Getting OnTrack in a pandemic.
While in a class called “Innovation and Global Health Systems,” I worked with a team of classmates across the world to create an innovation that would help reach communities neglected by traditional health systems. We decided to target our work to rural communities in remote areas where it may be difficult to access health facilities or technological infrastructure to allow telemedicine. With this target population in mind, we were able to form a diverse team of five members; Nisrine, Andres, Kayleigh, Grace, and I, spread across four time zones due to remote learning and COVID-19.
Developing our project with people from such diverse global backgrounds and experiences meant that I was exposed to different ideas and perspectives about equity and how people view and interact with their health, technology, and health networks. The logistics of arranging meetings and deadlines across the time zones also required that we be considerate of one another to ensure that no one consistently had unreasonable hours.
The most memorable aspect of the project was coming up with our name and logo. None of us have a marketing or development background, so this would naturally be expected to be quite the challenge for the team. The logo came about organically. As Kayleigh was editing our slide deck, she had arranged the project’s stakeholders in circles orbiting around the individual, inspiring our logo of a larger circle, for the individual, surrounded by five smaller circles, that contribute to maintaining their health. The name, OnTrack, was developed during a lighthearted joking session where we got to know each other more. I think these more relaxed work sessions where I got to learn about, and chat with my colleagues are the most enjoyable and fruitful part of the project, under the circumstances of online learning. I am glad that technology allows us to all connect, work together, and learn from one another while we cannot be together in person.
Being a Fulbrighter made me appreciate and value the cultural exchanges occurring, even when they were not the focus of our interaction. The project also highlighted how Fulbright works to achieve its goals by helping the best and brightest work for the improvement of others.
Finally, the day came when we presented OnTrack to the rest of our class, instructors, and panel. I am happy to say not only was it very well-received, but we were also encouraged by Professor Atun to apply for the Harvard Innovation Lab (i-Lab) to take our innovation further. Four of us took the step together to apply to join the i-lab, where Harvard’s game-changing entrepreneurs come together. We would have the opportunity to learn and develop OnTrack. At the start of the Spring semester, we learned that we were accepted into the i-Lab. We are looking forward to continuing to develop our innovation and help all people keep their health OnTrack!
Hesham is an Egyptian Fulbrighter getting is MPH in Global Health at Harvard University; he has been studying online from Egypt since January 2021.
