When more than 30 health innovators, startup founders, and professionals walked into the Ilorin Innovation Hub for the Human-Centred Design Bootcamp, the room was filled with anticipation. Over two days, something powerful unfolded: a reminder that learning in community is not just valuable — it is essential for building solutions that last.
The bootcamp, facilitated by Kome Sideso, Deputy Head of CcHUB Design Lab, was themed “Designing for Impact: Building Context-Driven Solutions for Healthcare Access & Quality.” The sessions were immersive, practical, and people-focused — equipping participants with tools such as stakeholder mapping, empathy development, and rapid prototyping.
But the true magic happened in the interactions.
1. Shared learning accelerates innovation
Startup founders often face complex challenges in isolation. In Ilorin, participants discovered that learning together reframes perspectives. Students learned from startup owners, public health actors learned from developers, and in the process, every voice added depth to the solutions being imagined.
2. Design Thinking creates clarity
By focusing first on the people most affected — patients, healthcare workers, administrators — innovators learned to fall in love with the problem before designing the solution. Teams developed deeply researched problem statements rooted in real-world PHC and rural health challenges. This process shifted ideas from abstract to actionable.
3. Confidence is a byproduct of community
Post-event feedback revealed a significant boost in participants’ confidence to apply HCD in their own projects. The reason is clear: confidence is contagious when innovators see others grappling with similar challenges and pushing through. Community makes the journey less daunting.
By the end, more than five new solution concepts had been developed, targeting issues of digital health tools and people-centred service design. Just as importantly, participants walked away with practical skills and a network of peers equally committed to building a resilient, user-centric healthcare ecosystem.
This is the lesson for new founders: innovation thrives at the intersection of community and design thinking. Alone, ideas struggle. Together, they grow sharper, stronger, and more impactful.
At Design for Health (CcHUB), our mission is to continue creating these spaces — where knowledge is shared, collaborations are born, and healthcare innovation becomes a collective journey.
Because ultimately, solutions that matter are never built in isolation. They are co-created.
