Savvy Cooperative
All Home Care Matters was honored to welcome the team from Savvy Cooperative to learn how they are helping to revolutionize and improve healthcare and the patient experience.
Joining the show was Jen Horonjeff, Eriel Brown, and Vivek Krishnaswamy.
Jen Horonjeff, PhD is a patient advocate and the founder & CEO of Savvy Cooperative. She was named one of the 50 Most Daring Entrepreneurs by Entrepreneur Magazine, alongside Elon Musk and Reese Witherspoon, for her work at Savvy, the first patient-owned co-op that helps companies equitably gather input and insights from diverse patients. Jen is deeply committed to human-centered design in healthcare, and has firsthand knowledge as both a patient and professional. She is a life-long chronic illness patient and a brain tumor survivor.
Jen also holds a PhD in Environmental Medicine from New York University, and prior to starting Savvy was a patient-centered outcomes researcher at Columbia University Medical Center, a human factors engineer for medical devices and major tech companies, and an advisor to the FDA. She currently serves on the board of The Sequoia Project, a health data exchange non-profit, and Trialbee, a clinical trial recruitment company, and has served in a variety of roles for the American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Physicians, American Medical Association, International Consortium for Health Outcomes Measures, International Society for Quality of Life Research, European League Against Rheumatism, OMERACT, and American College of Rheumatology. Utilizing her unique perspective, Jen strives to give patients a platform to have their experiences be heard, included, and equitably valued—because the future of healthcare is co-designed with patients.
Eriel Brown is the Community Partnerships Coordinator for Savvy Cooperative! She’s passionate about empowering marginalized voices and creating more space and opportunities for them to be heard. Eriel is savvy about diversity, equity and inclusion, non-profit building, baking, kickboxing, musical theatre, and marvel movies! When she’s not working, you can find Eriel enjoying a new movie at the theater, performing on stage, or spending quality time with her friends and family.
Vikek Krishnaswamy is the Contract Manager for Savvy Cooperative! He’s passionate about the law and empowering Savvy’s patients to share their experiences without having to worry about their personal data. Vivek is savvy about dispute resolution, cooking and Indian classical music. When he’s not working, you can find Vivek doing laps at the pool, enjoying a slice of artisan pizza, or spending time with friends and family.
About Savvy Cooperative:
Savvy Cooperative is the first (and only!) patient-owned co-op. At Savvy, we believe that patients and caregivers should be involved in every aspect of creating a healthcare product or service. We do this by giving patients and caregivers direct ways to share their experiences with health innovators through gigs, and advocating that they be fairly compensated for their contributions. We empower patients and caregivers to co-create new solutions, and see that their voices and experiences not only are valuable, but are of critical importance to the healthcare industry.