Lainie Beauchemin earned a BS in biological engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where she researched the molecular underpinnings of schizophrenia and other neurological diseases through the Broad Institute. During her time at MIT, Lainie was co-president of a math mentorship program for underserved middle school girls in the Cambridge/Boston area, and worked in various roles for The Educational Justice Institute, including teaching Python to incarcerated women. She was also chair of the MIT Shakespeare ensemble as well as an actress, producer, and designer for multiple productions. Since her graduation, Lainie has been researching chronic lung diseases. She plans to pursue a PhD in biomedical engineering and hopes to work on expanding healthcare access globally.
Lainie’s Fulbright-Nehru project is focusing on broadening neurological diagnostic care in rural India, in conjunction with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi and Project Prakash. She is assessing the need and feasibility of a system of mental and neurological health clinics in rural India in order to pave the way for more accessible healthcare in these specialties. She is also working with her collaborators to enable the establishment of clinics which are local and accessible to villagers in the state of Uttar Pradesh. At these clinics, patients would receive screening for neurological illnesses, their data could be sent to providers in New Delhi, and prescription medicine could be sent back to the clinics, all at no cost to the villagers. Before such a system can be devised, there is a wealth of preliminary feasibility research to be conducted concerning the areas of need, the obstacles facing the villagers, the regulatory logistics of dispensing prescription medication and treatment, and the sourcing of medical equipment and personnel.