Author: Loay Al-Zube, Ph.D.
Biomedical Engineering is a multidisciplinary filed the combines acquired knowledge from biology, medicine, and engineering. The core and fundamental target for any biomedical engineering company or entity is to apply the engineering knowledge, technology, and skills to find measurable and quantifiable parameters to diagnose and/or assess treatment of a specific medical condition that is of an importance to patients health and well being. Biomedical Engineering is a multidisciplinary filed the combines acquired knowledge from biology, medicine, and engineering. The core and fundamental target for any biomedical engineering company or entity is to apply the engineering knowledge, technology, and skills to find measurable and quantifiable parameters to diagnose and/or assess treatment of a specific medical condition that is of an importance to patients health and well being.
Biomedical Engineering companies can be classified to three major categories:
The First Category: Biomedical-Parameters Measurement Companies
These companies are focusing on measuring different biomedical parameters; electrical, mechanical, chemical, biological, thermal, … etc. and they can be sub-classified in to three sub-categories:A) Measurement and Analysis Companies; that measure and analyze biomedical parameters.B) Design and Innovation Companies; that design and invent devices and systems to measure and analyze biomedical parameters.C) Development Companies; that improves the performance of an existing device or system used to measure biomedical parameters.
The Second Category: Research and Development Companies
These companies are build based on a partnership with a physician or a surgeon, who comes to a biomedical engineer looking for a solution to facilitate and/or improve a specific medical procedure using current technologies. This partnership and collaboration leads to building or inventing a device and/or a process that is to be registered and patent.
The Third Category: Negotiation and Communication Skills Companies
These companies focus on training and developing engineers and healthcare providers soft skills; such as technical, scientific, economic, legal writing and presenting skills. Furthermore, providing training and consultation in intellectual properties registration and patent filing related to healthcare and biotechnology.
There are three major factors that assure success for a Biomedical Engineering company:
1) Finding an important unanswered question or challenge that we need to addressed for a specific medical condition.2) Building a strong vibrant network of collaboration with physicians, surgeons, and healthcare providers.3) Passionate and love to work in biomedical engineering, then doing the work perfectly after acquiring the appropriate skills and knowledge. Finally, working hard and having fun with what we are doing.