Expansion of Biomedical Devices in an Engineering Design Project to Promote Student Wellness

Sara Vohra; Calvin Costner; Isabel Miller; Sara Lamer; Karin Jensen; Holly Golecki

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Conference: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
Start Date: June 26, 2022
End Date: June 29, 2022
Conference Session: Biomedical Engineering Division: Integrating Design Across the BioE/BME Curriculum
Page Count: 9
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--41285
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/41285
Download Count: 375

Paper Authors

biography

Holly Golecki University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign

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Dr. Holly Golecki (she/her) is a Teaching Assistant Professor in Bioengineering at the University of
Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an Associate in the John A Paulson School of Engineering and Applied
Sciences at Harvard University. She holds an appointment at the Carle-Illinois College of Medicine in the
Department of Biomedical and Translational Sciences. She is also a core faculty member at the Institute
for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access in the College of Engineering. Holly studies biomaterials
and soft robotics and their applications in the university classroom, in undergraduate research and in
engaging K12 students in STEM. Holly received her BS in Materials Science and Engineering from
Drexel University and her PhD in Engineering Sciences from Harvard University.

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biography

Karin Jensen University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign

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Karin Jensen, Ph.D. is a Teaching Associate Professor in bioengineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research interests include student mental health and wellness, engineering student career pathways, and engagement of engineering faculty in engineering education research. She was awarded a CAREER award from the National Science Foundation for her research on undergraduate mental health in engineering programs. Before joining UIUC she completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Sanofi Oncology in Cambridge, MA. She earned a bachelor’s degree in biological engineering from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from the University of Virginia.

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Sara Vohra is an undergraduate studying Bioengineering with a minor in Chemistry at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Her interests lie in education as well as medicine with a future career goal as a physician.

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Isabel Miller University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign

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Abstract

The increasing prevalence and severity of mental health challenges for undergraduate students indicates an urgent need for proactive interventions to support student mental health. In an effort to demonstrate the physiological benefits of wellness practices to first-year biomedical engineering students, we previously described a biomedical device design project that introduced students to the physiology of stress, measurement of stress, and wellness practices. In the previous course offering, all students received a pulse oximeter to measure blood oxygenation and heart rate. Students used these devices to quantify physiological changes in response to a wellness practice. In the revised course offering, we expanded the original project to include nine additional devices available to students to use in testing their wellness hypothesis and to reflect on product design. Mindfulness exercises, led by the course instructor, were also incorporated into each course meeting as an example of a wellness practice that students could use in their project. The devices allowed students to measure additional physiological markers, including electrodermal activity as a measure of stress and electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure focus while practicing meditation and quality of sleep. In addition to expanding the number and type of devices available to students, the instructor also included a lesson about encoded racial bias for pulse oximeters and used this as an introduction for students to analyze the designs of the different devices and propose new designs. Student exploration of the devices led them to evaluate user needs and preferences, functional differences across the devices, and cost considerations. Students compared devices across these factors to compile a list of highly desired features in a next generation biometric measurement device. Student feedback about the project was collected by surveys administered at the beginning and conclusion of the wellness project. Overall student feedback on the inclusion of additional biometric devices and lessons on encoded racial bias were well-received by students. The majority (93%) of students indicated that being able to use the biometric devices gave them a better sense for biomedical design features, and that the exercise helped them become more aware of bias in design. This paper will present the revised project offering that included additional devices and student feedback.

Citation
Format

Golecki, H., & Jensen, K., & Lamer, S., & Costner, C., & Vohra, S., & Miller, I. (2022, August), Expansion of Biomedical Devices in an Engineering Design Project to Promote Student Wellness Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--41285

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - The increasing prevalence and severity of mental health challenges for undergraduate students indicates an urgent need for proactive interventions to support student mental health. In an effort to demonstrate the physiological benefits of wellness practices to first-year biomedical engineering students, we previously described a biomedical device design project that introduced students to the physiology of stress, measurement of stress, and wellness practices. In the previous course offering, all students received a pulse oximeter to measure blood oxygenation and heart rate. Students used these devices to quantify physiological changes in response to a wellness practice. In the revised course offering, we expanded the original project to include nine additional devices available to students to use in testing their wellness hypothesis and to reflect on product design. Mindfulness exercises, led by the course instructor, were also incorporated into each course meeting as an example of a wellness practice that students could use in their project. The devices allowed students to measure additional physiological markers, including electrodermal activity as a measure of stress and electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure focus while practicing meditation and quality of sleep. In addition to expanding the number and type of devices available to students, the instructor also included a lesson about encoded racial bias for pulse oximeters and used this as an introduction for students to analyze the designs of the different devices and propose new designs. Student exploration of the devices led them to evaluate user needs and preferences, functional differences across the devices, and cost considerations. Students compared devices across these factors to compile a list of highly desired features in a next generation biometric measurement device. Student feedback about the project was collected by surveys administered at the beginning and conclusion of the wellness project. Overall student feedback on the inclusion of additional biometric devices and lessons on encoded racial bias were well-received by students. The majority (93%) of students indicated that being able to use the biometric devices gave them a better sense for biomedical design features, and that the exercise helped them become more aware of bias in design. This paper will present the revised project offering that included additional devices and student feedback.
AU  - Holly Golecki
AU  - Karin Jensen
AU  - Sara Lamer
AU  - Calvin Costner
AU  - Sara Vohra
AU  - Isabel Miller
CY  - Minneapolis, MN
DA  - 2022/08/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Expansion of Biomedical Devices in an Engineering Design Project to Promote Student Wellness
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/41285
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--41285
ER  -