Within the past year, the Biomedical Engineering Department at UTT has been receiving many nods of approval from both local and regional Medical Associations and Institutions.At the recently held 26th Caribbean Cardiology Conference hosted by the Caribbean Cardiac Society, the first cohort of final year BME students copped First Place in the Poster competition, beating out numerous UWI Mt. Hope Medical Students. Their poster was entitled”Design of a Long-Term Vascular Access Device for Hemodialysis” and this research was highly praised by the judges for its innovation and originality.
At this same conference, a full-paper and oral presentation was also submitted and presented by Ms. Amalia Hosein (corresponding author) and Dr. Natasha Ramroop Singh (presenter). The study, entitled”Assessing the role of physical activity in determining cardiac fitness amongst University employees”, was well received for its potential to be expanded into a study for Trinidad.
Stemming from this, under the guidance of Dr. Natasha Ramroop Singh [BME Program Coordinator] and Ms. Amalia Hosein [Research Assistant], the Biomedical Engineering team has taken the initiative to undertake a national cardiovascular screening program (CSP) for adults in Trinidad and Tobago.
After discussion with Dr. Ronald Henry (one of the leading cardiologists in the country) and his associates at the Advanced Cardiovascular Institute (ACI) in P.O.S, a sampling of approximately 6000 persons, evenly distributed from all 14 regional municipalities in Trinidad and Tobago will be carried out.
This will be followed by the testing of various parameters of health and statistics that were drawn up to design a model for predicting cardiac risk. This project is based on the Government of Trinidad and Tobago’s Health Sector Corporate Plan.
As one of eight targeted priorities, the plan aims at the development and strengthening of the health research system to facilitate evidence-based decision-making, policy formulation, new learning and development.
Key outputs for the project is an acceptable protocol for estimating risk of cardiovascular diseases in Trinidad and Tobago as well as establishing baseline indicators for CVD risk among the adult population.
Coming on stream in June this year is a summer internship programme that would be hosted by ACI in conjunction with West-Shore Hospital and the Cardiovascular Association (CVA).
Here, sixteen (16) Yr II BME students will be exposed to the technologically more advanced medical instruments and other techniques at various health centers. Links with the top medical doctors, nurses and technicians in the field will be made, resulting in the students being able to have a greater appreciation of their roles as biomedical engineers in the Health Industry of Trinidad and Tobago.
Also in the works is the establishment of a BioBank within the BME Department at UTT, in conjunction with ACI/CVA and an International Gene Institute, which will serve as a study of the genetic vs. lifestyle factors which contribute to cardiovascular disease.With respect to their professional development at UTT, BME staff members have been quite active. Notably, Dr. Varma H. Rambaran was one of the 2011 awardees of the prestigious CIES Fulbright Scholarships which took him to the Department of Biochemistry and Chemistry at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM).
Stemming from his successful work, Dr. Rambaran was able to pave the way for future research students at USM, wishing to continue the work that he started.
He was also able to initiate a collaborative venture between USM and UTT for a future exchange of students between Universities.
As we continue our pursuit toward CARICOM viability and institute sustainability, the staff and students of the Biomedical Engineering Department would like to thank the University of Trinidad and Tobago for the continued support and encouragement received, and in the coming months we hope to be able to find our own recognized niche in the Health Sector of Trinidad and Tobago
