The Fuente de San Luís health center in our city will launch this community-based innovation lab, where residents will conduct their own assessment of the neighborhood’s needs and issues.
València Innovation Capital, the Polytechnic University of Valencia, and the València Saludable platform are also participating in this initiative, led by the Fisabio Foundation.
The Equilab project has launched in Valencia with the goal of creating an open and participatory space for innovation that will improve collaboration between citizens and health and social services, as well as other stakeholders in the health sector.
Coordinated by the Foundation for the Promotion of Health and Biomedical Research in the Valencian Community (Fisabio) of the Regional Ministry of Health, the Equilab project—in which València Innovation Capital is also participating—will be carried out in the neighborhoods served by the Fuente de San Luís health center, which is part of the Valencia-Doctor Peset Health Department. The first step will be to work with local residents to assess the needs, demands, and challenges of the population in this area.
Next, the citizen innovation lab, located at this health center, will be launched. Here, citizens and other stakeholders will design and develop solutions to address the real needs identified in the previous phase.
Paula Llobet, the Councilor for Innovation at the Valencia City Council, emphasizes that this project “aims to listen to residents, involve them, and engage them. Based on people’s own experiences, we will carefully analyze the health needs of this neighborhood, and the residents themselves will contribute ideas and initiatives to address them. We believe this is a very interesting initiative that promotes citizen participation.”
In addition to Fisabio’s Open Science Unit, Fisabio’s Health Promotion Unit for Vulnerable Populations and healthcare staff from the Fuente de San Luís health center, the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV) and the platforms València Saludable and València Innovation Capital (VIC) are also participating.
Equilab is co-funded by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) as part of the 2023 call for grants to promote scientific, technological, and innovation culture, and will run for 18 months. To participate in Equilab, please contact us at the following email address: cienciaciudadana@fisabio.es