Ursamin has earned a coveted spot in the Vanderbilt Startups Practicum, a program designed to propel promising healthcare companies forward. This is a significant milestone for Ursamin, validating our mission to transform care coordination in primary care and demonstrating our potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry.
What is The Vanderbilt Startups Practicum?
The Vanderbilt Startups Practicum is a collaborative initiative between the Owen Graduate School of Management, the Department of Health Policy, and the Nashville Entrepreneur Center. This unique program pairs interdisciplinary teams of graduate students with promising healthcare startups. Over a six-week period, students work closely with these startups, providing valuable insights and support in areas like market analysis, financial modeling, and go-to-market strategy.
Why is This Important for Ursamin?
Being chosen for this program is a testament to the growing need to address a critical challenge in healthcare: inefficient care coordination. Collaborating with prestigious institutions like Vanderbilt University is crucial for healthcare startups like Ursamin. It provides validation and fosters trust among clinicians, health systems, and investors. Along with four other companies, Ursamin was selected from a competitive pool of applicants to participate.
The Benefits of Collaboration:
Participating in the Vanderbilt Startups Practicum offers Ursamin numerous benefits:
- Fresh Perspectives: Working with bright, driven graduate students from diverse disciplines brings fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to our company.
- Real-World Experience: Students gain hands-on experience applying their academic knowledge to real-world business challenges, while we benefit from their insights and analysis.
- Mentorship and Guidance: The program provides access to experienced faculty and industry mentors who offer valuable guidance and support.
- Networking Opportunities: We’ll have the chance to connect with investors, healthcare leaders, and other entrepreneurs in the Nashville healthcare ecosystem.
The Value of This Workshop:
The Vanderbilt Startups Practicum is not only beneficial for Ursamin, but also for the students involved. Melissa Feliciano, Vanderbilt Owen MBA 2026 Candidate, shared her experience working with Ursamin:
“I had the opportunity to work closely with founder Shannon Aylesworth of Ursamin, a healthcare startup focused on risk stratification for individuals with chronic illnesses—a mission that deeply resonated with me. Although my concentration is currently in healthcare, I come from a non-healthcare background, making this experience especially valuable in broadening my perspective on the industry.
Through this practicum, I gained a firsthand understanding of the delicate balance between clinician needs, provider constraints, and patient-centered care. It was eye-opening to see the momentum behind a pre-seed startup and how strategic decisions are made at this stage. I also deepened my knowledge of risk assessment models and operational challenges that impact care delivery. The interdisciplinary collaboration between business, policy, and healthcare experts made this an invaluable learning experience. A huge thank you to the founder, faculty—Ranga and John, my team, and Vanderbilt’s Project Healthcare who made this such a rewarding journey! I’m excited to carry these insights forward.”
Melissa also expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to work with Ursamin and gain a deeper understanding of the healthcare industry from a startup perspective.
This type of feedback reinforces the impact of the Vanderbilt Startups Practicum for both the participating companies and the students. It provides a unique environment for collaboration, learning, and growth, fostering innovation by bringing together technology and clinical perspectives. This interdisciplinary approach is crucial for driving progress in the healthcare industry.
Looking Ahead:
Ursamin believes this collaboration will be instrumental in refining its strategy, accelerating our growth, and ultimately achieving our goal of transforming care coordination in primary care.
Learn about the Vanderbilt Startups Practicum here: https://business.vanderbilt.edu/news/2024/02/01/nashville-entrepreneur-center-launches-the-vanderbilt-innovation-practicum-and-2024-project-healthcare/
