M-Heal Student Team at La Iguana Perdida, Guatemala
M-Heal Enhanced Stethoscope Team, Guatemala
M-HEAL team students toast with smoothies in a hotel they are staying in at the village of Santa Cruz on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala. March 4th, 2011. From left are Aarthi Arab, Annie Mitsak, Jeremy Koehler, Ryan Roberts, John Seamans, Nathaniel Skinner and Becca Schewe-Mott.
Photo by Marcin Szczepanski, Multimedia Content Producer/CoE’s Communications and Marketing
Student Bios:
Aarthi Arab
I am a sophomore at the University of Michigan majoring in Biomedical Engineering and planning to go on to medical school. I am currently working as a research assistant in a lab that deals with artificial lung design. This is my first year with M-Heal and I am very excited to learn about the design process as well as contribute anything I can to the project. I am very enthusiastic about traveling to Guatemala to see the design in use and interacting with the people there who will use the device in the future.
Jeremy Koehler
Hi! I am a second year Masters Student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. My main interest is in medical device innovation and am excited to be a part of the MHeal Stethoscope project to help make a difference in the lives of Guatemalan children. During my undergraduate education at Purdue University, I participated in a co-op program at Biomet Orthopedics and designed surgical instruments for hip and knee replacement surgeries. My masters research is focused on the fine needle biopsy procedure to improve the efficacy of the procedure (focusing on the needle) to reduce the operation time and patient discomfort.
Annie Mitsak
I am a PhD student in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Michigan. My research in the field of tissue engineering examines the effects of scaffold material and architecture on the regeneration of various tissues including bone and adipose tissue. While at U of M I have also been involved in a medical device design project and was a founding member of M-HEAL, a global health engineering student group that works to improve access to medical technology in developing communities. I hope to apply these experiences in the future to develop sustainable, accessible and marketable medical technologies.
Prashanth Sadasivan
My name is Prashanth Sadasivan. I am currently a sophomore at the University of Michigan, studying Computer Science Engineering. I am very community oriented, and decided to join M-HEAL Guatemala team after wanting to use my knowledge of computers to serve the greater good. I am optimistic about this project, and I am very excited to see how the stethoscope turns out.
Emma Salomonsson
I am a senior in Biomedical Engineering with a concentration in Bioelectrics. This is my first year in MHEAL, and I am excited to be working on the project, and seeing how the design process works. I am confident we can come up with a really good design for this project.
Becca Schewe-Mott
I am a 5th year graduate student in biomedical engineering at the University of Michigan. My research is in artificial lung design. I am very interested in medical device design and entrepreneurship. I have been involved with M-HEAL since its founding in 2006 and am passionate about designing and implementing technologies for underdeveloped communities.
John Seamans
Hi Team, I am a University of Michigan Biomedical & Electrical Engineering alum now working for GE Healthcare. I collaborate with UM Hospital on radiology research, evaluating new medical imaging clinical applications, and work on product development for cardiovascular computed tomography systems. I am currently involved in the design of methods for faster, more accurate, noninvasive imaging of coronary artery disease using CT. After learning about ATC, I was interested in opportunities to make a bigger impact on the “other 90%”. A friend in BME also introduced me to M-HEAL — the stethoscope project seemed like a great opportunity to work with both groups.
Nathaniel Skinner
I am a third year Masters Student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Michigan. My research deals with robotic rehabilitation, where I hope to develop more efficient means to deal with the after-effects of stroke and spinal cord injury. I also work in the orthopedics field with a start-up company designing hardware for humeral trauma surgery, as well as taking technologies out of academia and incorporating them into commercialized products to create more intelligent solutions.
Maria Young
I am a freshman in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. I am planning on majoring in Biomedical Engineering with an International Minor. My future goals include working in the medical field to benefit developing countries. This is my first year with M-Heal and am very excited to be a part of such an exciting project in my first year at school!
Chrisse Zuchora
I am a third year in Chemical Engineering and am taking classes toward my masters in Biomedical Engineering. I am planning on going to Medical School. I currently work in a lab in dealing with drug targeting/delivery and biomaterials for drug delivery. I am very excited to work with M-Heal in designing the stethoscope.
