Profile: Jasper James Chen
Jasper James Chen from the USA studied for the MSc Health Policy Planning & Financing
"Ever since my second year of undergraduate studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, I had believed that I had been called to practice medicine. In particular, I had a passion to serve America's medically underserved and committed myself to becoming a primary-care physician.
I also felt that in order to become an advocate for the poor, I needed to have more than a working knowledge of health care delivery and financing. I needed to be able to study and synthesize the health care reforms of various countries to see if they could be applied to facets of the experience in the US. The MSc HPPF was the perfect course for my needs.
I had completed an MBA at Oxford University the previous year. The MSc HPPF complemented and added to my economics and finance skills. Among the youngest on the course, I found myself benefiting tremendously from the experience and wisdom of my classmates. Although I could choose to devote my energies to studying the US health care system, the international flavour of the course was a particular highlight.
Midway through the course, it became clear to me that health policy hinges on so many other factors besides health care. Given the 'joint' nature of the course (with LSE), I gravitated towards learning more about public and social policy. To cut a long story short, I decided to complement my MSc HPPF with a degree in Public Policy from LSE before matriculating at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Thus, I will be continuing my endless journey to become an advocate as well as a doctor."
Nkem J Okafor and Yogesh Rajkotia also studied this course
