The Healthcare & Life Sciences Club at Ross is thrilled to host its second annual Henrietta Lacks Case Competition on February 18th, 2023! Teams of 3-5 students across disciplines and universities will come together to source innovative solutions to address pervasive health disparities in areas such as health coverage, chronic health conditions, mental health, and mortality in underserved populations. Teams will have the opportunity to present their ideas to experts in the field, form new connections with their peers, and engage with industry leaders. Check out our website as we share more details here. Please reach out to hela-casecomp@umich.edu with any questions.
The application is now open and will close at 5pm ET on January 24th. Selected teams will be notified by January 27th.
The HeLa Health Equity Case Competition at The University of Michigan Ross School of Business is inspired by the life of Henrietta Lacks, whose cancer cells – code named HeLa – were taken without her knowledge in 1951. They became one of the most important tools in medicine—with damaging consequences for her family, many of whom often struggled to get access to the very health care advances their mother's cells helped make possible. Unfortunately, there are numerous examples of historic research studies conducted on individuals—particularly within minority communities—without their knowledge or consent. These include the Tuskegee Syphilis Studies, the Human Radiation Experiments, and others.
The Henrietta Lacks Health Equity Case Competition strives keep the spotlight shining on racial health disparities. Its goal is to encourage future business, public health, and medical leaders to reframe their training and address health issues challenging communities of color. Through this competition, sponsors are also able to act on their DE&I commitments and source health equity solutions specifically targeted to their business goals.