Going Beyond! Lunch Conversation with the Winners of the Beyond! Health Hack
During the summer of 2020, the NUS Pharmaceutical Society (NUSPS) organised the inaugural Beyond! Health Hack (BHH), an online hackathon that aimed to bring diverse minds together to solve key healthcare challenges in a collaborative setting. For this year, we chose the theme of influenza vaccine uptake for our participants to solve. Participants were challenged with a series of ‘real-world challenges’ that stand in the way of influenza vaccine uptake. After two weeks of brainstorming, the participants presented diverse solutions, from targeting at the individual level, such as social media campaigns, to system level changes in healthcare administration.
The hackathon brought together 200 participants from 27 different countries, with a total of 33 participating groups and 27 mentors to guide them. At the same time, participants benefited from the webinars from experts such as Dr Jerome Kim, Director-General of International Vaccine Institution, who gave an informative outlook of the hurdles and challenges of developing a vaccine. Needless to say, we had an esteemed panel of steering committee members, such as Dr Camilla Wong, the Chief Pharmacist of Singapore, who also played the role of a judge for the preliminary and final round of the hackathon.
We sat down with Li Hin Cheung Benson (Pharmacy Class of ’22), Daphne Lang Hui Yi (Pharmacy Class of ’22) and Lim Joel (Pharmaceutical Science Class of ’22), who were part of the winning team to ask them about their experience in the Health Hack!
From the winning team: “We had an amazing experience learning and networking experience with our peers from the Philippines and South Korea. A huge shout out to our mentor Ms Jocelyn Teo, Specialist Pharmacist (Infectious Diseases) at the Singapore General Hospital. We greatly appreciate her keen insights, advice and time that she gave over the two weeks that helped us in ideating and refining our proposals.”
Matthew: How was your experience in BHH?
Daphne: The event was a great educational experience. We had the opportunity to connect with and hear valuable insights from esteemed professionals such as Prof Yolanda Robles and Mr. Roderick Salenga, individuals who are very experienced in healthcare advocacy and policy due to their extensive experience working at the intersection of public health and pharmacy.
Benson: The Health Hack gave us the chance to tackle something that is not covered in the pharmacy/medical curriculum. It (influenza vaccination) is something that everyone knows is important but having the actual experience (of vaccine advocacy) really gives you a different perspective in understanding the challenges standing in the way of universal uptake.
Joel: Living in Singapore, you get too used to a certain perspective. Being able to interact with foreign students, even within your own region, really widens your view of healthcare. Having these groupmates really helped us to understand how different our healthcare systems are and allowed us to examine what factors led to these differences.
Matthew: What differences stood out the most to you?
Benson: In the Philippines, pharmacists are able to administer vaccines and this is mostly a result of geographical barriers which make it difficult for a physician to always be the main contact point for vaccination.
Daphne: Yeah definitely in other countries the role of pharmacists becomes more critical because they may be the only healthcare worker in the area, and that makes it all the more important that they are trained and well equipped.
Matthew: What were some challenges you faced during BHH?
Joel: There were definitely some technical difficulties, but I think the importance lies in how you adapt to the situation and do your best to overcome them with the resources you have.
Daphne: One of the main challenges was language barriers. Especially with non-native English speakers, we needed to be more measured in explaining our ideas. We also couldn’t assume that everyone had the same healthcare system. For example, the concept of general practitioners as your family doctor in Singapore is not present in South Korea.
Joel: Adapting to each other’s working style, accommodating to each other’s differences was another challenge. Finding timings for meetings were also difficult due to internships we had during the same period. We worked very late hours, but those were the bonding moments too.
Benson: Everything being virtual, and not having face–to–face meetings… it was difficult discussing ideas online at times. But once we got past it, it was fairly smooth sailing.
Matthew: So you guys did really well in the Health Hack. What would you say is your secret to success?
Benson: Go in with zero expectations and just be prepared to learn as much as you can within that short timeframe. Enjoy the process!
Joel: You’ll have a lot of fun, with very low expectations. Cliche as it may sound, going in with a growth mindset does do wonders.
Daphne: Give your best effort and contribute any ideas you have to the team. Do not be afraid to share your ideas and have fun working with your groupmates!
Joel: Also, don’t be afraid to take risks. One of our groupmates was not afraid to reach out to many individuals from different healthcare fields for advice. If you have a query, just ask; don’t be afraid of approaching experts i.e. asking mentors and emailing relevant people. Most of the time, they would be happy to help. There are definitely many insights you can glean from such discussions ranging beyond the scope of the competition as well.
Benson: Keep pressing your ideas if you believe in them!
Matthew: What did you find meaningful about the event? How has BHH changed your perspective of pharmacy?
Daphne: This event allowed me to explore things that were not covered in our curriculum. Being able to understand and see what we learnt in school being translated to the real world lets me have a better appreciation of what I’m learning. Given the opportunity to connect with a myriad of healthcare veterans, I was able to hear more about their real-life experiences and developed a clearer perspective of the profession.
Joel: I think that I’ve definitely gained a deeper appreciation of the role that a pharmacist can play especially in this issue of vaccination uptake. As a pharmaceutical science student, I’ve also learnt about the ways in which I can contribute to healthcare in the future – the industry is not the only place where I can bring my skills and knowledge to, and there are many people running the race ahead of us, blazing the trail in research and innovation to solve these pressing global challenges. I strongly encourage everyone to join the next Health Hack to be able to have the same wonderful experience we did!
Benson: I learnt that the role of the pharmacist in delivering healthcare goes BEYOND what we learn in our curriculums. Even as we graduate into the workforce, we continue to push the boundaries of the profession in our own actions and beliefs and finishing our schooling does not mark the end of the learning and development process, but rather marks its beginning.
The organising team of Beyond! Health Hack would like to thank the NUS Department of Pharmacy, Sanofi, GCI Health, steering committee members, mentors and participants for making the hackathon a success. We hope to see you at the next iteration of the Health Hack!
Article by Ong Jian Chun Matthew (Class of ’21) and Yeo Shao Jie (Class of ’21)