Category: Personal Experiences

Learning about Healthcare Design

Posted on by Cloris Huan

One of the most profound discussions for me over this abroad program was our lectures with Rob Mountain at the University of Dundee. He guided us through identifying and reflecting on our healthcare values to adjust how we approach healthcare. He primarily discussed the ideas of realistic medicine and design thinking.

Realistic medicine focuses healthcare decisions around the patient and prioritizes their needs and wants when determining a care path. For countries to implement this method, it is crucial to recognize the essentiality of empathy in healthcare. Patients and doctors need a foundation of trust, fostered through clear and genuine conversations, where both parties can be informed and understand the issue and treatment path. We can learn a lot from listening to others to help us find a more suitable treatment plan and become more compassionate and considerate.

In addition, I learned that we should adopt both a designer and innovator mindset when working in healthcare. The field of healthcare is highly interdisciplinary. For example, for surgeons to complete their job, they need biomedical engineers to know how to use and ensure the machines are running correctly. Therefore, each part of the healthcare system relies on one another, emphasizing the need for collaboration and teamwork in healthcare.

From the perspective of a Health Policy and Management major (non-BME major), entering a Biomedical Engineering-focused program was an intimidating task. I was hesitant to dive straight into a new and unfamiliar field in a new and unfamiliar place. However, despite my nervousness, I was enthusiastic about making the most of the experience and learning new skills and ideas that I could utilize within my own path in the healthcare system. Once arriving in Scotland, I quickly learned how closely connected and relevant these two fields are. In addition, through my interactions with others, I learned the vitality of building meaningful relationships and how we can also learn from the experiences and perspectives of one another.

Health Care Design: A Foreign Concept In A Foreign World

Posted on by ncr2018

 

Author: E. Nathaniel McBride

A man enters a gate that will lead to a new world. As he boards the cramped plane, a baby cries, and a senior man chuckles to his wife. A flight attendant reassures a mother that her son will be okay not sitting next to her. And a first-time-flyer looks out the window, hoping to get one last look at the beautiful city of San Francisco. Eventually, the man sits down, already missing home and desiring to be at his destination. The man is anxious, feeling the butterflies move throughout his body as if they, too want to escape to their home. But, he is also content, ready for foreign to become familiar.

As a non-BME (Biomedical Engineer) major, I was initially apprehensive about traveling to a foreign country and learning about a topic that was also foreign to me. However, the thought of being able to experience and explore life as well as healthcare design in a new way was mesmerizing, and I was determined to overcome my nervousness. Fortunately, my mindset changed within a few days of arriving in Scotland, not only because of my kind peers but also the hands-on experience I was amassing.

The Center for Anatomy and Human              Identification

During our stay in Dundee, we traveled to the Center for Anatomy and Human Identification at the University of Dundee where we toured the facility and learned about the embalming process that utilizes a thiel system. Using thiel allows for more flexibility of the cadaver and better maintains the fascial layers between structures of the body. The only downside to using theil is that the brain essentially deteriorates and becomes, for lack of better words, “mush”. To account for this issue, embalmers will remove the brain before starting the process if they intend to preserve it. At the facility, I also had the opportunity to “glove-up” and physically examine the insides of one of the cadavers. It was surreal holding the human heart among other organs and visually observing the tendons, muscles, and ligaments that lie under our skin.

While the Center for Anatomy and Human Identification is not directly related to healthcare, it allows students and even those who are just curious to gain an understanding of the human body. The center contributes to a sustainable and quality healthcare design by ensuring that individuals have access to clean and optimal cadavers. This is crucial because cadavers allow future doctors, dentists, scientists, and engineers to get hands-on experience with real human beings.

Arbroath, Scotland

It was after we visited the center that I had a revelation. Not only was I empowered, but I also realized that I was in the right place with the right people at the right time. I no longer needed to be nervous about BME, and could instead embrace the unknown.

 

 

Peter Brown’s Trip to Surgeons’ Hall

Posted on by mattpete

On Tuesday, June 28th, Sydney Schwartz and I visited the Surgeons’ Hall Museum in Edinburgh, Scotland. While we were interested in different exhibits, we both found the museum (as a whole) to be fascinating and incredibly eye-opening. The tour started in a central room that showcased tools used for surgeries dating back to the early 18th century (wow; we advanced in technology and innovation!). In the central room, many tumors and organs with abnormalities and several cadavers were on display. Two cadavers were the remains of children whose bodies were donated to science in 1702 and 1718 and were also the oldest in the museum’s collection. The cadaver from 1718 was dissected by Alexander Munro Primus, the first professor of anatomy at the Edinburgh University medical school.

One of the most interesting displays was a plaster cast of Robert Penman’s lower jaw tumor. While the tumor needed to be removed for Penman to sustain life (as he could not eat or drink due to the size of the tumor), the surgery was performed prior to the availability of effective anesthesia. Nonetheless, the surgery, performed by Dr. James Syme in 1828, was a success!

My favorite part of this museum visit was the dental surgery section. I especially enjoyed learning about early dental practices, particularly impression techniques. As one museum label explains, a dental impression is a negative imprint of teeth and mouth tissues that is used as a mound to make a positive cast. The tray on display would have been filled with soft material, like beeswax or plaster of Paris, to make the impression, as alginates or irreversible hydrocolloids had not yet been discovered as an effective/practical material.

The museum also featured modern technology and explained how it has improved healthcare. For example, biomedical engineering is an integral part of modern dentistry as virtual depictions of the jaw enable maxillofacial surgeons, dentists, and orthodontists to visualize vantage points inside their patient’s mouths for better accessibility.

The Surgeons’ Hall Museum was one of the highlights of my trip to Edinburgh. I would encourage anyone interested in medicine, healthcare, or technology (including biomedical engineering) to visit! No matter your specific curiosity, there is an exhibit in the museum sure to challenge your way of thinking concerning healthcare or the advancement of modern medicine.

 

Our signatures in the visitors log

My ticket and museum brochure

Early uses of natural remedies!

Interesting description about the limitations of missing teeth! 

How biomedical engineering is used in Maxillofacial Surgery!

The McManus Gallery and Dundee Medical Innovations and Pioneering

Posted on by mcott

While spending time in Dundee, some of us decided to go to the McManus Art Gallery & Museum in the old section of town. The museum had many different sections (such as the history of Dundee, the natural ecosystems of Dundee, the relations between Dundee/Scotland and the world, and many more exhibits) and even had a display case about medical innovations that originated from and/or used in Dundee. Within this display case, they had five different biomedical devices such as an X-Ray tube, urethral bougies, and sutures that were used in the Dundee Royal Infirmary. Along with showing these biomedical devices, they had images and descriptions of scientists and researchers who have made novel discoveries, such as Professor Sir Alfred Cuschieri who is internationally known as a pioneer and leader in the field of laparoscopic/keyhole surgery. Attached below are some images of the display objects as well as the associated descriptions.

Group Trip to St. Andrews!

Posted on by ctnight

On June 12th, a group of students and I went to St. Andrews for the day. We took a bus there and began the day by walking through the botanic garden. Later, we walked through town to get to the coast to see the St. Andrews castle. As we traveled from Dundee to St. Andrews and then through the town, I noticed that very few people were wearing masks despite the rising number of COVID-19 cases. We discussed why we thought that people were eager to no longer wear masks when the threat of COVID-19 is still present. Throughout the pandemic, safety policies, such as mask mandates, have been heavily politicized. Since the removal of most mask mandates, we noticed that people have stopped wearing them at all, which places themselves and others at risk of contracting COVID-19. Especially in the United States, I think we need to be more conscious of the overlap between healthcare and politics and try to keep them as separate as possible. The people making decisions for the future of the healthcare system should be healthcare professionals. Also, we need to be more conscious of the way we are designing healthcare initiatives to express the longevity of certain actions. Information about the short-term use of masks was spread when this is not the case. The threat of COVID-19 is still present today and will continue to be present for a long time. 

In the evening, we met up with another group of students who went to St. Andrews that day and ate dinner together. We went to a restaurant called Tailend and saw our new friend, Emma, who is a biomedical engineering student at the University of Dundee that we met earlier in the week. After dinner, we continued to walk around, through the University of St. Andrews campus, and past the golf course. Then, we took the bus back to Dundee which ended our fun trip to St. Andrews! 

James’s Trip to London with Ava and Christian

Posted on by ivwright