Sometimes, the most frustrating feeling that someone gets when faced with a chronic illness is the feeling of helplessness. Oftentimes that frustration is directed towards researchers and doctors who are doing their best to help us but don’t seem to be focusing on the areas that affect us the most.

I was recently introduced to a new initiative that aims to get research started in areas that are most important to patients, and then fund these projects through a crowdfunding campaign.  But here’s the cool part: Areas of focus are chosen based on ideas given by patients like you and me!.

The site is called WellSpringboard, and it’s been set up in partnership with the Michigan Institute for Clinical & Health Research (MICHR) at the University of Michigan to enable patients who have chronic illness a chance to share their ideas on where we should focus new research.

I’ll be submitting my own ideas to the team, but if you’d like to also participate (and I ask that you do), please submit your idea to the WellSpringboard page: wellspringboard.org

After your idea is submitted and approved (i.e. you followed the submission guidelines):

…The WellSpringboard team will reach out to experts at the University of Michigan who can answer your research questions and propose a project and target funding goal to conduct the research. When your idea is matched with a researcher who can bring it life, we’ll post it to WellSpringboard and open it up to collect funds for 30 days….

WellSpringboard FAQ

Basically, they will crowdfund to raise a target amount in order to get the research off the ground – think Kickstarter or similar.

I love the fact that this allows patients the opportunity to feel like they have more control over their illness by pointing researchers into a direction that they feel would benefit them the most.

Here’s to hoping that this unique opportunity is a successful one!

To find out more about this project, please visit wellspringboard.org

For the FAQ, which explains a bit more about the process, please visit https://wellspringboard.org/faq/