Kettering Health opens Center for Clinical Innovation at Ridgeleigh Terrace
Apr. 4—The former home of Charles Kettering, the namesake for the city and Kettering Health, is getting a new purpose in line with one of the aspects about the inventor and philanthropist that is most well-remembered: Innovation.
Kettering Health recently launched the Center for Clinical Innovation at Ridgeleigh Terrace, which is located at Kettering Health Main Campus and previously housed members of the executive corporate staff.
"It's really to recreate this space Ridgeleigh Terrace for physicians and throughout Kettering Health to connect and collaborate and innovate to serve our patients and our communities," said Dr. Robert T. Smith, Kettering Health chief medical officer.
Kettering Health CEO Michael Gentry was the vision behind the reuse of this space, Smith said. Gentry has been at the helm of this health system for nearly a year.
"I know one of the first things he did was to say, 'We're going to create a difference in this health system by using this building differently than it was used in the past,'" said Daniel Wolcott, president of acute care for Kettering Health.
Ridgeleigh Terrace was built in 1914 and home to Kettering and his wife, Olive, until his death in 1958, according to Kettering Health.
"He built it as a wooded retreat for he and his wife," said Jimmy Phillips, vice president of marketing and communications at Kettering Health. "It was the first house in existence with central air conditioning."
Kettering was research director of General Motors for 27 years, later founding the Dayton Engineering Laboratories Company, also known as Delco. Kettering held more than 300 patents, according to Kettering Health, including inventions for the first practical automobile self-starter and the first reliable battery ignition system.
"Dayton has been a hub for innovation for 100 years, and Charles F. Kettering was a major driving force in innovation," Smith said.
The estate will now be a think tank for physicians from varying specialties to meet on a regular basis to discuss ideas and projects for clinical innovation, quality and safety, Smith said.
"We're constantly thinking how we can design and deliver patient-centric care that improves the experience of the patients," Smith said.
Items of historical significance relating to Kettering's work and to health care in general are on display at the estate, along with displays of quotes from the inventor.
"Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail," said Wolcott, quoting Kettering. "Maybe that's good advice for us."
