New Partnership With UAMS Offers Engineering Students Real-World Experience Through Clinical Rotations

The Department of Biomedical Engineering partnered this semester with UAMS Northwest to develop a program focused on offering undergraduate students an opportunity to identify  and implement real-world medical needs.

The program had 16 students in the inaugural course, coordinated by Hanna Jensen, research assistant professor. Students studying biomedical engineering who take the new course — BMEG 3801: Clinical Observations and Needs Finding — will participate in a clinical rotation in a medical facility, clinic or hospital.

The course is currently open to juniors majoring in biomedical engineering and will be offered in both the spring and fall semesters.

Designed to introduce students to the technical, professional and ethical responsibilities faced by a biomedical engineer in the context of engineering product design and development, the course will prepare students to subsequently engage in team-based capstone senior design projects they identify after completing a clinical rotation at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

"I feel this course will prepare us to work with people with special needs and at the same time, will serve us as biomedical engineers to have hands on experiences, said Alexandra Vega, a junior majoring in biomedical engineering. "Since we are given all these tools, it is a good chance to start applying this knowledge for other people and for ourselves."

In completing their projects, students had a chance to engage with the full scope of the engineering design process, and explore issues related to sustainability, bioethics, and health care economics. By the end of the course, students will be able to work successfully in a self-directed, project-focused team to develop a biomedical device or process design that addresses a real-world problem. They will also be prepared to select and complete a project in their senior capstone design course.

"We are excited about the partnership with UAMS as it provides our biomedical engineering students the opportunity to gain first-hand experience on what happens in clinical settings," said Raj Rao, professor and department head of biomedical engineering, who spearheaded the development of the course and the program. "Through active engagement with clinicians, patients and caregivers, the students will also research and validate unmet medical needs, invent novel health care technologies and potentially translate their products or processes into patient care."

The course was recently featured in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette.