Overview
Dr. Krishna Udayakumar is the founding Director of the Duke Global Health Innovation Center, focused on generating deeper evidence and support for the study, scaling, and adaptation of health innovations and policy reforms globally. He is also Executive Director of Innovations in Healthcare, a non-profit co-founded by Duke, McKinsey & Company, and the World Economic Forum to curate and scale the impact of transformative health solutions globally.
At Duke University, Dr. Udayakumar holds the rank of Associate Professor of Global Health and Medicine, and is a core faculty member of the Duke-Margolis Center for Health Policy. He serves as Associate Director for Innovation and Partnerships of the Duke Global Health Institute, and is also Associate Professor at Duke-NUS Medical School Singapore. His work has been published in leading academic journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Affairs, and Academic Medicine.
Born in Bangalore, India, Dr. Udayakumar spent his childhood in Virginia, and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Virginia, with a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies with distinction. He received both an MD and an MBA (with a concentration in Health Sector Management) from Duke University, where he was a Fuqua Scholar. Dr. Udayakumar completed his residency training in internal medicine at Duke and served as Assistant Chief Resident at the Durham VA Medical Center before joining the faculty of Duke University.Current Appointments & Affiliations
Recent Publications
Development, launch, and scale-up of health products in low-income and middle-income countries: a retrospective analysis on 59 health products.
Journal Article The Lancet. Global health · June 2025 BackgroundLow-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) bear a heavy burden from communicable, maternal, and childhood diseases, yet access to health products addressing these burdens is lagging. We aimed to provide empirical evidence about the t ... Full text CitePreventing and Controlling Global Antimicrobial Resistance - Implementing a Whole-System Approach.
Journal Article The New England journal of medicine · August 2024 Full text CiteAfrican leadership is critical in responding to public health threats.
Journal Article Nature communications · January 2024 Full text CiteRecent Grants
Accelerating multi-product introduction through advocacy and learning
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation · 2024 - 2028Health Trust Initiative
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation · 2024 - 2025PIPP Phase I
ResearchAdvisor · Awarded by National Science Foundation · 2022 - 2025View All Grants