Personalized Medicine & Applied Engineering M.S. Program

The course is designed to provide an introduction to basic research methodology and design, which includes statistical analysis techniques. Students demonstrate their knowledge of the course materials by analyzing, interpreting, and summarizing research writing in professional journals and by planning a research study.

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Discuss issues related to research ethics, responsible conduct of human and animal research, and data collection, as well as recognize how to avoid plagiarism.
    
2. Utilize effective techniques for conducting a literature search using online databases and managing references.
    
3. Critique research articles and determine the quality of publications, identifying issues related to methodology and guidelines to improve scientific rigor and reproducibility.
    
4. Identify and apply the steps involved in the scientific method by formulating a research question, building effective scientific aims, generating a research hypothesis, and designing an experimental plan (study) to address the question.
    
5. Generate and store data in an effective format and then select and perform appropriate statistical calculations to analyze data.
    
6. Interpret visual representations of data (i.e. tables, graphs).
    
7. Utilize scientific principles and inductive reasoning to translate and interpret results.
    
8. Present aspects of the scientific method, including experimental design and results, in an accurate and professional manner.
    
9. Outline the processes related to manuscript reviews, writing, authorship, and journal impact factors.
    
10. Demonstrate a clearer understanding of possible careers and how acquired skills and interests match up to a given career path.

An 8-week summer clinical immersion session provides students with early hands-on learning and shadowing of the current 3D innovation landscape. Students will be assigned to various specialties. They will shadow their mentors in the clinics and operating rooms, observing how they incorporate personalized medicine into the treatment of patients.

This 8-week clinical immersion program starts in the summer before the academic year. This part of the program provides experience in a clinical environment and gives the student a chance to find a clinical mentor for their thesis research. Students will work with their physician mentors to identify causes of preventable medical/surgical errors, device user-related hazards and device failure hazards, with the goal of addressing these preventable complications with medical device design projects. In addition, students will participate in didactics with a structured summer curriculum focusing on needs identification, assessment and risk management. Participating faculty come from all disciplines.

This course is divided into three modules:

1. Introduction to Image Analysis and Image Processing: Introduces the basics in medical imaging and analysis. Topics explored include PACS, DICOM, diagnostic imaging and analysis, metabolic imaging, image guided treatments, machine learning, predictive/prognostic models, and clinical radiology. 
    
2. VR/AR/XR: Students explore use cases of extended reality (XR: augmented reality, virtual reality, mixed reality), play several XR experiences, and hear from experts in the field.
    
3. Image-Guided and Robotic-Assisted Interventions. Topics covered include surgical techniques, computer navigation, robotics, and other interventional skills.

This course is designed to give students a hands-on-experience with the use of 3D technologies in medicine. The course is divided into three blocks:

1. Image segmentation and 3D model creation 
2. Surgical Planning
3. 3D Printing and Point-of-Care printing 

Topics covered include the healthcare legal landscape, medical image processing, 3D anatomic model creation and validation, use of CAD, current surgical planning tools, surgical instrumentation, AR/VR in surgery, point of care 3D printing in medicine including regulation, quality management, and printing validation.

Faculty-supervised individual projects with emphasis on research, laboratory, or theory. Students must define the scope of the proposed project with the faculty member who has agreed to act as supervisor and submit a thesis proposal for approval. Students have the option of working on 3D medical innovation projects with biomedical engineering companies, industry leaders of personalized medicine providing students with a year-long internship / “internal interview” with a biomedical technology company’s engineering team. These projects may involve the student developing novel software, hardware, manufacturing validations, medical devices, surgical instruments, or 3D printing modalities. The class meets as a group weekly to review topics such as IRB protocols, ethics and HIPAA, biostatistics, research design, scientific writing, and presentation skills.

The engineering design, project planning, prototype creation, and fabrication processes for medical devices that improve patient conditions, experiences, and outcomes. Students develop viable solutions and professional-level working prototypes to address clinical needs identified by practicing physicians. Topics such as intellectual property, the history of medical devices, documentation and reporting, and regulatory affairs are covered.