Undergraduate Teams Present Their Innovations at BME Capstone Design Symposium

By Celinda Kofron

Students and faculty gathered in Hazeltine Commons on May 9, 2019 to cap off our yearlong capstone design projects. The capstone design course leverages the expertise and resources of Brown University BME students to tackle the plethora of clinical needs in many of our affiliated health centers. Students worked directly with clinicians and healthcare professionals to address their engineering design challenges including:

A group of students taking a photo in two rows around three professors — Undergraduate design students with Professors Colvin, Tripathi, and Kofron.
Photo Credit: Ashton Stoop

Radial aortic clamping to declutter the surgical field and protect aortic tissue during open heart surgery
Jessica Bellows, Hannah Safford, and Elisa Bye
Clinical Advisor: Neel Sodha (RI & The Miriam Hospitals)

Ergonomic probe adapter to minimize hand injuries in ultrasound technicians
Paula Choconta and Rachel Walker
Clinical Advisor: Erika Werner (Women and Infants Hospital)

A hands-free smoke evacuation system to mitigate workplace risk associated with cautery procedures
Carly Kabelac, Sorathan (Mike) Munckong, and Ankita Sharma (CSCI)
Clinical Advisor: Divya Sharma

Automated slide sheets to assist lateral patient turning during labor and delivery
Allison Bellows, Christina Nguyen, and Selena Tully
Clinical Advisor: Elizabeth Howard (Women and Infants Hospital)

A reliable and efficient device to secure umbilical catheter lines used for premature infants
Itzel Aponte, Grace Choi, Tanaya Puranik, and Adriana Trejo-Sheu
Clinical Advisor: Ravi D’Cruz (Women and Infants Hospital)

Steerable guide tubes for multisite deep brain stimulation (DBS)
Monita Minea, Abby Skerker, and Tom Skipper
Clinical Advisor: Wael Assad (RI & The Miriam Hospitals)

Implanted port visualization for reducing time for venous access in the pediatric emergency department
Colette Bare, Hannah Blakely, Kelly Williams, and Sumaiya Sayeed
Clinical Advisor: Sakina Sojar (Hasbro Children's Hospital)

Course instructors: Celinda Kofron, Anubhav Tripathi, and Vicki Colvin
The symposium featured 10-minute pitches showcasing project innovation.