November 12, 2009

The EWH student chapter at North Carolina State University (NCSU) is providing noteworthy hands-on projects for their members. They are applying their technical skills to through work on EWH bilimeter and bililight projects. The chapter affords its students insight into global health issues by exposing them to a variety of social, political and cultural issues.

This bililight was developed by PhotoGenesis Medical, an EWH collaborator. It is a phototherapy device that shines blue light onto the infant's skin to break up excess bilirubin and prevent jaundice.

When recently asked what inspired him to get involved with Engineering World Health, John Sanderson, EWH-NCSU Chapter President and biomedical engineering student, responded that given his chosen “course of study and passion for travel and different cultures,” EWH seemed to be the “perfect complement” to his interests. John adds, “I plan to become a physician and devote much of my career to world health efforts, stemming greatly from the ideals which encompass Engineering World Health.”

The work of John and the EWH-NCSU Chapter on the bilimeter / bililight project benefits infants in need of treatment for neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (jaundice) in the developing world. The chapter is working on calibrating the bilimeters so that they can be used by developing world hospital technicians to test any possible type of bililight. The bililights will undergo rigorous testing at NCSU to optimize the light output for the treatment of infants.

This low-cost bilimeter was developed for use in developing world clinics by Greg Nusz. Greg is an EWH volunteer and Duke Engineering graduate studetn.

The lights and meters will be tested to ensure their clinical viability in treating neonatal jaundice, and if successful they will be implemented in EWH partner hospitals in Africa and Central America as part of the EWH Summer Institutes. As the majority of infants born in developing nations do not currently receive treatment for this condition, the impact of this technology would be significant.

Engineering World Health chapters are formed to enable students to contribute to the mission of EWH: To inspire and mobilize the biomedical engineering community to improve the quality of health care in vulnerable communities. More specifically, EWH chapters provide members with enhanced opportunities to participate in EWH activities, such as traveling to developing countries to work in hospitals, designing novel medical technologies appropriate for resource-poor settings, building medical devices for use in developing countries, and promoting understanding and goodwill between the developed and developing world.