Health innovation makes big strides in 2022
Dr. Tawanda Mushiri
Prof Habib Noorbhai - Associate Professor & Director of the BEAHT Research Centre
Another brainchild of the BEAHT RC is the ‘Robotics in Emergency Healthcare’, a pan-African collaborative research project exploring the development of a robotic first-aid system for passenger vehicles. This project, headed by Dr Tawanda Mushiri, aims to develop a robot with advanced AI that can intervene in a medical emergency from within a vehicle. “Research confirms that advanced AI and robotic systems can serve as suitable instruments towards safer future mobility. The challenges highlighted by the studies on robotic surgery and autonomous driving can also be faced in this research, but we are convinced that collaboration of robotic technology and human skills can serve to minimise injury effects in medical emergencies experienced by car passengers,” says Dr Mushiri.
isokinetic machine for orthopaedic rehabilitation and the cycle ergometer for cardiorespiratory screening and fitness. The patient scenarios and case studies are converted into an interactive gaming solution to assist students with clinical learning, skills competencies, and assessment of these competencies. Once the game is developed, it will be accessible via Blackboard Learn (online learning management system) on both PC and smart phones. Thereafter, the game can be deployed through use on virtual reality devices. “We hope to have all scenarios completed by June 2022. Thereafter, further gamified initiatives will be deployed among other health sciences curriculums,” says Prof Habib Noorbhai, Co- Director of the BEAHT RC.
Healthcare systems are facing increasing pressure to cope with chronic and non-communicable disease, pandemics, and rising healthcare costs. As a result, innovations and technologies to meet these challenges are ever more important. UJ’s Biomedical Engineering and Healthcare Technology Research Centre (BEAHT RC) was established in October 2020 under the Health Sciences and Engineering and the Built Environment faculties, and is destined to be at the cutting edge of healthcare technology and biomedical engineering. One of the projects that the BEAHT RC is busy with is gamification (game development) in healthcare teaching. Patient case studies and scenarios are drafted and factor in the identification of various lab-based instruments used in biokinetics practice, eg. the
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