Lessons from the Mayo Clinic: Can design thinking help global health delivery?


Dateline: November 2011 Location: MIT Sloan by MIT Sloan student David Xie Summary This essay reflects on the strength, outcome and challenges associated with the Mayo Clinic’s design thinking approach to improving healthcare delivery, and discusses the merit of applying design thinking towards improving global healthcare delivery especially in resource poor settings. The essay concludes by […] Continue Reading


What is the role of design thinking in global health delivery?


We were lucky enough to have Jose Colucci, IDEO’s Health and Wellness lead in Boston, join our class yesterday for an interactive workshop on design thinking and human centered design.  We’ve spent much time this semester looking at different business models and evaluating the care delivery value chain (see this great article for an example of applying value chain […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: Tips for on-the-ground market research


Key steps and tips for performing market research in developing countries An MIT student team shares what they learned after conducting comprehensive market research in Uganda Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: reaching more for less – improving the distribution of information


A guide to identifying improvement opportunities in a distribution network Developed by an MIT student team after working with LoveLife in South Africa Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and share what they […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: monitoring & evaluation for internal management


How can non-profits leverage donor-required M&E indicators for internal management? An MIT team shares a dashboard-style tool developed from their work with a community health program in rural Uganda Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: Developing criteria for patient admittance and discharge


A criteria development framework for healthcare providers An MIT student team shares their method after working with a hospice in Kenya Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and share what they learned – […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: 10 steps to successful collaboration


Partnering for project success in global health An MIT student team describes their collaborative process and shares tips on conducting qualitative surveys on the field Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and share what […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: developing a research function in a non-profit organization


Recommendations for thinking through and developing a research function An MIT team shares their thoughts after their experience with a non-profit organization in South Africa Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and share […] Continue Reading


Business models in global health: Village Health Works


Delivering care in one the world’s poorest countries  Student observations on Village Health Works’ participatory care model In late 2010, a small team of MIT students took a look at the organization from the outside and, as a course assignment, prepared an executive summary aimed at its board of directors. This article presents their overview […] Continue Reading


Business models in global health: LivingGoods


Health-business-in-a-bag  Student observations on LivingGoods’ model and future strategies by Vishal Gupta, Jenny Hu, Kevin Kung, and Awilda Mendez In late 2010, a small team of MIT students took a look at the organization from the outside and, as a course assignment, prepared an executive summary aimed at its board of directors. This article presents […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: A repeatable framework for analysing and improving processes


6 steps for developing and improving processes with application in global health delivery An MIT team shares their framework after working with community nurses in India Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB project experience and […] Continue Reading


Groundwork Toolkit: Assessing point-of-care diagnostics for resource-limited settings


How can healthcare delivery organizations evaluate whether to invest in or use a point-of-care diagnostic? An MIT team present a framework developed during their project in rural in India Following the completion of their Global Health Delivery Lab (ghdLAB) projects in Africa and India, we asked our MIT student teams to reflect on their ghdLAB […] Continue Reading


Notes from the classroom: A student team reflects on what they learned from working with a hospice in Kipkaren, Kenya


Dateline: April 22, 2011 Location: Cambridge, MA Via ghdLAB, a team of four MIT graduate students (all MBA candidates; one also a Masters of Science in Engineering candidate) worked with a faith-based organization, Living Room International, in rural western Kenya this Spring. As our class comes to a close, each team put together a thank-you […] Continue Reading


Business models in global health: Sproxil


Can Sproxil scale its consumer-driven model of counterfeit drug surveillance?  Student observations on Sproxil’s success and challenges ahead In late 2010, a small team of MIT students took a look at the organization from the outside and, as a course assignment, prepared an executive summary aimed at its board of directors. This article presents their […] Continue Reading


Business models for global health: SmileTrain


SmileTrain: what’s next when mission is accomplished? Student observations on SmileTrain’s success and future possibilities In late 2010, a small team of MIT students took a look at the organization from the outside and, as a course assignment, prepared an executive summary aimed at its board of directors. This article presents their overview and assessment […] Continue Reading