AAMI has established a new annual scholarship in partnership with the Health Systems Engineering Alliance (HSEA) to help build competencies and promote educational opportunities to support the adoption of a systems approach to healthcare technology. The first-ever AAMI-HSEA Health Systems Engineering Scholarship will be presented during the AAMI 2017 Conference & Expo in Austin, Texas.
As the role of technology in healthcare delivery has become more complex, the call to introduce systems engineering principles into the field has grown louder. The desire to implement systems thinking in healthcare reflects an appreciation for the interconnected and interdependent relationship of medical devices, information technology, and individuals.
“The new systems engineering scholarship will help a lot of incredibly talented young professionals entering healthcare,” says Steve Campbell, AAMI’s chief operating officer and head of the AAMI Scholarship Program. “We’re especially pleased to partner with HSEA to award this scholarship. Thanks to the support of so many generous contributors, the AAMI Foundation has the financial resources to help the students, and HSEA has the expertise and reach to identify the qualified applicants in need of financial support. It’s a great partnership.”
The hope is that the $3,000 scholarship will help expand access to education for students who would like to become health systems engineers and foster excellence in the field.
“HSEA is extremely excited to have this opportunity to join with AAMI in offering the health systems engineering scholarship. It will certainly help provide needed support for talented engineering students to pursue their studies in the increasingly important field of health systems,” says Kenneth J. Musselman, strategic collaboration director for the Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering at Purdue University and an HSEA member.
Current undergraduates in their junior or senior years and graduate students at the master’s and doctoral levels who have completed no more than 2 years of graduate study are encouraged to apply. Students should be pursuing degrees in industrial engineering, management science, operations research, or a related field. Applicants also must demonstrate involvement in and commitment to the field, which could include health systems coursework, internships, or senior design project with focus on health systems.
More information about this scholarship and details on how to apply are available at www.aami.org/scholarship. Applications are due by March 1.