After struggling with a personal experience with the healthcare industry, philanthropist Sam Regenstrief was determined to spark change in the quality and efficiency of patient care. Sam and his wife, Myrtie, created The Regenstrief Foundation April 7, 1967 with assistance from legal counsel Leonard Betley, Sam’s nephew Dr. Harvey Feigenbaum, and Dr. John B. Hickam, professor and chairman of the Department of Medicine at the IU School of Medicine.

The avowed purpose was “to bring to the practice of medicine the most modern scientific advances from engineering, business, and the social sciences, and to foster the rapid dissemination into medical practice of the new knowledge created by research.”
Regenstrief: Legacy of the Dishwasher King

For five decades, the foundation has supported the efforts of researchers and clinicians who, like Sam, realize the tremendous opportunities to make medical care safer, more efficient and more accessible for everyone — no matter where they are.