International Patients’ Union launches Patient-Centric IPU fellowship in partnership with Centre for Health, Innovation, Policy and Digital Health, IIM Raipur

The International Patients’ Union (IPU) – The Change Initiative announces the launch of a Patient-Centric IPU fellowship in partnership with The Centre for Health, Innovation, Policy and Digital Health at IIM Raipur.

This three-month fellowship aims to provide healthcare professionals and students with first-hand and patient engagement experiences, enabling them to drive meaningful policy reforms and track patients’ journeys through the healthcare system. The programme is open to students pursuing MHA, MPH, Pharmacy, Nursing, Physiotherapy, and other allied healthcare disciplines, and practicing doctors, patient advocates, and healthcare professionals committed to patient-centric transformation.

Through the fellowship, participants will engage directly with patients and patient communities, gaining insights into healthcare challenges, assessing the impact of government policies, and developing policy briefs and recommendations. These insights will be published by IIM Raipur’s Centre for Health, Innovation, Policy and Digital Health, further contributing to healthcare policy discourse.

The programme offers flexible, remote participation, ensuring accessibility for working professionals and students worldwide. The selection process includes an online application, screening, virtual interviews, and final selection, with results announced at the International Patients’ Union Conference on April 7, 2025, at IIC, New Delhi. 

Commenting on this fellowship, Dr Rajendra Pratap Gupta, Founder, International Patients’ Union and Chair Emeritus of the Centre, IIM Raipur, said, ‘This unique fellowship will give healthcare professionals a firsthand experience and understanding of the need gaps in healthcare from a user’s perspective, and how to bridge these gaps. The policy and strategy papers created through the lived experiences of the patients have the power to drive meaningful policy change in healthcare, and we shall be submitting the same to NITI Aayog, Government of India.”