A Journey From Engineering at IIT to Public Policy at Harvard through Public Health
A personal brush with a health emergency put Pranay Patil face to face with the inadequacies of the Indian healthcare system and motivated him to work towards removing them
Dear Health Policy Enthusiasts,
For this week’s newsletter, I spoke with Pranay Patil, a public policy student at Harvard Kennedy School. Pranay was part of the Indian government team that helped launch Ayushman Bharat, the world’s largest health insurance scheme. He speaks about his journey and motivations.
Hope you enjoy this discussion.
Until Next Time,
Abhinav Devaria
Founder, Global Health Connect
Email me at abhinav.devaria@sciencespo.fr or connect with me on LinkedIn to share your feedback. Please also follow Global Health Connect on LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to our newsletter below.
Can you tell me a bit about yourself and your career trajectory in brief?
I was born and brought up in Nagpur, where I completed my high school. Engineering, especially at the IITs, had become a popular dream for kids in tier-2 cities, so I prepared for the JEE and chose IIT Hyderabad for a degree in electrical engineering. After graduation, I started my career at the e-commerce giant Flipkart. I worked there for two years, and then did the Young India Fellowship which provided me with the necessary launch pad into the public policy field. Over the next 6 years, I worked at the International Innovation Corps, National Health Authority and the Asian Development Bank, mainly focused on strengthening the public healthcare system. Presently, I am studying for a Master in Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School.
What prompted the switch from the Tech sector to Public Policy?
I believe that we are living in a world where societal issues are far more challenging. I believe that many of these challenges need a tri-sector lens - wherein the government, civil society and the private sector can mutually come together and unlock collaborative advantage for solving pressing issues. It was this broader philosophy that prompted me to join Flipkart after my graduation in engineering. Leveraging my technology background to empower small businesses across the country was an amazing opportunity, and I’m very proud of playing a part in the e-commerce revolution in India. After attaining necessary business skills for two years, I thought I could contextualize and translate learnings from the tech and business sector to the public service delivery. During that time, there was also a talent crunch of people like me in public policy. I joined the Young India Fellowship programme at Ashoka University to attain necessary knowledge and skills for an entry-point in the public policy arena.
Pranay Patil
How did you start working in the field of public health?
While I was studying at the Young India Fellowship, I woke up one today to realize that my right eye could only see half of the things that it usually did. Upon going to the ophthalmologist, I realized that I was suffering from a rare condition called Eales disease. Over the next couple of weeks, I visited many hospitals, both private, and public. It is here that I realized the disparity in the access, affordability, and quality of healthcare across hospitals. I was able to get my surgery done at a top private hospital in Delhi. But the entire incident made me convinced to work towards strengthening the public health systems in the country.
Which organisations have you worked for?
I started my career with a non-profit called International Innovation Corps (IIC) which is housed at the University of Chicago. Through IIC, I was working with the Government of Karnataka for their public health insurance scheme for poor and vulnerable populations. Through our work, we were pivotal in converging the existing programs and expanding the program to cover more citizens. Our efforts manifested in ‘Arogya Karnakata’, the universal health coverage scheme of the state. Karnataka became the first state in the country to embark upon a healthcare scheme of such magnitude. Around this time, in 2018, the Finance Minister had mentioned in her budget speech about a nationwide public health insurance scheme. Since I had already done similar work in Karnataka, I was handpicked at the National Health Authority (NHA) into the founding team. At NHA, I led the NHA Innovation Unit, where we built systems to leverage the power of innovations and technology strengthening healthcare delivery. After two years at NHA, I moved to the Asian Development Bank which deployed me to the Government of India. Here, I predominantly worked on devising Public-Private partnership models to make healthcare facilities more accessible beyond Tier 1 geographies, and develop innovative financing mechanisms to support healthcare innovations.
If you look at your public health journey, what was the most challenging aspect?
In policy, we often talk about the term ‘Overton Window’. Broadly, this refers to the small window of opportunity wherein all the variables (political will, bureaucratic commitments, civil society support etc.) falls into place. In my journey, it was particularly challenging to wait for the right time and the context to push for our policy intervention. We had to work towards creating that window of opportunity, and making sure to use the window when it opened. The tenets of patience, flexibility, and adaptability were tested thoroughly during this journey.
What is the most rewarding part for you for working in public health over the last six years across different organizations in a different domain?
During the initial phase of the Ayushman Bharat launch, I was stationed at AIIMS Delhi. We were supposed to set up systems and processes so that processes run smoothly. AIIMS has more than 10,000 people coming in daily. Many of them come from very poor and vulnerable backgrounds. Over the next weeks, the team tried, tested, and quickly iterated the processes such that beneficiaries found it easier to get identified, verified, and treated. We also documented the learnings from our experience and passed them to other Medical Colleges across the country. Our efforts started showing very positive signs in a very short time, and I was very proud to see people who were coming in from far-off areas and travelling to hospitals into bigger cities, knowing their rights, asserting their rights, availing the benefit without spending a penny from their pockets.
Why did you decide to study at Harvard? What was the reason for you to move to Harvard?
I think a lot of my work in public policy was a result of learning by doing. I did not have a lot of theoretical understanding of political, philosophical, economic factors that defined the society that we live in. This was a primary reason for me to take a step back in my career, and go back to academia. I am very hopeful that the academic world will equip me with nuanced understanding and better tools to foster social change. I’m mainly focusing on three broader ideas in my graduate degree: understanding the power of technology to tackle social challenges, learning about various public and private financial instruments to support innovations, and identifying mechanisms to foster social equity in the 21st century.
How has your experience been so far?
I am very happy that I'm at an institution which has a very long legacy of producing exemplary policy leaders. The academic intensity and workload is quite intensive compared to my undergraduate days. But the best part of the journey is the class diversity. The wide varieties of students and faculty opens many opportunities to learn and collaborate outside the classroom as well. Infact, some of my most revealing moments at Harvard have been intimate conversations with faculty and friends outside the classroom.
If you can just briefly give your thoughts on the potential of the future of healthcare in India
I believe that we are at a cusp of a healthcare revolution in India. The next decade or so is going to see a lot of healthcare innovations coming out of India. I'm hoping that there's also going to be a lot of funds, not just private VC but other instruments as well.
If you had to pick one word to describe your journey in public health one, what would be and why?
Fulfilling.
Looking back, the fact that I was able to impact the lives of thousands of people through sustainable policies is humbling, and I’m very grateful to have received an opportunity to serve.