Chapter 23
Somewhere to use the portfolio, and a decision about how deep to go
Human Biology for the Medical Maker
| Setting | Why they might want you |
|---|---|
| Hospital simulation centre | Trainers need repair, instrumentation, and parts; scenarios need props and software — usually the easiest door |
| Occupational therapy and rehabilitation | Custom adaptations: textiles, machined and moulded parts, electronics, environmental controls |
| Clinical engineering and medical physics | Test rigs, electronics interfacing, jigs, mounts, parts for obsolete equipment, software |
| Prosthetics and orthotics | Already a making profession: thermoforming, lamination, machining, scanning |
| Innovation or R&D office | Their job is to connect people like you to people like them |
| Medical and nursing schools; research groups | Teaching aids and instrumented tools; engineering capacity is a bottleneck |
| Hospice and community services | Highly individual adaptations with little commercial provision |
| Organisation | What it is |
|---|---|
| Tikkun Olam Makers | International community matching makers with people who have unmet needs; makeathons and open designs |
| REMAP | UK charity: volunteer engineers build one-off custom equipment for disabled people, free |
| UTMB MakerHealth | A model of a hospital-embedded maker space |
| Local makerspaces and hackspaces | Often have healthcare contacts; some run assistive technology groups |
Check availability and eligibility — hospital maker facilities are often restricted to staff and students.
Specific, small, and clear about supervision
| Expect | Because |
|---|---|
| Slow replies | Clinical staff are busy; email is not their main channel |
| Being redirected | You rarely reach the right person first — each redirect is progress |
| Onboarding requirements | Honorary contracts, occupational health, checks, training — weeks to months |
| A smaller first project than you hoped | A finished small thing builds the trust for a bigger one |
| Some doors closed | Policy, insurance, or capacity — not personal |
| "Who owns this?" asked early | It is the right question |
Depth comes after a project, not before
| Direction | Deepen | Exit evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Assistive technology | Upper-limb function, ergonomics, accessibility, participatory design | How real user feedback changed a design |
| Simulation and training | Educational design, tissue simulants, repeatability, maintenance | An educator-reviewed aid with objective, assessment, maintenance |
| Rehabilitation engineering | Seating, positioning, mobility, pressure management | Work alongside a clinical specialist — heavily clinical |
| Direction | Deepen | Exit evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Medical software | Usability, data governance, IEC 62304, HL7, FHIR, DICOM | Fictional-data tool with tested error handling and a dependency inventory |
| Clinical engineering and instrumentation | Equipment management, electrical safety, embedded systems, IEC 60601 | A test rig accepted by a clinical engineering team, calibration recorded |
| Design for manufacture | Tolerancing, moulding and machining, textiles, ISO 13485, process validation | A design taken from one-off to a documented small batch |
| Anatomical models from imaging | Modalities, DICOM, segmentation, scale and accuracy | Source, processing, and limitations reviewed |
| Biosignals; biomechanics | Signal conditioning and safety; statics, dynamics, gait | Recorded or synthetic data only; stated assumptions and a sensitivity check |
A reconstruction from a CT or MRI scan can look extraordinarily convincing and be wrong.
Threshold choices, partial volume, motion, scaling, orientation. Validate with someone qualified — and imaging data is patient data from the first file.
| Route | Note |
|---|---|
| Biomedical engineering degree | An MSc conversion is realistic with an existing technical degree |
| Clinical engineering training schemes | For example, the NHS Scientist Training Programme |
| Regulatory affairs and quality | A distinct, employable specialism; often employer-funded |
| Human factors in healthcare | Relevant to anyone designing interfaces, controls, or products |
| Professional bodies | IPEM, AAMI, IEEE EMBS, BMES |
| Reading standards directly | Scope and definitions of ISO 14971, IEC 62366-1, IEC 62304, ISO 13485 |
Certificates demonstrate attendance. A portfolio demonstrates judgement.
A finished, honestly documented small project plus a clear statement of what you do not yet know opens more doors than a list of courses.
| Resource | Use |
|---|---|
| OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology | Main free reference — keep it bookmarked |
| Crash Course Anatomy and Physiology | Short video companion for a first pass |
| Stanford Student Guide to Biodesign | Beside your project notes for need-finding and prototyping |
| Biodesign (book) | Deeper development guidance — borrow it |
| Winter, Biomechanics and Motor Control | If you go toward biomechanics |
| A specialist atlas | Only when a project justifies it |
Resist the urge to build a library before you need one.
Recognise which questions are not yours to answer, and write down what you actually established rather than what you hoped.
Those two things make you safe to work with. Safe to work with is how you get the second project.
Thank you for working through Human Biology for the Medical Maker.