U of R Students Create Medical Devices

"We have a lot of heated arguments, but they're always productive," says University of Rochester Senior Sara Ripp.

Its not your average college class. Somewhere here could be the next Thomas Edison or Benjamin Franklin.

"The awareness that they develop about technology has the potential to improve the way that they think about treating a patient in the future," says U of R professor Amy Lerner.

Every year, biomedical engineering students at the University of Rochester create Fictitious medical companies for the Forbes Entrepreneurial Competition. Each group is competing against 14 other teams to develop the next generation of medical devices.

"We're trying to teach the students about the design process to encourage enthusiasm," says Lerner.

Sara Ripp and team Arm Embrace are working on a device that will help patients recover faster from traumatic brain injuries.

"Most of the companies don't create braces that are comfortable and affordable and can be adjusted from patient to patient," says Ripp.

Meanwhile SimuMed technologies is working on a device that would reduce the number of times your doctor pokes your arm to draw blood.

"Not only will nurses and the training staff will be able to train on this device, and then translate that to real patients, but also medical companies can use it to design their needles," says Dan Mendelson.

A version of what the students create will eventually be rolled out by real medical companies within the next three years.

"All of the devices here have the potential to either save or enhance people's lives," says Lerner.

And there's a cash reward of $4,000 for the team who wins. But these students are quick to point out, its not about the money.