On Saturday, February 8, 2014, over 700 corporate leaders, medical professionals, academics, and students from around the world will gather on the Harvard Business School campus for the 11th annual Healthcare Conference at HBS. The conference is one of the largest healthcare-focused business conferences in the world, and attendees will gather to engage in meaningful discussion on trends and advances that affect the healthcare system.
The conference will delve into a topic that is critically relevant across all aspects of society. The conference theme, Redefining Access in Modern Healthcare, aims to tackle one of the most pertinent questions in healthcare and in society today: how can we make healthcare more effective, more affordable, and more convenient for consumers in the U.S. and around the world? “This is a particularly important year for domestic healthcare, as the U.S. is recognizing the need to break the unsustainable trend of rising costs,” said conference Co-Chair Kyle Hopkins, a second-year student at Harvard Business School. “Now more than ever, policymakers are becoming involved in making healthcare accessible to all individuals, and this is creating a landscape that is challenging, yet rich with opportunity.”
Professor Regina Herzlinger, the Nancy R. McPherson Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Business School and one of the nation’s most respected thought leaders in healthcare, commented on the importance of healthcare today. “Healthcare is about to transform as dramatically as it did in the 1990s,” she stated. “The opportunities to do good, and the opportunities to do well, are immense for those who recognize them.” The conference will explore ways in which innovations are improving the availability of low-cost, high-quality healthcare—whether it be through fostering advancements in medical technology, creating innovative healthcare payment plans, enabling healthy decision-making, or providing affordable disease prevention in developing countries.
The conference is headlined by three prominent industry leaders who will share their insight into how the system is changing, as well as how we can continue to shape it. John Brooks, President and CEO of Joslin Diabetes Center, the world’s preeminent diabetes research, clinical care, and education organization, is at the forefront of confronting a global pandemic. He will share his insight on effective and innovative prevention and treatment models for chronic diseases like diabetes. Mark Bertolini, Chairman, CEO, and President of Aetna, one of the nation’s leading healthcare benefits companies, is experiencing first-hand the changes implemented by the Affordable Care Act. He will address his vision of the future of the healthcare system, and what changes we need to put in place to make it happen. Dr. Elizabeth Nabel, President of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, has been an advocate for greater cross-disciplinary collaboration, innovation in personalized therapies, as well as patient safety and affordability. She will discuss her perspective on how healthcare leaders can effectively manage change to make affordable healthcare become a reality.
The conference will also feature eight engaging panels that focus in on a variety of issues within the healthcare sphere, including such topics as consumer health, healthcare technology, emerging markets, and the Affordable Care Act. The event will also provide valuable opportunities to network with current and future leaders of the healthcare industry.
To learn more about the Healthcare Club Conference at Harvard Business School or to purchase tickets today, please visit:
//www.hbshealthcareconference.org/health2014/
