Just got back from my trip to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Istanbul as part of SOM’s mandatory International Experience for first-years. The journey combined sightseeing with business meetings during the work week, during which representatives from various companies, nonprofits, and government agencies presented to us about their work and the environment in which they operate. The trip was primarily focused on healthcare, but we had a number of meetings covering other subjects as well. Highlights for me included MSR, a not-for-profit simulation research center that’s had an enormous impact in reforming medical training procedures in Israel; a meeting with a start-up producing healthcare IT solutions along with the company’s primary venture capital funder; a “Palestine Day” focusing entirely on the less-often heard side of the Israel/Palestine conflict; and presentations on Turkey’s healthcare system and political relations with the US and its neighbors. Some pictures below for your pleasure…
Market in Old City Jerusalem
Shopping mall in Tel Aviv
Skyscrapers in Istanbul