Pulse for Change
Empowering Medical Students to Drive Global Health Impact
The Pulse for Change competition, run by the Social Impact Lab, invited medical students to share their ideas for medical innovations, social projects, and health-focused enterprises that could make a real difference to people’s lives.
Designed to help students connect their medical knowledge with social impact, the competition offered funding and mentorship to turn great ideas into action – supporting the next generation of changemakers in health and wellbeing.
This year’s winners have demonstrated just how powerful student-led innovation can be, combining empathy, creativity, and evidence-based practice to create measurable impact.
🥇 1st Place – Julia Talyor – MH Medical Outreach
Taking first place was MH Medical Outreach, a global engagement project founded by Southampton medical students.
Established in 2023, MH Medical Outreach allows two students each year to live and work in a rural northern Ghanaian community, conducting research that contributes directly to Ghana’s UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Working in partnership with the University for Developmental Studies in Tamale, students combine their clinical and investigative skills to explore the realities of healthcare delivery in low-resource settings – learning through immersion and collaboration.
As student founder Julia Taylor explains, “You never truly understand the challenges a community faces until you try to walk within their shoes.”
With funding from Pulse for Change and the Social Enterprise Fund, MH Medical Outreach has made global health research more accessible to students, ensuring that those passionate about health equity can turn their compassion into measurable impact.
🥈 2nd Place – Oliver Gregory – Cameroon Catalyst
Second place went to Cameroon Catalyst, a long-standing, student-driven international development charity that works with communities in East Cameroon to deliver essential, needs-assessed infrastructure and health projects.
Thanks to funding from the Social Impact Lab, the team headed to Cameroon with their medical initiative, tackling malaria prevention in the remote village of Bambouti, home to more than 1,000 people.
The project focused on distributing long-lasting insecticidal mosquito nets, running interactive workshops on malaria prevention, and training a local “Protector of the Night” to ensure long-term impact and follow-up.
Medicine student Oliver Gregory, who led the team, shared:
“The Social Impact Lab’s support meant we could reach more families, run more effective workshops, and build sustainability into everything we did.”
🥉 3rd Place –Ria Hill – StomaShield
In third place was StomaShield, a medical innovation created by postgraduate medicine student Ria Hill.
Inspired by her father’s recovery from colon cancer, Ria developed StomaShield – a simple but transformative product designed to improve comfort, confidence, and quality of life for stoma bag users.
What started as a submission to the 100 Big Ideas competition evolved into a fully supported venture. Through Pulse for Change and the Social Enterprise Fund, Ria secured funding, mentorship, and resources to bring her concept closer to reality.
“Winning funding through Pulse for Change didn’t just give me financial support – it gave me belief,” Ria said. “The Social Impact Lab helped turn a personal experience into something that could genuinely improve lives.”
💡 Empowering the Next Generation of Medical Changemakers
The Pulse for Change competition highlights the creativity, compassion, and innovation within the University of Southampton’s medical community – empowering students to connect medicine with social purpose.