Industry and Multi-Institution Interdisciplinary Partnerships and Their Role in Graduate BME Curriculum

Dhruv R. Seshadri, PhD

Assistant Professor

P.C. RCEAS

Dept of Bioengineering,

Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, USA

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Nathan Jacobs, PhD

SD Academic and Impact Programming

Phil and Penny Knight Campus

Dept of Bioengineering,

Univ of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA

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Theme 3: The future of graduate programs in biomedical engineering, May 30^th, 2024

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Connecting Academia and Industry via the Graduate Student

Faculty

Graduate Student

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What Does Industry Seek?

Source: Johns Hopkins BME

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NABC Model From Stanford Research Institute

Identifying Unmet Medical Need

1. Need: What is the need of the client?
2. Approach: What is our compelling solution to the specific client need?
3. Benefit: What are the client benefits of our approach?
4. Cost/Competition: Why are our benefits significantly better than the competition?

I understand you want coffee (need). Let's go to Philz Coffee. (approach). It is close, the coffee and vibe is great, and we can continue working on our BIOE assignment (benefits). The alternative is Starbucks, which can be crowded (competition or alternative).

Pediatric patients who present with cleft pallet have a 23x higher likelihood of developing congenital heart disease. This often goes unmonitored. Current medical monitoring systems are not amenable to this population. (need). We seek to develop a flexible, wearable, epidermal device for monitoring key vitals in this vulnerable population. (approach). Our device will alleviate all known concerns with current monitoring systems (benefits). The alternative are wired systems which increase nurse and patient burden. (competition or alternative).

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NABC Model Exercise

Form small group and develop an NABC model based needs from academic partners

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Product Manager at a medical device company for their wearables business. How would your team present findings to management?

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• Need: What disease area would you focus on and why? What are gaps today?
• Approach: What device would you make to help monitor that disease?
• Benefits: What are the benefits for your proposed idea?
• Cost/Competition/Alternative: What is the competitive benefit?

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Connecting Academia and Industry via the Graduate Student

Success in biomedical engineering necessitates interdisciplinary, multi-institutional and industry partnerships (IMIIP) to harness the expertise of each group towards improving patient outcomes. It is critical to engage industry for the eventual broader application and adoption of the technologies and tools to realize the full potential and bring the benefits of these technological innovations to patients. The academic-industrial partnership model is expected to more readily overcome barriers to accelerating the development and adoption of promising tools and technologies faced by either academia or industry working alone.

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The primary objective is to support milestone-driven, targeted technological development projects through strategic alliances and partnerships between academia and industry (e.g. sponsored research, senior design, contract research). The partners are expected to establish a robust engineering solution and develop tools and technologies that fulfill an unmet need in biomedical research or the practice of medicine. The goal is to support technological innovations that deliver new capabilities which can realize meaningful solutions within 5 – 10 years.

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The session will focus on:

1. How academic institutions can forge partnerships with industry
2. Discuss synergistic and collaborative pathways for integrating BME graduate education to meet the needs of industry. 

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Connecting Academia and Industry via the Graduate Student

Join our Google Doc to post responses

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https://tinyurl.com/bdzj5ttc

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Scope and Rationale

Goal: Defining the scope and rationale for including IMIIP training in the graduate BME curriculum.

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1. Is it crucial for graduate biomedical engineering programs to incorporate interdisciplinary, multi-institutional, and industry partnerships? Why?

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1. How do IMIIP collaborations contribute to addressing current and emerging challenges in biomedical engineering research and practice?

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1. In what ways can graduate biomedical engineering programs stay nimble and adapt to accommodate the evolving needs and demands of IMIIP partners while maintaining academic rigor and integrity?

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1. How can graduate biomedical engineering curricula effectively integrate industry needs and perspectives to better prepare students for future career opportunities and challenges?

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1. What specific challenges do interdisciplinary collaborations address in advancing biomedical engineering research and practice?

https://tinyurl.com/bdzj5ttc

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Strengths and Weaknesses

Goal: Comparative assessment of approaches as it relates to integrating the needs from industry towards further research efforts and graduates' education

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1. What are the main considerations when comparing various strategies for incorporating industry input into biomedical engineering research and education?
2. What specific challenges or limitations are associated with different approaches to incorporating industry perspectives into graduate biomedical engineering programs?
3. What potential conflicts or challenges arise when aligning academic research goals with industry priorities within graduate biomedical engineering programs?
4. What role do industry advisory boards or committees play in shaping the direction of graduate education and research initiatives in biomedical engineering?
5. How do different approaches to integrating industry needs into graduate education impact the research focus and priorities within biomedical engineering programs?

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https://tinyurl.com/bdzj5ttc

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Identifying Gaps, Challenges, and Opportunities

Goal: Discussion on gaps, challenges, and opportunities in implementing and sustaining IMIIP training within the graduate BME curriculum.

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1. From a coursework perspective, should we be changing anything to allow our students to be successful?
2. Comment on the role of industry personnel to teach graduate coursework.
3. How soon into the graduate program should students start interacting?
4. How early is too early for students to lead multi-institutional studies? How do we as faculty members set them up for success?
5. Should graduate students be required to lead an IMIIP before defending or graduating? Broadly speaking, what does a holistic graduate education look like?

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https://tinyurl.com/bdzj5ttc

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Assessment Methods and Metrics

Goal: Examination of assessment methods and metrics for evaluating IMIIP training in the classroom and beyond, with a focus on measuring student outcomes, program effectiveness, and impact on career trajectories.

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1. How do we measure success for the student? For the department? For the university?
2. Tips to improve alumni engagement to assess value of the IMIIP training on career trajectories
3. Let’s work together to put a list to measure student outcomes, program effectiveness

https://tinyurl.com/bdzj5ttc

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Key Takeaways and Next Steps

Goal: Synthesis of key takeaways and exploration of actionable next steps for enhancing IMIIP training and shaping the future trajectory of BME education and professional development.

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Long-term Vision: We want to publish these learnings to help biomedical engineering/bioengineering departments around the country tailor or adapt their programs to maximize the potential of their graduate students. If interested, please email Dhruv Seshadri at dhs223@lehigh.edu

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1. Courses we need to add: technical writing? financial decision making? Technical communication?
2. Should there be standardization of graduate engineering coursework?
3. Summary of Critical Path: What is needed and lacking?

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NABC Model Exercise

Develop an NABC model based on industry needs from academic partners

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Scenario: Hiring manager at partner industry company wants to explore internship/co-op opportunity

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• Need: What needs would the partnership fill for the company? For your institution?
• Approach: What approaches and logistics might work best (timing and duration, IP agreements, funding and support)?

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• Benefits: What are the benefits for your proposed partnership (students, company, academic institution)?

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• Cost/Competition/Alternative: What is the competitive benefit to the company? To your institution? What are the costs?