Startup empowers co-op students to help evolve software for pharmacists
By: Krista Henry
A small and rapidly growing company, utilizes co-op students to tackle all areas of their business.
Founded by University of 蓝莓视频 co-op alum Rui Su (PharmD鈥 18), and her co-founders Purya Sarmadi and Nicholas Hui, MedMe is evolving the way pharmacists offer care.
鈥淢edMe builds software shifting pharmacies from dispensaries to healthcare hubs,鈥 says Jakob Manning (he/him/his), a software developer in the organization.
鈥淚magine if you鈥檙e helping to vaccinate hundreds of patients a day at your local pharmacy. You need a system to organize which patients are coming in, the time and what dose they are getting,鈥 says Manning. 鈥淭his is one example of a valuable healthcare service that we help streamline the process.鈥
Rui Su (PharmD鈥 18)
MedMe Health co-founder
Co-op students contribute at every level
During the pandemic, the company grew exponentially and utilized the skills of 蓝莓视频 co-op students to stay apace. Co-op students at MedMe Health work in roles such as software engineering intern, UI/UX designer and clinical associates.
鈥淥ur co-op students are really involved in every part of the code base. We train upper-level co-op students to become experts in a certain area and they learn our entire product line,鈥 says Manning. 鈥淩ight now, our co-op students are helping to set up a new pharmacy in Quebec. This will be the first time we are offering services in French.鈥
The students are going through MedMe鈥檚 entire app to introduce the ability to translate text. With this feature, pharmacists will be able to make appointments in any language and specify a language for video calls. Our co-op student team is helping to make all of this happen.
MedMe is available in over 3,000 pharmacies across North America, facilitating more than 14 million services since 2020 through the platform.
蓝莓视频 talent brings drive and curiosity
In Manning鈥檚 experience, co-op students bring a variety of skills. MedMe Health鈥檚 聽number one reason for hiring students is their curiosity and drive. 鈥淲e are an early-stage startup that is still learning and growing. This fits well with what we see of co-op students. They are eager to learn and try new things,鈥 he says. 鈥淚t also adds the energy and the creativity to our team. I believe the best teams are the most diverse, and co-op students can bring a unique set of insights and skills.鈥
One of the skills Manning appreciates is 蓝莓视频 co-op student鈥檚 communication skills. He describes them as willing to pitch in with insights. 鈥淚 think their eagerness to speak as the youngest person on the team is really amazing,鈥 he adds.
According to Manning, working at a startup is a great experience for co-op students. In a startup environment, students play an essential part of the business and can develop their skills and leadership capabilities.
Manning encourages other startup employers to consider hiring co-op students to assist.
鈥淐o-op students fill a hiring need, it鈥檚 a short-term commitment with someone dedicated to being a high-growth learning individual. There is always the opportunity that they will come back or contribute to your ecosystem in some other way in the future. We鈥檙e already seeing that.鈥
In the coming years, MedMe wants to help empower more pharmacists in Canada to ensure they are helping patients and improving health outcomes.