High-Impact Growth

In Part 3 in our series on AI, Brian DeRenzi, head of Dimagi's research and data team, joins Jonathan Jackson and Amie Vaccaro to discuss how advances in AI can affect global health and development. They discuss AI's rapid evolution, practical applications, and the importance of thoughtful implementation to avoid a future where only the privileged benefit. The discussion covers Dimagi'...

Today we are sharing an episode from a podcast we think you'll enjoy. System Catalysts is about the incredible people who are fixing the broken systems that run the world. --- Are you an organ donor? If yes, good for you! But you should know that your organs might not reach the person who needs them. That’s because the organ donation system is a mess, leading to over a dozen preventable deaths...

One in 800 babies are born with clubfoot, a treatable birth impairment that left untreated prevents a child from walking, and becomes the root cause for illiteracy, abuse, malnutrition, and poverty in many parts of the world. Clubfoot is routinely treated at birth in high income countries, but historically children born in low and middle income countries have not had access to quality treatment. T...

Co-hosts, Jonathan Jackson and Amie Vaccaro are joined by Jeroo Billimoria, a remarkable serial social entrepreneur. Starting at age 12, Jeroo has founded several impactful organizations, including Child and Youth Finance International, Aflatoun, Childline India Foundation and Catalyst 2030. In this candid conversation we learn about her journey and discuss: Solving for root cause problems Creatin...

Glasswing International is a NGO with a remarkable journey, having impacted more than 2.2 million lives through their education and health initiatives throughout Latin America and New York City. Co-founder and President Celina de Sola shares her insights on the organization's evolution and growth to 600 employees, and their community-driven approach that led to the organization's non-clini...

In this insightful podcast episode, we feature guests Andrea Fletcher, Chief Digital Strategy Officer, and Remy DeCausemaker, Open Source Lead at the Digital Service at Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), discussing the critical role of digital technology in shaping healthcare strategies within the U.S. government. The discussion delves into the intersections of technology, healthcar...

In part 2 of this series on Artificial Intelligence, Jonathan Jackson and Brian DeRenzi, Dimagi’s Research and Data team lead, openly talk about the rapid evolution of AI, its vast potential, and what Dimagi has been up to over the last few months since winning the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Grand Challenges grant to build a frontline worker coaching chatbot. In this candid conversation, th...

Our co-hosts are joined by thirteen-time #1 bestselling co-author and pioneer in Category Design, Chris Lochead, to discuss Category Design, and how it's relevant for NGOs and social impact organizations. He delves into the fundamentals while offering insights on how to shift from the current competitive state to a new, transformative future. This episode is brimming with compelling story exam...

STOP TB has an ambitious objective driving the RTC initiative: ending global tuberculosis epidemic by 2030. In this episode, we talk about the innovative efforts taken by STOP TB's Reimagining TB Care initiative, addressing the intricate challenges of combating tuberculosis through comprehensive 360-degree, people-centered approach.  Our guest speaker,  Jackie Huh from Stop TB, will share insi...

Co-hosts Jonathan Jackson and Amie Vaccaro are joined by MHP Salud’s CEO, Dr. Maggie Dante and Data and Evaluation Analyst, Rachel Udow. MHP Salud is championing Community Health Workers across the US both within their organization and through training and consulting on how to best integrate CHW programs. Over the last decade, MHP Salud has been on a digital transformation journey - leveraging tec...

Social impact organizations and governments worldwide are under immense pressure to do more with less. We are confronting an array of complex, constantly-evolving pressures ranging from economic uncertainty, humanitarian crises, inflation, pandemics, and climate change. All of this means we need to deliver more services to more people. And, we often need to do it with flat or decreasing levels of...

Dr. Dixon Chibanda started Friendship Bench after losing a patient to suicide who could not afford to travel to the hospital in Zimbabwe where he worked. There had to be a way to make mental health care more accessible. Today, Friendship Bench has a team of grandmothers across Zimbabwe who are trained to deliver evidence-based high-impact therapy on park benches, making mental health support readi...

Discover the key ingredients to Ethiopia's incredible progress in digital health as Ali Flaming and Amie Vaccaro speak with Dr. Girma Tadesse, electronic Community Health Information System (eCHIS)  Project Manager with JSI. Stemming from a clear vision for improving health outcomes and data use, the Ethiopian government has been on a digital health transformation journey starting in 1991. As...

Rediscover the power of community health workers (CHWs) and their critical role in delivering healthcare globally in this captivating conversation with Jonathan Jackson and Dr. Madeleine Ballard, CEO of the Community Health Impact Coalition (CHIC). Despite concrete evidence that CHWs work, millions are not salaried, skilled, supervised and supplied. The WHO recommends remunerating CHWs for their w...

Testing out a new format for this podcast - short form responses to questions from you, our audience. Plus video! In this Your Questions Answered episode, we break down a recent learning that Jonathan Jackson shared on LinkedIn regarding working with governments on digital health programs: “I used to think the goal with digital health programs as a technology partner was to get too big to fail.  I...

Depression alone is projected to be the third leading cause of disease burden in lower and middle income countries by 2030, where 75% of people don't receive any treatment. In this episode we delve into the escalating global issue of mental health care. Jonathan Jackson speaks with three of Dimagi’s experts: senior health strategy specialist Lauren Magoun, senior project analyst Anaba Sunday A...

In this episode, we discuss technology's impactful role in making services accessible, specifically in the treatment of Tuberculosis (TB). Listen as Chris Buri, a TB survivor and patient advocate, shares his experience with TB treatment and the importance of patient support and advocacy in TB care. You’ll also hear about his personal journey  of resilience and advocacy, the challenges and oppo...

In this episode we chat to renowned epidemiologist, healthcare innovator, and educator Dr. Richard Garfein and social entrepreneur and infectious disease epidemiologist Dr. Kelly Collins, as they share their journey of turning an idea from research in academia into a successful commercial enterprise. They discuss their experiences in starting SureAdhere, licensing the software from UCSD, and signi...

“There is no health without mental health.” - Dr. Vikram Patel Dr. Vikram Patel is a psychiatrist, professor, renowned researcher, co-founder of Sangath, in India, and the incoming chair of Harvard Medical School Department of Global Health and Social Medicine where he takes over for the late Dr. Paul Farmer. Through decades of field-defining research, Dr Patel has shown how community-based resour...

Dimagi’s CommCare platform has been shaped by its users since its inception. Today, we revisit some of the first Community Health Workers who helped design and test CommCare back in 2008 in Tanzania. Co-host Amie Vaccaro speaks with two people who led that early research –  Gayo Mhila, who has recently interviewed 5 of the earliest users, and Dr. Brian DeRenzi, Dimagi's Global Director of Rese...

In this episode  we explore the journey of Margaret Odera, a Community Health Worker and mentor mother in Kenya. Following her HIV diagnosis, Margaret received life-changing support from a mentor mother, which inspired her to dedicate her life to helping other HIV-positive mothers and their newborns. As the founder of the Community Health Workers Champions Network (CHWCN), Margaret is also leading...

In a world where stress is inevitable, burnout is rife, and the global mental health burden is growing, it's crucial to develop the skill of resilience to recover, adapt, and grow from stress. This episode highlights how building resilience can guard against burnout, a workplace phenomenon that affects many Frontline Workers, resulting in feelings of fatigue, detachment, and a reduction in pro...

Jonathan Jackson sits down with Brian DeRenzi, Dimagi’s Research and Data team lead, to discuss Dimagi’s work exploring large language models to create chatbots for global health and development use cases. They discuss how we might leverage AI to advance equity despite the reality that it can also decrease equity,  while recognizing the irreplaceable value of human-to-human connection in healthcar...

Global development is evolving quickly in the face of social, economic, and political changes. Jonathan Jackson sits down with Raj Kumar, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Devex, a leading independent online news platform for development professionals, to discuss how 2023 marks the start of a new, more challenging development era. With growing competition between China and Russia and the West, a new...

Jonathan Jackson and Amie Vaccaro sit down with three Community Health Workers, supported by the Lwala Community Alliance, as they share first-hand their journey into community health, their day-to-day, the impact of digital tools on their work, and the importance of salaried Community Health Workers in creating greater access to critical health services worldwide. This is part 2 in a two-part ser...