Changing myself and my global perspective of healthcare
By Sindhu
Coming into business school, I had little idea of how much the program would change myself as a person and my global perspective of healthcare.
My background is primarily with U.S. healthcare, but I was excited to see the kind of support and impact I could have in other nations with completely different systems in place. Through my undergraduate program and job prior to Questrom, I have always been focused on a career that served those in need. I was stoked to potentially be part of the Brazil trip as I wanted to support a company and/or foundation that had a social purpose rather than maximizing profits.
After being accepted into the Brazil Global Immersion Seminar, I started getting anxious about the type of work I would be doing and going on an international trip alone. My team got assigned to a foundation, specifically in support of the Healthy Homes project. Being a Health Sector Management student, I was thrilled to be given this project along with a team who was as passionate about the mission as I was.
As I had client management experience from my previous job, I volunteered to take on the role as the primary contact with the client organization, responsible for emails and leading calls with them. In my career, I only had experience with U.S.-based clients, so my goal in every call had been to maximize productivity. After speaking with leaders at the foundation, the conversation progressed in a much slower fashion. I got to understand the way they thought about their trainings, as well as how much effort and care they had put into rural Brazil communities. Prior to our first call, I was primarily focused on completing the project efficiently and then going on the trip to Brazil.
As we got to know the client team more, my standard of quality work and personal connection to the project grew immensely. I finally felt like I could apply typical business school phrases like “value-add” and “measuring impact” while leveraging learnings from my first three class modules into an assignment that would support an incredible program.
As we got closer to spring break, I couldn’t wait to meet them and learn more about the ecosystem they work in. It was exciting to hear them talk about their culture and events surrounding Carnaval. Every step I took in preparation of the trip, whether it be researching my project or getting the necessary vaccinations, felt surreal in terms of actually going to Brazil and experiencing life there. Although the trip had been cancelled, due to COVID-19 precautionary measures, my spark for our project has not faded. I, my team as well, am eager to present our research and recommendations to the client. Though I wasn’t able to experience Brazil in person, I have learned so much about the culture through our interactions and am excited to have a productive conversation with them about the growth and success of Healthy Homes.