Global Perspectives: Saunders Students Explore the Swedish Healthcare Model

This past spring break, students from eight different fields of study traded the classroom for the cobblestone streets of Stockholm, Sweden. As part of the Global Health Care Management and Innovation graduate course, students immersed themselves in one of the world’s most renowned healthcare systems to understand key differences between American and Swedish health care.

Led by Saunders Alum and Saunders Adjunct Instructor, Professor James Ramsey, the intensive week-long program provided a deep dive into the Swedish healthcare ecosystem through a series of site visits, lectures, and high-level meetings with industry leaders.

The trip complimented students learning in the classroom by partnering with the Swedish HealthCare Academy, and the cohort explored how Sweden maintains its reputation for high-quality, universal coverage while balancing the complexities of modern medical demands.

The Global Health Care Management course offers opportunities to develop cross-cultural competencies for students who want relevant health care experience. In the course, students learned about health care legislation comparative health systems, monitoring the impact of culture on healthcare, policy making, accountability healthcare management and innovation. The students are also trained on design thinking processes and tools, which they use for a team project working with a U.S. based healthcare organization, working to solve a real-world problem. The students are exposed to analytical research tools from the World Health Organization (W.H.O.), relevant Harvard Business School cases and articles, and visiting guest speakers from the healthcare innovation arena., and financing.

"Through site visits, lectures, and conversations with professionals in the field, I gained a much deeper understanding of how healthcare systems can be structured to prioritize accessibility, prevention, and patient-centered care," Sonakshi Das, an MBA student shared. "It was fascinating to see how Sweden approaches healthcare delivery and to reflect on how these lessons can be applied globally."

Collaborative Solutions

The cohort is now tasked with bringing these international insights back to the U.S. The student teams are collaborating with Rochester Regional Health, the Jewish Home of Rochester and University of Vermont Health Network to tackle a specific healthcare challenge presented during the trip.

"I’m excited to bring what we learned back with us," said Sonakshi. "I look forward to continuing our work with my team as we collaborate on solutions to the healthcare challenge we were presented with."

Join Us Next Year: Spring 2027

Due to the overwhelming success of this year's program, Saunders is proud to announce that the Global Health Care Management and Innovation course will return to Sweden in Spring 2027.

This program is specifically designed for graduate students throughout RIT looking to expand their global competency and gain a competitive edge in the healthcare management sector. Make sure you mention your interest to your academic advisor to see how this course fits into your plan of study. If you have any further questions or want to learn more, reach out to Hillary McCormick at hmccormick@saunders.rit.edu.