Biomedical Engineering

Biomedical engineering may be the most precise field of engineering today. Engineers in this field must apply their mathematical, and physical science, knowledge to save lives. To do this, they design devices used by hospitals, and other treatment facilities, in treatment of patients. A variety of medical devices are designed by these biomedical engineers, ranging from precision diagnostic tools, to artificial organs.

The most advanced diagnostic machines, available to hospitals today, have saved countless lives. They have done so by speeding up the process of diagnosis, of patient conditions and, consequently, made it possible to begin treatment sooner - improving the prognosis (likelihood of recovery). On the treatment side, monitoring systems, that keep track of vital signs such as heart rate, and blood pressure, alerting medical staff when something goes amiss, are saving lives as well. Once upon a time, nurses would check on patients every few minutes to ensure that no problems had occurred. Not only was this insufficient, as can be attested by anyone who has been in an emergency room situation, and knows it only takes seconds for something to go disastrously wrong, it also takes up valuable medical staff time - that could otherwise be spent treating patients. These benefits are well-appreciated by patients, and their families, but few people know how these life-saving machines came to be developed.

Biomedical engineers, working in various laboratories, around the world, employ in-depth knowledge of mathematics, physics, and chemistry - key to all forms of engineering- with an additional advanced knowledge of biological science, to develop new, innovative machines that revolutionize the healthcare industry. While not doctors themselves, their medical knowledge often rivals that of the trained physicians they seek to assist, with their inventions.

Another, much newer, innovation is that of artificial organs. Once, when a patient suffered failure of a critical organ, he/she had to wait for a transplant from a willing donor, alive, or dead, a process that would often drag out for weeks, and months - often outlasting the patient's life. This situation was woefully inadequate and dedicated biomedical engineers have succeeded in designing complex mechanisms that can function as hearts, lungs, and other vital organs. Although these inventions are still in their early stages, it is all the more reason for candidates to get involved in the exciting field of biomedical engineering. What better job satisfaction could on ask for, aside from the inevitably high compensation, than knowing that they were an integral part of a project that saved countless lives? Anyone in the field can attest that there's no feeling like it, in the world.