independence, health, and quality of life. 
  • Establish a scalable and replicable model of technology-integrated support for aging in place that can be adapted to different settings.
  • Provide evidence-based recommendations for policymakers and other healthcare providers on supporting aging in place. 
 

More information on the Age Smart Home Care Project

Call For Innovative Solutions

Areas of Interest

couple at hm

Supporting activities of daily living like toileting and walking so older adults can live independently in their homes and community. 

Examples: Fall detection, smart lights, sensors, incontinence support, etc. 

Maintaining autonomy through disability and illness

Examples: Assistive technology like Google Assist and Alexa, rehabilitation solutions, etc. 

Strong social networks for older adults and caregivers. 

Examples: Social platforms, apps, etc. 

Improving the quality of care, meeting older adults where they are in the community, and taking a proactive approach to managing health. 

Examples: Digital health apps, remote home health monitoring, etc. 

Healthy aging as supported through exercise, diet, and mental health, while recognizing the social, economic, and contextual factors. 

Examples: Wearables, virtual exercise, improving accessibility, etc. 

Improving, maintaining, or reducing the decline of cognition in older adults. Supporting older adults with mild cognitive decline. 

Examples: Digital assessment tools, reminder tools, etc. 

Who should submit an expression of interest?

This Call for Innovation is a good fit for companies and innovators who:

  • Are committed to supporting older adults in aging comfortably within their own homes and communities. 
  • Have developed a proven, innovative solution that addresses one of the Areas of Interest above and meets all the necessary regulatory requirements for commercial use.
  • Are eager to collaborate with partners and evaluators and can support the implementation of your solution. 
  • Understand the broader impact of supporting innovative projects that can influence policies, enabling equitable access to supportive technologies for older adults in Alberta.  
Participating companies will have the opportunity to:
  • Trial their solutions with home care clients in Alberta, potentially broadening the adoption of these solutions beyond the project’s scope. 
  • Gain access to independent third-party evaluations, demonstrating the positive impact of their solutions on older adults in the community. 
  • Receive extensive exposure through social media campaigns, with features highlighting their contributions. 
  • Contribute to a growing body of evidence that showcases how innovative solutions can help older adults remain in their homes and communities longer, influencing policy to expand access to these technologies. 
As a participating company, you will be expected to:
  • Collaborate closely with other project partners in supporting implementation and engage in data collection and evaluation activities. 
  • Understand that this is not a typical vendor/customer relationship, There is a reimbursement model for directly incurred expenses. However, participating companies would also be expected to provide in kind contributions to the project are no costs required for participation, nor should direct financial gain be expected. 
  • Adhere to communicated project timelines. 
(CLOSED) Submit your Expression of Interest