Week 4 - Huang

In addition to spending time with my mentor, this week I had an MRI scan as a volunteer for Keigo's research project. The scan was of a vein in the knee that moves very little in response to heart beats, therefore making it a good candidate for MR research. The goal of the project is to image the vessel walls without imaging the blood inside, as this would offer better resolution than if blood was present in the image.

Having never had an MR scan before, there were a few things that struck me as I went through the process. Because I am used to being in a hospital setting and am in the biomedical field, I did not think much of getting an MR scan, but I imagine that it could be an unnerving experience for someone who is not familiar with the hospital and its large, complex machinery. Keigo, sharing the same background as me, briefly explained what would happen during the scan, that the scanner is a small enclosed space and there would be loud noises, and we quickly got started. For a real patient, however, I think the technician would have to take a lot more time calm the patient's nerves, walk them through the process in greater detail so that they would know exactly what to expect, and even talk to the patient on the microphone throughout. I also realized that little things such as the well-lit and comfortable waiting room and the availability of blankets really go a long way towards easing patient anxiety. These observations have led me to have a better understanding of the interpersonal side of engineering, that while the biomedical devices that we design may be technological marvels, they also can be useless if patients are unwilling to use them.