The RADxSM Tech Process: Accelerating Innovation for COVID-19 Testing.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for rapid and accurate diagnostic testing across populations quickly became evident. In response, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) was determined not only to invest heavily in this area but to change the process by which grant proposals were reviewed and funded in order to spur faster development of viable technologies. The Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx) initiative was designed to speed innovation, commercialization, and implementation of potential COVID-19 diagnostic technology. As part of this effort, the RADx Tech initiative focuses on the development, validation, and commercialization of innovative point-of-care, home-based, and clinical lab-based tests that can detect SARS-CoV-2. This effort was enabled through the NIH's National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) Point-of-Care Technology Research Network (POCTRN).

Curricular Advancement of Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Design Projects Beyond 1 Year: A Pilot Study.

A year-long design project is a typical requirement for an undergraduate engineering degree. However, the abbreviated, two-semester format limits most projects from reaching appropriate maturity for obtaining intellectual property (IP) protection, external funding, and/or peer-reviewed publications. The traditional model may be associated with some dissatisfaction with the abrupt ending of the work, as projects are often just completing their initial proof-of-concept testing after 1 year. This study reports the results of a pilot experiment that allowed such design projects to extend through a second year. We investigated three different mechanisms for continuation: research credits, a second-year curricular course (Advanced Design Teams), and extracurricular support. Students in this program continued to engage with an advisory board of clinicians, engineers, and other professionals, many of whom had assisted with the project during the first year. We investigated whether continuing the projects in a curricular fashion may provide a better avenue for productivity than extracurricular mechanisms. Based on the results of this pilot study, our department has formalized a curriculum to support teams beyond the first year, in which continuing students from the first-year teams can apply to continue their projects for credit toward their degrees.

Case Study: Developing an In-House Magnetic Resonance Imaging Maintenance Program.

In 2015, the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) developed an in-house magnetic resonance imaging service team. Within two years, the team achieved substantial savings in operational costs, generated new revenue, improved uptime and response time, and improved customer satisfaction within the hospital. Through careful planning and collaboration, the Clinical Engineering Department at CHEO was able to bring imaging services in house successfully, demonstrating improvements over historical original equipment manufacturer performance thresholds.

Funding innovation: Moving the business forward.

Gary F. Henry is the Principal Consultant of G F Henry and Associates, a management consulting firm based in Charlottesville, Virginia. Mr. Henry has more than 30 years of distinguished experience, including CEO, CFO and COO roles in both established and start-up companies. Gary was named an Ernst & Young Virginia Entrepreneur of the Year in 2001.

Structure and Management of an Engineering Senior Design Course.

The design of products and processes is an important area in engineering. Students in engineering schools learn fundamental principles in their courses but often lack an opportunity to apply these methods to real-world problems until their senior year. This article describes important elements that should be incorporated into a senior capstone design course. It includes a description of the general principles used in engineering design and a discussion of why students often have difficulty with application and revert to trial and error methods. The structure of a properly designed capstone course is dissected and its individual components are evaluated. Major components include assessing resources, identifying projects, establishing teams, understanding requirements, developing conceptual designs, creating detailed designs, building prototypes, testing performance, and final presentations. In addition to the course design, team management and effective mentoring are critical to success. This article includes suggested guidelines and tips for effective design team leadership, attention to detail, investment of time, and managing project scope. Furthermore, the importance of understanding business culture, displaying professionalism, and considerations of different types of senior projects is discussed. Through a well-designed course and proper mentoring, students will learn to apply their engineering skills and gain basic business knowledge that will prepare them for entry-level positions in industry.

Problem-Based Learning in Biomechanics: Advantages, Challenges, and Implementation Strategies.

Problem-based learning (PBL) has been shown to be effective in biomedical engineering education, particularly in motivating student learning, increasing knowledge retention, and developing problem solving, communication, and teamwork skills. However, PBL adoption remains limited by real challenges in effective implementation. In this paper, we review the literature on advantages and challenges of PBL and present our own experiences. We also provide practical guidelines for implementing PBL, including two examples of PBL modules from biomechanics courses at two different institutions. Overall, we conclude that the benefits for both professors and students support the use of PBL in biomedical engineering education.

Defining new aims for BME programs in Latin America: the case of UAM-Iztapalapa.

The need for upkeep and management of medical technology has fostered the creation of a large number of under graduate programs in the field of biomedical Engineering. In Latin America alone, there are over 85 programs dedicated to this. This contrasts with programs in other regions where most of the undergraduates continue on to pursue graduate degrees or work as research and development engineers in the biomedical industry. In this work we analyze the situation regarding curricular design in the 48 BME programs in Mexico and compare this to suggestions and classifications of programs according to needs and possibilities. We then focus on a particular institution, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana and due to its characteristics and performance we propose that it should redefine its aims from the undergraduate program on, in order to not only generate research but also to provide a nurturing environment for a budding biomedical industry in Mexico.

Rapid prototyping-assisted maxillofacial reconstruction.

Rapid prototyping (RP) technologies have found many uses in dentistry, and especially oral and maxillofacial surgery, due to its ability to promote product development while at the same time reducing cost and depositing a part of any degree of complexity theoretically. This paper provides an overview of RP technologies for maxillofacial reconstruction covering both fundamentals and applications of the technologies. Key fundamentals of RP technologies involving the history, characteristics, and principles are reviewed. A number of RP applications to the main fields of oral and maxillofacial surgery, including restoration of maxillofacial deformities and defects, reduction of functional bone tissues, correction of dento-maxillofacial deformities, and fabrication of maxillofacial prostheses, are discussed. The most remarkable challenges for development of RP-assisted maxillofacial surgery and promising solutions are also elaborated.