Waterloo engineering students are stepping into hospitals and clinics through a new healthcare operations course focused on experiential learning.
In the course, SYDE 599: Healthcare Operation and Practice, students observe and shadow in healthcare settings to see firsthand how engineering and design principles intersect with medical practice and patient care.
“The students see in real time what the pain points are within a holistic system, and it changes their thinking on how engineering design can contribute,” said instructor Dr. Maud Gorbet, professor of systems design engineering (SYDE) and director of the biomedical engineering (BME) undergraduate program. “Often it’s not a technological solution that is needed; it could be a redesigned workflow or policy that makes the biggest difference.”
Instrumental in the delivery of the course is Dr. Christy Goossen, an anesthesiologist and general practitioner who recently joined the department as the inaugural Clinician-in-Residence. Through her connections with the local healthcare community, Dr. Goossen has arranged over 50 shadowing experiences in the hospital environment.
Read the full story, Systems Design Engineering’s new Clinician-in-Residence delivers healthcare experiences for students
Dr. Goossen and Prof. Gorbet (far right) visiting WRHN @ Midtown with students from a course on sustainable hospital design.