At JeffSolves MedTech, Interdisciplinary Teams Innovate to Improve Patient Care
Students reimagine a bedside commode and create a modified crutch.
For nearly a decade, the University’s unique JeffSolves MedTech program has allowed medical, industrial design and textile design students to collaborate and create medical design innovations to improve patient care.
In the latest cohort, two interdisciplinary teams conducted thorough user research and identified problems alongside clinicians at Jefferson Health sites. They then transformed these insights into commercially viable innovations—a reimagined bedside commode and a modified crutch—through a product development immersion guided by experts from Thomas Jefferson University, Jefferson Health and Delve, a multidisciplinary product innovation and development firm.
“This program continues to be a one-of-a-kind experience,” says Dr. Robert Pugliese, co-director and co-founder of Jefferson’s Health Design Lab, which runs JeffSolves. “Now in its ninth year, we continue to iterate on how we innovate to ensure we provide our students with a transformative experience highlighting their strengths while preparing them for an ever-changing and dynamic future.”
Team Commodore reimagined a bedside commode that empowers users. (Photos by Steve Belkowitz)
JeffSolves co-director Eric Schneider applauded the two teams, who spent five months working on their projects, for developing innovative solutions to real-world problems validated through research and iteration.
“This proves the value of the continuous, intensive collaboration that’s at the heart of the JeffSolves model,” says Schneider, industrial design associate professor.
“The students demonstrated exemplary resilience and persistence as they navigated the nuances of accessibility, adherence and dignity,” agrees Becky Flax, JeffSolves co-director and interim BS in textile design program director. “Ambitious proposed projects challenged their perceptions of problem-solving and design thinking. When the Health Design Lab opens its vault to the designers, engineers and med students selected to participate, they redefine what’s possible.”
Watch the students’ elevator pitches below and see their full presentations here.
Team HeelUp designed a modified crutch with a built-in leg elevation system.
What: Commodore—a reimagined bedside commode that empowers users with greater independence, safety and dignity.
Who: Sidney Kimmel Medical College students Jacob Shteingart, Jess Smith and Emma Tam; industrial design student Joseph Braverman; and textile engineering and sciences student Anderson Ng
The Pitch:
What: HeelUp—a modified crutch with a built-in leg elevation system that allows users to elevate their injured leg and reduce pain from swelling in public settings.
Who: Sidney Kimmel Medical College students Samuel Elesinmogun, Haig Manoukian and Rabiul Rafi; and industrial design student Mason Meo
The Pitch: