Earlybird Welcomes Bhumi Shah, 2023 Health Fellow
Bhumi Shah is currently an MD candidate at the University of Cambridge, having completed an undergraduate degree in Neuroscience with Artificial Intelligence. She has experience across startups, consulting, and venture capital — with a keen interest in the power of technology to improve healthcare.
Earlybird Health Fund welcomes Bhumi as the first Health Fellow of 2023.
1) Welcome Bhumi! Can you tell us about your background and how you realized your interest in life sciences and healthcare investing?
As a child, I had a passion for science and a desire to help people. This made a career in medicine an obvious choice. However, I soon realized that I was more interested in tackling the systemic issues within the healthcare industry than in providing direct patient care. This inspired me to work with a variety of startups that were attempting to address these challenges. I wanted to be able to support these startups over an extended period of time and observe their progress, which eventually led me to pursue an opportunity in venture capital.
2) As a medical student and undergraduate in natural sciences at Cambridge University, how do your expertise and experience fit into the VC space?
Navigating the world of investment opportunities is a challenge, as there are thousands of companies to consider and limited time to evaluate them. Drawing on my medical background, I can analyze potential investments from a different angle, especially those with clinical applications. This allows me to pinpoint those that are viable and have the potential to make a real difference. My experience in hospitals also enables me to consider challenges a company might face as well as how they might overcome them.
3) Can you share with us what attracted you to our Earlybird Health fellowship program?
Two things influenced my decision:
The first thing that impressed me about Earlybird was its outstanding reputation. I had heard of the firm when I started researching venture capital and knew it had a great reputation for being accessible, helpful, and hands-on with investments. This was confirmed when I met Rabab in London, who was really kind and eager to help me explore my options.
Secondly, I was drawn to the Health fund and its fellowship. I was pleased to see that Earlybird had a dedicated fund specifically for healthcare, which showed me they were committed to improving lives. Additionally, the Health fellowship position allows me to continue doing something I love while completing my degree.
4) What are you most looking forward to during your participation in this fellowship program?
One of the things I am most excited about is attending VC events and connecting with the incredible community of investors and founders. I am eager to build Earlybird Health’s presence across the UK and to identify promising startups that are tackling important issues. Additionally, I am looking forward to meeting with other VCs in London who are passionate about healthcare and improving outcomes.
5) Given your experience in clinical research, how do you see the relationship between venture capital and academia?
Medical research is an invaluable asset for entrepreneurship, providing a great platform to identify areas of need within the system. Through research, investors can craft a strong business thesis and use the data to inform their due diligence process. It allows them to gain a comprehensive understanding of the issues, as well as the existing solutions being developed.
6) You have an interest in the digital health space. How can these technologies be integrated into medical practice, and what steps do you think are necessary to make this happen?
Digital health can build a more effective healthcare system, but adoption and scalability must be addressed. We must build in collaboration with clinicians to ensure frictionless adoption and create clear reimbursement and regulatory pathways. Although some progress has been made, companies still face costly and difficult hurdles.
Currently, European companies struggle to meet the varying criteria of each healthcare system — with its different reimbursement models and regulatory bodies, as well as across regions within a country. We are seeing some improvement in this, such as the DiGA program in Germany and the DTAC in the UK, which provides national baseline criteria for digital health technologies entering the system; the cost and difficulty of tackling these issues remain a problem for digital health companies.
7) What are your long-term aims for your career?
I definitely want to be a part of the impact entrepreneurship can have on lives. Thus, whether it be as a founder or investor, I hope to work on amazing companies which have a positive effect on the world we live in.
I am also particularly passionate about investing in underrepresented founders as well as areas of healthcare which are often overlooked, such as femtech (read my article on why we should be investing in menopause tech here). I hope to make a change in these areas by encouraging more women to pursue a career in investing: diverse decision-makers are required to fund solutions to diverse problems!
8) What is your advice for medical students interested in pursuing a career in healthcare investing?
Medical school is a great investment for your future as it can provide you with many opportunities and experiences. It’s important to have clarity on what you want to achieve and are seeking in a career. I recommend speaking to as many people as possible, reading books, and building your resume. Fellowships can be really useful, for venture capital in particular. I would strongly recommend IncludedVC, which was pivotal to me getting in!
Thanks, Bhumi!
Interview edited by Elena Marchesi
Are you interested in learning more about our Fellowship or applying for future openings? Please visit our Fellowship Page.
