Boitekanelo College aims to boost healthcare entrepreneurship
Boitekanelo College, a leading healthcare education institution, is gearing towards cultivating more healthcare entrepreneurs by collaborating with social entrepreneurship expert Professor John Gershenson.
Prof Gershenson, a prominent academic in social entrepreneurship and director of Penn State Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneurship programme, brings valuable expertise to the college.
Having co-founded and served as a CEO for two Kenyan setups and advising numerous companies in East Africa, Prof Gershenson is now a Fulbright Specialist at Boitekanelo College.
His role involves working with the institution to enhance education and training in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. In a recent conversation with The Monitor, Prof Gershenson emphasised the importance of understanding how the next generation of entrepreneurs integrate digital tools into their daily lives.
He highlighted the underutilisation of the digital space in healthcare, seeing it as an untapped opportunity for aspiring healthcare entrepreneurs.
“A lot of young people live their lives through the palms of their hands [smartphones], and we need to understand that. They rely on digital tools that aren’t used in healthcare. One may ask, why wouldn’t they get a prescription through a mobile application or any other digital tool, or make a doctor’s appointment or anything else? These are some of the tools that are lacking in the healthcare industry, and we aim to create a platform where more young people can be involved in those spaces,” said Prof Gershenson.
He pointed out the potential for digital tools to facilitate tasks like obtaining prescriptions through mobile applications or scheduling doctor’s appointments. He stressed the need to create a platform that engages young people in these digital spaces within the healthcare industry.
Additionally, Prof Gershenson discussed the benefits of localising the production and manufacturing of healthcare products. He argued that if manufacturing is done locally, it encourages buying locally while also providing an export opportunity. However, he emphasised that the key to achieving these goals lies in the education and training provided to learners.
At Boitekanelo College, Prof Gershenson said he aims to align and introduce programmes related to healthcare entrepreneurship.
“These are exciting times. We just heard the national budget speech, so there are a lot of opportunities in and after the next financial year. We just need to understand the ecosystem and its needs. In doing so, we will be able to come up with programmes that will help eradicate existing problems, hence creating opportunities for the learners,” Prof Gershenson enthused.