Special Issue: Healthcare Innovation for and by Women
Health Management, Policy and Innovation (HMPI) — an independent, peer-reviewed, open-access journal — features actionable, business-based insights to address challenges faced by healthcare organizations worldwide. Published by the Business School Alliance for Health Management (BAHM), HMPI invites original translational research papers, analyses, and commentaries that are written by and for industry practitioners, policymakers, faculty, students, and journalists.
Health conditions that are unique to women or directly impact them, have broad economic implications. Yet opportunities for product and service innovation, bold investment decisions, and managerial priorities specific to women's health and well-being, remain underexplored. In this issue, we highlight market successes, including women who have broken barriers to build powerhouse companies, and the strategic, financial, and operational gaps that remain.
Practitioner Perspective
Toward a Life Course Model of Innovation: FemTech and the New Health Economy
Irene Afua Quarshie, QL Consulting, and KD Frick, Johns Hopkins University
FemTech innovations can transform women’s health from a siloed initiative into a strategic business lever for health systems, payers, and employers.
Executive Interview
In a conversation with Ben Creo, Harvard Business School, Laura Yecies discusses her company’s first product, Osteoboost, the only FDA-approved device for treating postmenopausal women with osteopenia. She also addresses the distinctive perspectives women leaders bring to healthcare innovation.
Commentary
Who Decides? The Problem of Male-Dominated Healthcare Innovation
Brian Walker, Harvard Business School
Creating a more inclusive healthcare innovation ecosystem requires intentional, managerial decisions about who is funded, who leads, and how we support them.
Perspective
Kendall Owen, University of Central Florida; Fernanda Gushken, University of Miami/Jackson Health System; KD Frick, Johns Hopkins University
A new conceptual model examines how health impacts business and the opportunities for businesses to innovate when they account specifically for women’s health.
Practitioner Perspective
The Price of Care: The Ramifications of Financial Pressures on OB-GYNs and Patients
Jocelyn J. Fitzgerald, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and Christina Vosbikian, Harvard Business School
Because reimbursement structures and policy frameworks systematically disadvantage OB-GYNs, reform is needed to right-size payment, expand representation, and ensure access.
Case Study
Preventing a Maternity Care Crisis: The Case of Carteret OB-GYN
Melissa Dzinoreva, Stanford University; Nicole D'Andrea, Carteret OB-GYN; James Whiteside, Eastern Carolina University; Kevin Schulman, Stanford University
As maternity care deserts expand across the United States, workforce shortages, financial instability, and systemic mis-investment threaten the continuity of maternity care.
Case Study
Regina (Regi) Herzlinger, the first woman tenured and chaired at Harvard Business School, initiated Harvard’s courses in healthcare and has served on numerous healthcare/medical technology boards. For this issue of HMPI, she profiled the women leaders behind Epic, Cleave, and Close Concerns, three cases that she co-wrote and are highlighted here.
Practitioner Perspective
Innovating in Healthcare: The Case for an MBA
Christina Vosbikian, Harvard Business School
A 2025 Harvard Business School graduate and entrepreneur makes the case for why the MBA is uniquely suited for those seeking to contribute to and innovate the business of healthcare.