Engineering World Health (EWH) is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

that works with

hospitals A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically has an emerge ...

and

clinics A clinic (or outpatient clinic or ambulatory care clinic) is a health facility that is primarily focused on the care of outpatients. Clinics can be privately operated or publicly managed and funded. They typically cover the primary care needs ...

that serve resource-poor communities of the

developing world A developing country is a sovereign state with a lesser developed industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to other countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. There is also no clear agreem ...

. EWH's focus is on the repair and maintenance of

medical equipment A medical device is any device intended to be used for medical purposes. Significant potential for hazards are inherent when using a device for medical purposes and thus medical devices must be proved safe and effective with reasonable assura ...

- rather than donation - and on building local capacity to manage and maintain the equipment without international aid. Engineering professors Robert Malkin and Mohammad Kiani established EWH in Memphis in 2001. In 2004, Dr. Malkin and EWH relocated to

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

, which has been an active partner since that time. As a result of this partnership, EWH is headquartered in

Durham, NC Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County and Wake County. With a population of 283,506 in the 2020 Census, Durham is the 4th-mos ...

. In 2008, EWH received a multi-year grant from the Wallace H. Coulter Foundation.

Activities

Summer & January Institutes

Engineering World Health's signature program is the Summer & January Institutes. These service abroad programs engage university-level science and engineering students to use their skills and knowledge to make a direct impact on hospitals in developing countries. Participants spend three to nine weeks in

Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

, or

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

learning hands-on technical skills and the local language, and then working in local hospitals to install, repair, and maintain medical equipment. Participants also train local staff, empowering them to use and maintain equipment, to create lasting improvements in partner hospitals. Since 2004, over 600 participants have repaired almost 5,800 pieces of hospital equipment, worth an estimated US$12 million.

BMET Training Program

Seeking a sustainable solution to hospital equipment repair, Engineering World Health started a

biomedical equipment technician A biomedical engineering/equipment technician/technologist (BMET) or biomedical engineering/equipment specialist (BES or BMES) is typically an electro-mechanical technician or technologist who ensures that medical equipment is well-maintained, pro ...

(BMET) training program in late 2009, in partnership with th
GE Foundation
Through a three to four year curriculum tailored to each country's needs, EWH works with a local educational institution and Ministry of Health to train BMETs to international standards, train local teachers to carry on the program in the long term, and establish a permanent, accredited BMET training program. The first BMET Training program began in Rwanda, and has since placed trained BMETs in every district in the country. Thanks to further funding from the GE Foundation, EWH has completed a training program

Honduras Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...

and turned it over to local leadership, and, as of 2016, is training BMETs in Cambodia,

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

, and

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

BMET Library

In 2016, EWH launched an open-source

digital library A digital library, also called an online library, an internet library, a digital repository, or a digital collection is an online database of digital objects that can include text, still images, audio, video, digital documents, or other digital me ...

for BMETs, with the goal of facilitating and fostering information exchange among engineers and technicians around the world. This library is a collection of open source books and publications containing information useful for training (BMETs), particularly in the developing countries where EWH is working.

Other programs

In the summer of 2021, EWH offered a free virtual design program for students in the United States, Lebanon and Jordan. The program, titled Virtual Engineering Innovation and Cultural Exchange, was focused on healthcare design in low-resource settings. It was sponsored by the Stevens Initiative, a project funded by the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...

, Bezos Family Foundation, and the Governments of

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, and administered by the

Aspen Institute The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1949 as the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. The institute's stated aim is the realization of "a free, just, and equitable society" through seminars, policy programs ...

Organization

Board of directors

As of 2021, the EWH's board of directors is made up of the following: * Michael R. Tracy, PhD -

Ethicon Ethicon, Inc. is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. It was incorporated as a separate company under the Johnson & Johnson umbrella in 1949 to expand and diversify the Johnson & Johnson product line. Ethicon has manufactured surgical sutures and ...

(Chair) * Jessica Feddersen, CPA -

Danaher Corporation Danaher Corporation is an American globally diversified conglomerate with its headquarters in Washington, D.C. The company designs, manufactures, and markets professional, medical, industrial, and commercial products and services. The company's ...

(Treasurer) * Mhoire Murphy, MBA -

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

(Secretary) * Sreeram Dhurjaty, PhD - Dhurjaty Electronics Consulting * William E. Gannon, Jr., MD, MBA - Capital City Technical Consulting * Mark Goldman, MBA -

Philips Healthcare Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

* Barbara Grenell, PhD - Preferred Health Strategies, Ltd. * Mohammad Kiani, PhD, FAHA -

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

* Corinna E. Lathan, PhD, PE - AnthroTronix, Inc. * Eric Nodiff, JD - Schaeffer Venaglia Handler & Fitzsimons, LLP * Cathy Peck, CPA - Professor,

Fresno Pacific University Fresno Pacific University (FPU) is a private Christian university in Fresno, California. It was founded as the Pacific Bible Institute in 1944 by the Pacific District Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches. The university awarded its first Bac ...

* Tojan B. Rahhal, PhD - Engineering World Health (Ex oficio) * Robert Malkin, PhD, PE -

(Emeritus) * Lynn Toby Fisher, JD (In memoriam)

Chapters

Engineering World Health has student chapters at 45 universities around the world. These Chapters engage students in activities as design projects for the developing world, biomedical equipment repair and evaluation, and raising awareness of

global health Global health is the health of the populations in the worldwide context; it has been defined as "the area of study, research and practice that places a priority on improving health and achieving equity in health for all people worldwide". Problem ...

challenges. Chapters may also get involved in the EWH Design Competition in which teams of engineering students submit a design directed at the needs of developing country healthcare. The top three teams are selected by an independent panel of judges and are then rewarded with cash prizes, giving them a chance to implement their device.

US chapters

Partners

EWH's program and funding partners as of August 2022 include: *

Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) is an organization for advancing the development, and safe and effective use of medical technology founded in 1965 by Robert D. Hall Jr. and Robert J. Allen, President and Vic ...

Australian Aid Australian Aid is the brand name used to identify projects in developing countries supported by the Australian Government. As of 2014 the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has been responsible for Australia's official development ...

Biomedical Engineering Society BMES (the Biomedical Engineering Society) is the professional society for students, faculty, researcher and industry working in the broad area of biomedical engineering. BMES is the leading biomedical engineering society in the United States and was ...

Cantel Medical Corporation Cantel Medical Corporation is an American company which produces and sells medical equipment. The company is based in Little Falls, NJ. The company has three subsidiaries: * MEDIVATORS, based in Minneapolis, MN, which sells Dialysis, Endo ...

Duke University Health System The Duke University Health System combines the Duke University School of Medicine, the Duke University School of Nursing, the Duke Clinic, and the member hospitals into a system of research, clinical care, and education. Member hospitals Duke U ...

* Flemming Topsøe *

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

Illinois Institute of Technology Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Tracing its history to 1890, the present name was adopted upon the merger of the Armour Institute and Lewis Institute in 1940. The university has prog ...

Makerere University Makerere University, Kampala (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922. It became an independent national university in 1970. Today, Makerere University is composed of ni ...

MedShare MedShare is a national non-profit organization that recovers surplus medical supplies and equipment from U.S. hospitals and manufacturers and redistributes them to needy hospitals in developing countries. Founded in 1998, MedShare collects surplus ...

National Instruments National Instruments Corporation, doing business as NI, is an American multinational company with international operation. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, it is a producer of automated test equipment and virtual instrumentation software. Comm ...

Notre Dame University–Louaize Notre Dame University–Louaize (NDU) ( ar, جامعة سيدة اللويزة) is a private university, private Catholic university in Zouk Mosbeh, Lebanon, founded as Louaize College for Higher Education in 1978 in cooperation with Beirut Unive ...

Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in the town of Henrietta, New York, Henrietta in the Rochester, New York, metropolitan area. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree ...

Rose–Hulman Institute of Technology Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (RHIT) is a private university in Terre Haute, Indiana. Founded in 1874 in Terre Haute, Rose-Hulman is one of the United States' few undergraduate focused engineering and technology universities. Though it sta ...

Technical University of Denmark The Technical University of Denmark ( da, Danmarks Tekniske Universitet), often simply referred to as DTU, is a polytechnic university and school of engineering. It was founded in 1829 at the initiative of Hans Christian Ørsted as Denmark's fi ...

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

United Way United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016. United Way organizations raise funds ...

University of New South Wales The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...

Vontier Vontier Corporation is a manufacturing company headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. It owns the brands Gilbarco Veeder-Root, Matco Tools and Teletrac Navman, including subsidiaries Hennessy Industries, Gasboy, and Global Traffic Technologies ...

* Wallace H. Coulter Foundation Former partners include

Abbott Laboratories Abbott Laboratories is an American multinational medical devices and health care company with headquarters in Abbott Park, Illinois, United States. The company was founded by Chicago physician Wallace Calvin Abbott in 1888 to formulate known dr ...

, BD,

Biogen Biogen Inc. is an American multinational biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in the discovery, development, and delivery of therapies for the treatment of neurological diseases to patients worldwide. History ...

Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, ...

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable energ ...

Lagos University Teaching Hospital Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) is a tertiary hospital established in 1961 and is located in Idi-Araba, Surulere, Lagos State, the administrative division of Nigeria. The teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Lagos Colle ...

McKesson Corporation McKesson Corporation is an American company distributing pharmaceuticals and providing health information technology, medical supplies, and care management tools. The company delivers a third of all pharmaceuticals used in North America and emplo ...

, the

Nigerian Ministry of Health The Federal Ministry of Health is one of the Federal Ministries of Nigeria concerned with the formulation and implementation of policies related to health. It is headed by two Ministers appointed by the President, assisted by a Permanent Secretar ...

and

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is a pediatric treatment and research facility located in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1962, it is a 501(c)(3) designated nonprofit medical corporation which focuses on children's catastrophic diseases, pa ...

References

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External links

Engineering World Health official site
Medical and health organizations based in Tennessee Appropriate technology organizations Engineering organizations International medical and health organizations