Alumni Feature | Dr. Nalini Kaushik, Master’s in Public Policy ‘16

Born in a small town in Haryana, Nalini Kaushik holds an undergraduate degree of Bachelors of Dental Surgery (BDS). As a field that provided a fine balance of theory and practice, Nalini noticed the health inequities that made healthcare a function of the economic capability of an individual. Split between the family pressure of pursuing higher studies in dentistry versus her own quandary of everyday experience with the patients, she came across Masters in Public Policy program at NLS. The intersection of various sciences and economics posed to her the answer on the nuances related to multidimensionality of access and affordable healthcare. “Taught by the most capable teachers along with timely internships gave me the much-needed exposure. Eventually my interest took shape of a dissertation on “Access to Medicines” under the able guidance of Prof. (Lt) Shamnad Basheer. Despite being a new and unconventional field, the two years spent for MPP at NLS were defining years for me” she says. After graduating from NLS, she worked on Advocacy and Strategic policy programs related to various health topics with organisations such as World Health Organization- SEARO, Public Health Foundation of India, and advocacy firms such as Chase India and Strategic Partners Group. Her adeptness in her field also gave her the opportunity to host a rural healthcare discussion with Nobel Laureate Dr. Abhijeet Banerjee. She has also contributed recommendations on the Draft National Policy for Rare Diseases 2020. At present, she is the head of the Policy and Partnerships portfolio at Aequitas Consulting Pvt. Ltd. – a strategic policy consulting firm working towards facilitating global health outcomes. One of her notable projects looks at shaping the global access to affordable treatments for non-communicable diseases (Diabetes and Cancer). Through this she is attempting to advance further into the field of global health diplomacy and health as a political outcome.