Entrepreneurs Take on Health Care

In April, Babson joined Wellesley College and Olin College of Engineering to mark World Health Day 2018. This cross-campus collaboration brought together students, faculty, alumni, thought leaders, and global health experts for a day of discussion and brainstorming about the potential of entrepreneurship to combat our most complex global health challenges.

The World Health Organization points out some astounding needs in the global health arena: in 2017, half the world’s population of 7.3 billion lacked access to essential health services; in 2015, 5 billion people didn’t have access to affordable and safe surgery, and more than 2 billion people lacked basic sanitation services; and in 2012, an estimated 23 percent of global deaths resulted from people living or working in an unhealthy environment.

At Babson, we know that the leadership and inspiration of entrepreneurs of all kinds is needed to address these pressing issues and that the transformative power of entrepreneurship can be of great benefit in the field of global health care.

Babson alumni around the world are doing innovative and groundbreaking work, creating unconventional global health solutions and bridging medicine and business with entrepreneurial energy. Joanna Geisinger, MBA’17, is facilitating collaboration among hospitals and medical device companies as founder and CEO of TORq Interface; Chinmoy Mishra, MBA’08, and Dhairya Gupta, MBA’08, founders of AllizHealth, have created a platform to help consumers in India track and manage their health; and Ed LaFrance ’95 is revolutionizing elder care as founder of EvoLve Senior Living.

Here on campus, Babson’s Schlesinger Fund for Global Healthcare Entrepreneurship, housed within The Lewis Institute, is providing opportunities for faculty and students to apply Entrepreneurial Thought & Action to global health challenges. Through events, student programs, thought leadership, and strategic partnerships with global health-care leaders, Babson is exploring the state of global surgery and health through the lens of entrepreneurship and business organization principles.

This work is made possible through the generosity of the Kletjian Foundation and the vision of its co-founder and president, Carmella Kletjian. In addition to funding the Schlesinger Fund for Global Healthcare Entrepreneurship, the Kletjian Foundation has endowed a Distinguished Professor in Global Surgery to support a field critically in need of new, sustainable approaches. We were honored to have Carmella join us at Babson Connect: Worldwide in Madrid to continue the conversation about global health care and entrepreneurship.

At Babson, we believe entrepreneurship is the most powerful force for creating positive change in the world. Global health is ready for new solutions and disruption. Our incredible community of 40,000 alumni and friends around the world is equipped to tackle these challenges with entrepreneurial spirit, thought, and action, and will transform lives, businesses, and communities for the better.

Kerry Healey