7/31/2024 Ben Libman
UIUC's student BMES Chapter won the Outstanding Societal Impact award for the 2023-2024 school year. Read about the positive impact of their work here.
Written by Ben Libman
At the department of bioengineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, students don’t have to wait until graduation to start making an impact. A perfect example is our local chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES). These students have taken it on themselves to start making an impact in our local community and the world at large.
The group is so impactful that they’ve been recognized by the national BMES organization with the Outstanding Societal Impact Award, which is given to a local chapter that makes a real difference in their community. Only one chapter out of over a hundred receives this prestigious award.
“I am so proud of our BMES student chapter,” said professor Jennifer Amos, “and delighted that they were recognized with this award. They provide excellent events for our members and outreach to our community. These activities are the cornerstone of retaining and recruiting new talent into the field of bioengineering.”
Our local BMES chapter hosts multiple events for everything from outreach to creating devices with real medical applications. These events include Bioengineer Your Impact, the Medical Device Make-A-Thon, and the Engineering Open House.
Bioengineer Your Impact focuses on teaching high school students about biomedical engineering. The event includes tours of the Carle Illinois College of Medicine Jump Simulation Center, Q&A sessions about student life, and talks from department faculty conducting industry changing research. There was even a presentation on a start-up founded by a senior in the department, Sakura MedTech, which is developing new technology for women’s health. The organizers reached out to more high schools than ever before and made a point of seeking out admitted UIUC students interested in learning more about bioengineering. As a result of these efforts the event had a record turn-out, with attendance almost tripling from last year.
The UIUC BMES chapter also hosted the annual Medical Device Make-A-Thon in partnership with Oklahoma University. In this event, students take their device from the design stage to prototyping in just forty-eight hours. Afterwards,students pitch their creations to real industry professionals, testing their entrepreneurial skills from A-Z. This not only gives the students hands-on experience but expands their network of both peers and professionals.
Our BMES chapter also had a huge presence at Grainger’s Engineering Open House. This student run event has been occurring for over a hundred years. BMES had ten teams competing, each with unique and fun projects. BMES students took on everything from using AI to diagnose diabetic retinopathy to real medical analyses of naturally occurring compounds like ginger and garlic. One team, Operation Station, won first place in outstanding undergraduate research for their automated surgical robot. “Every year, I am continuously impressed by the products that BMES showcases at Engineering Open House,” said professor Amos. “We have such innovative young minds!”
This isn’t the first time the UIUC BMES chapter has won an award. Last year they won the Outstanding Outreach Award, which, according to the national BMES website, is awarded to “those chapters who demonstrate leadership in community outreach, service, and STEM volunteerism.” BMES at UIUC will be back in full force for the 2024-2025 school year. With their illustrious record, the future is bright. If you'd like to get involved, visit their website.