Work in Progress: An Engineering in Medicine Programme - Opening Engineering Students’ Mind Through a Living Laboratory Education

Desmond Y.R. Chong; Jian Huei Choo; Eng Keng Soh; Yee-Sien Ng; Ming Po Tham

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Conference: 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Publication Date: June 23, 2013
Start Date: June 23, 2013
End Date: June 26, 2013
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Biomedical Engineering Poster Session
Tagged Division: Biomedical
Page Count: 6
Page Numbers: 23.1379.1 - 23.1379.6
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--22764
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/22764
Download Count: 366

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Paper Authors

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Desmond Y.R. Chong National University of Singapore

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Desmond Chong is currently a Lecturer in the Engineering Design and Innovation Centre (EDIC) and the Department of Bioengineering, National University of Singapore (NUS). He received his Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) and Master of Engineering (by research), both from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and a PhD in Orthopaedic Biomechanics from Imperial College London, UK. Prior to joining NUS, he was with Motorola Electronics Singapore, United Test & Assembly Center (UTAC) Singapore, and Institute of Materials Research & Engineering (IMRE), A*STAR, Singapore. His research interests are in biomechanics, computational modelling and experimentation, design and biomechanical characterization for orthopaedic applications, gait analysis and human motion, and bone mechanics.

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Jian Huei Choo Engineering Design and Innovation Centre, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore

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Choo Jian Huei is currently a Lecturer at the Engineering Design and Innovation Centre (EDIC), Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore. He is a member of the Design-Centric Programme facilitation team. His research interest is in the field of tribology, which he spent much time on at Imperial College London, UK, as well as at the National University of Singapore. Prior to joining EDIC, he had spent time in the renewable energy industry as a Senior Research Engineer with a world-leading wind turbine manufacturer.

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Eng Keng Soh Engineering Design and Innovation Centre, National University of Singapore

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SOH Eng Keng is an Instructor in the Engineering Design and Innovation Centre (EDIC) in the Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore (NUS). Prior to joining NUS, Eng Keng worked in the defence R&D industry for more than a decade, with experience developing and managing complex engineering systems from conception to implementation. In the course of his work, he dealt with various stakeholders including the multi-disciplinary project team members, the industry partners, the Users and external vendors. In the EDIC, he teaches and supervises undergraduate engineering students who engage in multidisciplinary projects. Eng Keng has a Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical) from Nanyang Technological University, and a Master of Science (Management of Technology) from National University of Singapore.

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Yee-Sien Ng

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Yee-Sien is currently the Head and Senior Consultant of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at the Singapore General Hospital in Singapore. He received his Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery at the National University of Singapore and completed a Fellowship in Neuro-rehabilitation from Harvard Medical School in the US. He is also a member of the Royal Colleges of Physicians in the UK. His main research interests are in neurorehabilitation, spasticity, rehabilitation engineering and the epidemiology of disability. He educates widely in both Internal Medicine and Rehabilitation to Residents in both fields, Medical Students, Allied Health Clinicians including Physical and Occupational Therapists, Nursing and non-medical students, particularly Engineering students with interests in Medicine. The Singapore General Hospital is the largest and Flagship hospital in Singapore with more than 1800 inpatient beds across 30-plus specialties serving more than one million patients a year.

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Ming Po Tham National University of SIngapore

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THAM Ming Po is a Professor in the Division of Engineering and Technology Management in the Faculty of Engineering in the National University of Singapore. His research focuses on team dynamics, knowledge sharing and collaborative innovation in globally distributed product development operations and R&D organizations. He also teaches in the Engineering and Technology Management graduate program in the Faculty of Engineering. He was until very recently Director of the Engineering Design and Innovation Center in the National University of Singapore. Prior to joining NUS he has worked in the Singapore Ministry of Defence, Motorola, Honeywell and Dell in research and senior management capacities. Ming Po holds a BA in Psychology from the University of Calgary, and an MA in Experimental Psychology and PhD in Engineering Psychology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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Abstract

An Engineering in Medicine Programme: Opening Engineering Students’ Mind Through a Living Laboratory Education (Works in Progress)Abstract:Bioengineers provide the bridge between medicine and engineering. The bioengineering educationshould ensure the students are able to acquire the vital engineering knowledge and expertise in thefield of biomedical engineering, and also to gain an appreciation of the art and science of medicine.Besides the occasional visits to hospitals and interaction with medical professionals, extended periodof immersion in the hospital and first-hand interaction with the patients is paramount. An Engineeringin Medicine (EIM) programme in Rehabilitation Engineering has been co-developed by Faculty ofEngineering (FoE) together with the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine in a local hospital. Thecountry’s first EIM programme to be co-taught by engineers and medical doctors, offers theengineering students an unique learning experience in a living laboratory setting. The classes areconducted in the hospital, in the rehabilitation gym and right at the bedside. The students are taught bythe medical doctors and physiotherapists on the basics of anatomy and rehabilitation medicine, thevarious forms of rehabilitation (restorative and compensatory), and the equipment used inrehabilitation. The students are required to come close to the patients and interview the patients tounderstand more of their medical conditions, their living life style and their basic needs afterdischarging from the hospital. This level of close contact with the patients will allow the students tounderstand the needs of the patients better, and trigger their mind to come up with engineeringsolutions through the user-centric design approach. This is also a valuable experience whereengineering students would not be able to acquire normally. Ethnography (observational skills) andeffective interviewing techniques are taught before the students begin their immersion in the hospital.Equipped with the essential skills, the students enter the hospital with an open but mindful mentalityto observe and identify the medical unmet needs, at the same time be sensitive and able to directrelevant questions to the patients.This EIM programme is incorporated into the Design-Centric Curriculum (DCC) of the Faculty ofEngineering. DCC is a flexible and self-exploratory alternative learning pathway, where engineeringstudents will work on multi-year, multi-disciplinary projects which address complex and coupledproblems. The students will work in groups (comprising of students from different engineeringdisciplines) to identify the medical needs in rehabilitation, and to conceptualize and developengineering solutions, and eventually to deliver integrated solutions in the hospital. The students willspend 3 years working on the projects, and be guided by a team of mentors (from academic andindustry/hospitals) with diverse background. The first intake, which began in August 2012, hasenrolled 15 engineering students (7 bioengineering, 5 mechanical engineering and 3 electricalengineering). The enrollment number is kept small so as to ensure quality supervision received by thestudents. And the multi-disciplinary group will encourage cross-disciplinary exchange between thestudents thereby enriching the students’ learning experience.

Citation
Format

Chong, D. Y., & Choo, J. H., & Soh, E. K., & Ng, Y., & Tham, M. P. (2013, June), Work in Progress: An Engineering in Medicine Programme - Opening Engineering Students’ Mind Through a Living Laboratory Education Paper presented at 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--22764

TY  - CPAPER
AB  -   An Engineering in Medicine Programme: Opening Engineering Students’ Mind Through a                     Living Laboratory Education (Works in Progress)Abstract:Bioengineers provide the bridge between medicine and engineering. The bioengineering educationshould ensure the students are able to acquire the vital engineering knowledge and expertise in thefield of biomedical engineering, and also to gain an appreciation of the art and science of medicine.Besides the occasional visits to hospitals and interaction with medical professionals, extended periodof immersion in the hospital and first-hand interaction with the patients is paramount. An Engineeringin Medicine (EIM) programme in Rehabilitation Engineering has been co-developed by Faculty ofEngineering (FoE) together with  the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine in a local hospital. Thecountry’s first EIM programme to be co-taught by engineers and medical doctors, offers theengineering students an unique learning experience in a living laboratory setting. The classes areconducted in the hospital, in the rehabilitation gym and right at the bedside. The students are taught bythe medical doctors and physiotherapists on the basics of anatomy and rehabilitation medicine, thevarious forms of rehabilitation (restorative and compensatory), and the equipment used inrehabilitation. The students are required to come close to the patients and interview the patients tounderstand more of their medical conditions, their living life style and their basic needs afterdischarging from the hospital. This level of close contact with the patients will allow the students tounderstand the needs of the patients better, and trigger their mind to come up with engineeringsolutions through the user-centric design approach. This is also a valuable experience whereengineering students would not be able to acquire normally. Ethnography (observational skills) andeffective interviewing techniques are taught before the students begin their immersion in the hospital.Equipped with the essential skills, the students enter the hospital with an open but mindful mentalityto observe and identify the medical unmet needs, at the same time be sensitive and able to directrelevant questions to the patients.This EIM programme is incorporated into the Design-Centric Curriculum (DCC) of the Faculty ofEngineering. DCC is a flexible and self-exploratory alternative learning pathway, where engineeringstudents will work on multi-year, multi-disciplinary projects which address complex and coupledproblems. The students will work in groups (comprising of students from different engineeringdisciplines) to identify the medical needs in rehabilitation, and to conceptualize and developengineering solutions, and eventually to deliver integrated solutions in the hospital. The students willspend 3 years working on the projects, and be guided by a team of mentors (from academic andindustry/hospitals) with diverse background. The first intake, which began in August 2012, hasenrolled 15 engineering students (7 bioengineering, 5 mechanical engineering and 3 electricalengineering). The enrollment number is kept small so as to ensure quality supervision received by thestudents. And the multi-disciplinary group will encourage cross-disciplinary exchange between thestudents thereby enriching the students’ learning experience.
AU  - Desmond Y.R. Chong
AU  - Jian Huei Choo
AU  - Eng Keng Soh
AU  - Yee-Sien Ng
AU  - Ming Po Tham
CY  - Atlanta, Georgia
DA  - 2013/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Work in Progress: An Engineering in Medicine Programme - Opening Engineering Students’ Mind Through a Living Laboratory Education
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/22764
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--22764
ER  -