Our 40 Under 40 Healthcare Innovators of 2015

35. Gajen Sunthara

Gajen Sunthara was eight years old when his family members were wounded in the Sri Lankan civil war. “My parents always dreamed of giving their kids a great education and I worked hard to fulfill that,” he says.

Sunthara graduated from Harvard and is currently a Presidential Innovation Fellow at the White House, where he works to fix healthcare interoperability. “We are building the next generation health information exchange called Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR),” he says. He credits his 15 years spent at Boston Children’s innovating with software application development for helping him land the prestigious fellowship.

After the fellowship, Sunthara wants to continue pursuing work in the Health IT software space, with a twist toward community service. “My father honed the importance of giving back,” he says. “One day, when I’m financially stable, I would like to follow the Melinda Gates Foundation’s path and help eliminate food and shelter problems.”