Lynch Foundation strengthens MEDscience, global health at HMS

The Lynch Foundation is advancing education and global health at Harvard Medical School through two new gifts: $300,000 to MEDscience and $250,000 to the Chair’s Opportunity Fund in Global Health, which provides immediate discretionary resources for the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine.

HMS MEDscience is a unique educational program that uses simulated medical emergencies to create an immersive learning experience on the HMS campus, inspiring a rising generation of leaders in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) among high school students and young adults. The Lynch Foundation’s support will help expand access for disadvantaged students and fuel the growth of MEDscienceWORKS, a workforce development program for young adults ages 18-29.

“MEDscience marries two of our core priorities—education and health care—while also building a pipeline of future leaders in medicine and science and strengthening the health care workforce of tomorrow,” says Peter Lynch, president and co-founder of the Lynch Foundation, as well as a member of the HMS Board of Fellows and the HMS Global Health and Service Advisory Council. 

Lynch’s daughter, Mary Lynch Witkowski, AB ’96, MBA ’01, MD ’16, a lecturer on global health and social medicine at HMS and a member of both the HMS Board of Fellows and the HMS Advisory Council on Education, was the catalyst for these gifts, drawing on her deep engagement with HMS.

The gift to the Chair’s Opportunity Fund in Global Health provides flexible funding for Vikram Patel, MBBS, MSc, PhD, the Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of Global Health and Social Medicine at HMS.

“At a time of uncertainty in public funding, it felt especially important to give Vikram and his team resources they can deploy without restrictions,” says Lynch. “We want this gift to help the department move swiftly to address urgent needs, sustain vital research, and advance its core commitment to health equity.”

Discover how HMS is advancing the future of global health

For Patel, this gift comes at a pivotal moment.

“This fund gives me the flexibility to support the people and projects that most need it,” he says. “The Lynch Foundation’s gift is a powerful vote of confidence in our department’s work and in our commitment to carrying Paul Farmer’s legacy forward.”

MEDscience Executive Director Julie Joyal, EdM ’08, says the Lynch Foundation’s investment will have a direct and lasting impact on students.

“This generous gift is truly significant for MEDscience,” Joyal says. “It will enable us to reach more students, deepen our workforce development programming, and open doors for young people who might not otherwise see themselves in a future career in health care and the life sciences.”