After 286 total applications, 87 semifinalists, and 15 Finalists, we are thrilled to announce this year’s 10 Promising Practices, winners of the 2022 VHA Shark Tank Competition! Congratulations to the Promising Practices and winning Sharks who will begin replicating the Promising Practices at their facility! Click on the document below to view more information about this year’s Promising Practices and the winning facility Shark Bids! 

Fourteen Finalists pitched their practices live at the Competition during VHA Innovation Experience (iEX) on October 27 to viewers across the country. Thank you to all Finalists who pitched at the Competition, your dedication to your practice and Veteran care is applauded. We encourage all applicants and Finalists not selected as Promising Practices to reapply next year! If you have any immediate questions or want to provide feedback, please email the VA Diffusion Support Team.

On Thursday, October 27, Finalists pitched their practice live to compete for a chance to cast their unique innovations to other VHA facilities at VHA Shark Tank Competition held during VHA Innovation Experience (iEX). Check out the 2022 Finalist pitches through the video below and stay tuned for more information on the 2023 VHA Shark Tank Competition! 

Selected practices address one of the below 2022 VHA Shark Tank Highlighted Priorities or a self-identified “Other” Priority.

• Age-Friendly Health Systems: Provides care to older Veterans based on the 4Ms (What Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility) framework for establishing Veteran-centric care focused on What Matters across all care settings
• De-Implementation: Focuses on effectively stoppingactivities that no longer provide value or that have become ineffective or obsolete
• Employee Experience and Well-being: Improves recruitment, retention, well-being, and morale of VA employees, empowering staff to provide greater input into their work environment; Promotes a safe, harassment-free environment for Employees; and/or Creates a great place to work where all feel valued, engaged, and empowered
• Enabling Rural Veterans to Thrive: Improves access to health care and services for rural Veterans and their caregivers, breaking down the barriers (e.g., distance,internet access, transportation) that prevent quality care in rural settings
• Health Care After COVID-19 – Post-Pandemic Care: Promotes Veteran, employee, and citizen health and safety to address the COVID-19 pandemic, and future emergency situations, including virtual care models to enable remote service delivery
• Health Care Technologies and Tools: Refers to any tools or software used to improve health care delivery, improve the quality of Veteran care, and/or increase Veteran access to care, including remote monitoring to support Veteran ability to achieve healthgoals or maintain independence 
• Health Equity: Supports the elimination of health disparities and their outcomes, achieving equitable access to high-quality care for all Veterans, including Veterans of all races, ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses, geographic regions, and LGBTQ+ Veterans
• High Reliability Culture Change – Commit to Zero Harm: Develops standard work practices for leaders and staff to support the enterprise effort to move VHA toward higher reliability with a focus on reducing errors and harm 
• I-DEA (InclusionDiversity Equity and Access): Addresses diversity, inclusion, equity and access across VA through activities and practices that address VA workforce management, recruitment, retention, or that improve patient care and patient experience
• Immersive Technologies and Experiences: Leverages evolving augmented, mixed, or virtual realities to enhance treatment for Veterans or to facilitate comprehensive healthcare training, education, or evaluation for VA staff through an immersive modality
• Opioids andother Substance Use: Addresses opioid or other substance misuse and substance use disorder among Veterans through activities such as intervention, identification of high-risk patients, and successful pain management or prescribing practices
• Suicide Prevention: Reduces the incidence of Veteran suicide through VA-wide suicide prevention training, improving the Veterans Crisis Line, and/or expanding suicide prevention programs
• VA and Community Health Care Access: Improves the ease with which a Veteran can receive timely care at VA or in their community,; leverages solutions across specialties to optimize provider and care-team productivity; enhances care coordination for Veterans receiving care in the community; Supports natural bridges to VA enrollment and future service delivery; and/or Finds unique and creative ways to impact transitioning Veterans, and those not currentlyreceiving VA services, to build civilian lives of opportunity and fulfillment
• Veteran Experience: Delivers patient experiences marked by effectiveness, ease, and engagement, restoring pride, public trust, and confidence in VA 
• Whole Health: Empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest
• Women’s Health: Enhances and optimizes our ability to provide high-quality, gender-specific health care to women Veterans in a safe and sensitive environment
• Other: Share your own unique Priority Category