Today we’d like to introduce you to Lamesha Davis.
So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started Health Care Travels in 2017. I recognized that a lot of short- term rental companies were focused on vacation and leisure travel. Not many people are aware that healthcare professionals travel for work to help with the staffing shortages hospitals have. I then noticed a lot of healthcare professionals running into the issue of housing not being affordable as some vacation platforms tripled their nightly rate depending on location. As you can imagine, our traveler’s contracts are typically an average of 13 weeks and how pricey that could be. I did lots of research day in and day out, attended conferences, sat in many meetings mapping out an affordable solution. There were over 300 staffing agencies and not one reliable platform to help traveling healthcare professionals find safe and affordable housing. Many travelers started using social media to try to find housing and would be scammed out of security deposits or first month’s rent. That’s where I began to build Health Care Travels. The company name speaks for itself.
I learned what challenges the travelers were having and built out a platform to help solve the challenges faced so that healthcare professionals could focus on the care of patients. Finding housing is the most stressful and time-consuming task after being assigned a contract, so I wanted to simplify the process. I had to teach and learn every position of my company legal, accounting, marketing, and even tech as this is what is the most important feature in running Health Care Travels. I used my capital to start and hired individuals to help me execute and bring it to life. As Health Care Travels is not the only company I own, I was working full time and also in graduate school full time. It was hard work but the journey has been so rewarding. I have learned so much about myself and my resilience and how qualified I am to lead Health Care Travels. What’s most rewarding is being an inspiration to others who have followed my journey and inspire them. Being the CEO is no easy job but I love it so much! It has given me so much to look forward to. Finally, after three years, we are about to launch to the public where homeowners and travelers can create an account. I’m nervous, excited, but I can’t wait!
Has it been a smooth road?
Building has not been a smooth road. I don’t think any entrepreneur has had a smooth road. Being a nurse with formal education has given me the foundation, but trial and error gave me the execution to stick with it. Learning from your own mistakes is so beautiful. The mistakes I made I learned from them and helped others to avoid them. Having faith got me through the toughest of times. Investing so much of my money and making huge sacrifices of going without not knowing if this was going to work. When you invest your own money, it makes you work harder. It helps you not turn back. The challenges I faced were finding the right team. Software engineers, developers, and attorneys are not cheap! Funding as a start-up was probably the most challenging. Making sure to slowly and efficiently take my time with people. Protecting my idea and enforcing NDAs to be signed was a practice I had to adapt to quickly. It was not a smooth road but we made it out.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Health Care Travels – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I’m most proud of being able to build a Tech company with absolutely no tech background. I wanted to change the narrative in the tech space and the statistics. We know men predominantly lead the tech space, women-led ventures receive less than 3% of venture capital and less than 0.2% of funding is received by women of color. The time is now to change that! I didn’t just do this for me, I did this for other young girls who also look like me. I wanted to be the example and show other women this is possible even with odds against you if you just put your mind to it. Furthermore, finishing startup school at Y-Combinator and receiving a certificate from FAU in Hospitality and Tourism Management during a pandemic. Health Care Travels was established to solve the challenges faced by travel healthcare professionals in securing affordable short-term housing. We are a specialized website providing a centralized platform to help travel healthcare professionals find affordable and reliable short-term housing. Property owners can list properties they wish to rent to healthcare professionals on a work assignment. Healthcare travelers can locate short-term housing needs, pay for reservations securely online. Travelers are also able to list their properties for rent while they are away on an assignment. What sets us apart is we have a team qualified to lead a platform like such and we are focused on traveling healthcare professionals. Unlike other platforms, we are also focused on our travelers traveling by RV and RV parks. So if I can do it, so many others can as well.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
That we have the #1 medical center in the world! The mayor is supportive of small businesses. Mayor Sylvester considers small businesses and comes to events for small business entrepreneurs and offers encouragement. Houston welcomes everyone from all over the world. Houston is where you can learn about different cultures. There’s something for everyone here. Houston is Home.
Pricing:
- Healthcare Traveler sign up – FREE
- Homeowner sign up – FREE
Contact Info:
- Address: 7075 FM 1960 RD W
Houston, TX 77069
Suite 1010 - Website: https://healthcaretravels.com/
- Phone: 8669559944
- Email: press@healthcaretravels.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/healthcaretravels/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/healthcaretravels
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/HC_Travels
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/health-care-travels
Image Credit:
My personal photo was shot by Jarrelle Lee Studios
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