I am surprised to find that I have become accustomed to some of the sites of the country—a pile of burning trash on the sidewalk is commonplace, and near-accidents on the street are expected. Walking to and from dinner tonight, we all felt a sense of pride for successfully crossing the street without getting hit by a speeding tuk-tuk or a motorcycle. We nimbly navigated holes in the sidewalk and wires hanging over us. I never realized how orderly Boston really is until I spent two weeks in India. In many ways, India is exactly how I imagined it would be, and in other ways, it’s been a stunning learning experience.
I am sad to be leaving India, and I hope that I will have the chance to travel here in the future. One major takeaway, from this week especially, is the variety of socially responsible business opportunities in India. It was particularly interesting today to hear from Paul Thomas of Biocon, an American living and working in India. Clearly, an American business and healthcare background can be an asset working with Indian firms looking to expand into a global market. The needs of the Indian population seem daunting, but we’ve seen a variety of organizations, each tackling a particular segment of the issue of health care in India. While we’ve heard quite a bit about the larger issues—malnutrition, lack of sanitary conditions, among others, we heard today of the less common though equally devastating issue of ROP in premature babies. I felt that this discussion was particularly moving, and demonstrates that there are a number of unmet medical needs all over the world that will take ingenuity and dedication to address. The opportunities for making a difference in the health of the world are unlimited and I’m coming away from this trip reinvigorated to continue learning and working in the health care field. I think that the business landscape in India will change dramatically in my lifetime and I’m excited to follow those changes.
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