TMC PULSE

t m c » p u l s e | n o v e m b e r 2 0 1 5 32 "If you look at cardiovascular devices, in the past decade the number of new technologies and techniques that have been introduced is mind boggling," said William "Billy" E. Cohn, M.D., director of the Center for Technology and Innovation at Texas Heart Institute, as well as director of the department of surgery incubator at Baylor College of Medicine. "Some of the techniques we use might prompt someone to say, 'Wow, that's awfully barbaric.' And upon reflection, they're right—some of the stuff that we used in the operating room is fairly low-tech, such as using a needle and thread to sew things together, but that's been the genesis for most of the major innova- tions in cardiovascular surgery in the past decade." In addition to their shadowing experiences throughout the Texas Medical Center, the fellows have been participating in a robust educational curriculum that exposes them to guest lecturers, while solidifying the biode- sign methodology itself. "What we're trying to do on the education side is teach them the methodology for observation and needs identification," said Eric S. Richardson, Ph.D., co-associate director of TMC Biodesign and a lecturer at Rice University. "It's about teaching them how to not just observe, but how to look, specifically, for unmet needs. How do you act as a social scientist as well as an engineer? We want them to shut down the engineering side of their brain and think more about pain points, processes and flow. Those are the elements that will lead to interesting design projects." As the eight fellows look down the road at the next chapters of their biodesign journey—the "invent" stage, where they'll prototype multiple devices and technologies simultane- ously, and finally "implement," where they focus on development strategy and market integration—their aspira- tions for the program itself are begin- ning to coalesce. "I think developing a startup is a very ideal outcome, but I don't think that should be the only outcome," said Yashar Ganjeh, Ph.D., a TMC Biodesign fellow focused on medical devices. "I think going through the biodesign process, networking with advisors and mentors, and all of the entrepreneurs that are present throughout the weekly events, are the most important compo- nents of this program. Going through the product development process is way more important than actually making a company. For me, success is measured in what I learn throughout the experience and all of the resources provided here." "The idea of cultivating that skillset and learning to look through those lenses of viewing every step, device, procedure and diagnostic process as an opportunity for innovation and improvement is a completely different way of looking at the world," added Cohn, an avid supporter of TMC Biodesign since its inception. "For health care professionals, we look at what's been given to us, memorize the procedure and carry on. That series of prescriptive steps is something that you learn and master—we aren't trained to push back against that and ask, 'Why do I have to do it this way?' That's the skillset that these biodesign fellows are trying to cultivate. It'll be interesting to see what they come up with." 75% APPLICANTS of the program came from O U T S I D E T E X A S Through our questioning, we really dig in and try to get medical professionals to tell a story about why they did something a certain way. — DAVE MORRIS TMC Biodesign Digital Health Fellow 600 UNMET NEEDS In the span of a month, during their clinical rotations the t wo teams F O U N D O V E R

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