Previous to Fuqua, I interned at a biotechnology firm to create a supply chain strategy for a pipeline product. My work was limited to developed pharmaceutical markets, so I always wondered what those implications would be in the third world. At Fuqua, I joined a team of 4 to work with the National Department of Health in South Africa to understand the cost and benefit of a new drug distribution network. This network, aimed to deliver medication more directly to patients without involving the middle man, was to help alleviate the increasing number of HIV/AIDS patients in the country and to help address increasing number of cancer patients.
This Fuqua Client Consulting Practicum helped me apply my previous experience and classroom concepts from Healthcare Markets and Global Financial Management to create a framework to determine the financial implications of the new drug distribution network. Each player in the supply chain was now faced with an incentive system that differed from the previous system. Each change needed balance to ultimately improve speed of product delivery. By interviewing suppliers during the 2 week spring break trip to Johannesburg and evaluating datasets from the central information exchange system, my team drew insights to identify benefits and challenges for the system moving forward.
Immersing myself in another country to understand their healthcare market challenges was a truly enriching experience where I learned many problems mimicked those of the complex US system. This deep-dive broadened my understanding of the industry as well as establishing incentives that drive change in behavior.