Prevention Medicine & Entrepreneurship for Societal Health
Addressing the complex health challenges of the 21st century requires a new approach to health innovation.
More than 50% of health outcomes are determined by factors outside the traditional healthcare system. This class explores how behavioral, social, environmental, and structural drivers shape both individual and societal health—and how to design innovative, scalable solutions to address them.
Students work in cross-disciplinary teams drawn from across Stanford—spanning Medicine, the Graduate School of Business, Engineering, Sustainability, and beyond—collaborating to learn, experiment, and innovate for societal health and preventive medicine.
Guest speakers, from inspiring founders to impact investors, share their journeys and illustrate how their work tackles pressing health challenges. Leaders from organizations including Google, Kaiser, Vituity Health, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), Zipline, Papa, EMME Health, Simprints, StepOne Foods, Flourish Labs, and others contribute insights and stories from the frontlines of innovation.
Collaborate, Innovate, and Shape the Future of Health
Through a team-based approach, students will engage in an experiential societal health project. Each student will either be assigned to a team or may apply as part of one to research and redefine a societal health challenge using the Emergence innovation process, ultimately developing creative solutions to address it. Students will interview stakeholders and potential users, generate insights about unmet needs, conduct brainstorming and ideation sessions, build product mock-ups, and test concepts—all with the goal of creating solutions that people want and society needs. A network of experts in each project area supports students throughout the process, and partnerships with community organizations ensure that underserved communities are meaningfully involved in research and design.
Teams interested in continuing beyond the course will have access to ongoing mentorship and the opportunity to apply to the Emergence Accelerator. Selected teams will also be invited to present at the annual Emergence Summit in May, showcasing their work to a network of world-class industry collaborators and investors. While students are welcome to bring their own project ideas, no startup is required to join. Problem vignettes sourced from partner organizations and faculty collaborators are vetted as major innovation opportunities, and students will have the chance to select the area that most interests them.
Join us in shaping the future of health. Apply now to take the first step toward building your impact-driven venture!
Health Topics
We explore innovations that address the root causes of health challenges, including but not limited to:
Early detection technologies, targeted therapies, and personalized prevention strategies that allow interventions to be more effective and tailored to individual needs.
Innovations improving health literacy, women’s health, mental health, and closing care gaps for vulnerable populations to ensure equitable access to essential services.
Functional foods, sustainable food systems, and solutions that make healthy eating simple, enjoyable, and widely accessible.
Initiatives addressing pollution, housing, transportation, and climate-related impacts on human health.
Interventions promoting physical activity, nutrition, mental well-being, social connection, health agency, and prevention of stress and substance use.
Learning Goals
- Learn the Impact Entrepreneurship framework to align market forces with impact
- Learn to address whole-person health and advance preventive medicine
- Develop leadership, communication, and innovation skills
- Connect with leaders and experts in the field
- Collaborate with peers to build high-performing teams
Instructor Profiles
Course Advisory Council
- Prof. David J. Maron, Division Chief, Stanford Medicine Center for Prevention Research
- Prof. Christopher Gardner, Director of Nutrition Studies, Stanford Medicine Center for Prevention Research
- Prof. Stephen Luby, Faculty Director, Stanford Center for Human & Planetary Health
- Prof. Kaustubh Supekar, Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Stanford Medicine
- Prof. John Openshaw, Infectious Disease & Geographic Medicine, Stanford Medicine
- Dr. Maria Ansari, CEO, Kaiser Permanente Medical Group
- Dr. Paul Jhun, Head of Medical Education, Google
- Dr. Elizabeth Klodas, Founder & CEO, Step One Foods
- Miki Sofer, COO, Zipline
- Jake Rothstein, Founder & CEO, Upside
- Magi Richani, Founder & CEO, Alpine Bio
- Obi Felton, Founder & CEO, Flourish Labs
- Kyle Murphy, Health Management Associates
- R.J Briscione, Health Management Associates
Prevention Medicine and Entrepreneurship for Societal Health
Course #: BIOE375 / MED 236 / CHPR 275
Quarter: Winter
Schedule: Wednesday, 3-5:50pm
Units: 3
Eligible Students: Open to Graduate (recommended) and Undergraduate
Enrollment Info: Enrollment will be capped at 30 students and applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so we encourage you to apply early - applications close November 29th.
Example Student Projects
Zuca
Zuca is tackling one of the biggest gaps in nutrition—fiber intake—by creating delicious, affordable, and sustainable fiber snacks designed for people with diabetes. By repurposing discarded fruit pulp from juice production, Zuca transforms food waste into nutrient-rich, high-fiber bars that help stabilize blood sugar, improve health outcomes, and promote healthier eating habits. With a focus on taste, accessibility, and sustainability, Zuca is reimagining food as medicine while addressing both chronic disease and food insecurity.
AdaptAble
AdaptAble is tackling long delays in access to customized mobility aids by creating a digital platform that streamlines the process of getting wheelchairs to patients. Stroke survivors and others often wait months or even years due to fragmented communication between therapists, insurers, and vendors. AdaptAble integrates directly with Electronic Health Records to centralize documentation, improve transparency, and reduce administrative burdens—helping patients regain independence faster and closing critical gaps in equitable healthcare access.
Student Testimonials
“Definitely my favorite Course and I honestly think the idea of societal entrepreneurship is something every Stanford student should learn before graduating. It was really fun, and I met a lot of amazing people in the industry.”
“I have never learned more or been more inspired from a class – I wish I could take it twice! I pretty much had no background and was intimidated at first, but it was extremely adaptable, and the professors and other students were incredible. 10/10!.”
“This is a great course to take if you are a beginner to startup and want a great learning experience on how to start a social impact business.”