The theme of the conference was “A Celebration of the Evolution of Biomedical and Clinical Engineering”, which saw talks from retired clinical engineers who were involved in the beginning of the profession, to recent advancements in healthcare technology. The important work done by clinical engineers over the years was highlighted though these fantastic presentations.
With over 250 delegates and attendees, the BEAI celebrated its largest conference yet. Clinical engineers, company representatives and college students were welcomed from
around the country, and greeted to an array of exhibitions of the innovative technology available to the health sector.
The first session kicked off with presentations on the progress made in digital technology, and how this can benefit the services provided in our hospitals. We heard from John McGivney about the history of the BEAI, and celebrated the achievements made by the organisation since 1992. John Tiernan spoke about innovative methods to custom print contoured wheelchair seating. We also gained fantastic insight into some of the further education options for members of the profession.
The conference ended with a presentation of the awards won, including the first presentation of the “BEAI Early Careers Award”, which celebrates the achievements made by a BEAI member who is under the age of 35. This award was won by Jessica Fitzpatrick, a member of the Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering team, Beaumont Hospital. Jessica intends to invest her prize of €2000 into her department, and continue with her research.
Malu Chandran, a clinical engineer from Cork University Hospital, displayed her work on the “Design and Development of Excel Files for POCT Services”, and won best engineering management poster. Cardiac Services took home the award for “Clinical Engineering Healthcare Technology Support”, which was voted for by BEAI members. The conference could not have been as successful as it was without the efforts made by the BEAI Chairperson, Eoghan Hayden, and the BEAI Executive Committee.
We would like to thank our gold sponsors, MDI Medical, for their support in preparing for the day. The team impressively displayed a range of innovative technology from ultrasounds to patient monitors to examination lights. We would also like to extend a thank you to our silver sponsors who exhibited on the day. And finally, we would like to thank all the speakers who presented on a wide range of topics. These efforts from all involved offered attendees valuable learning and networking opportunities.
The 2023 ASC will take place on Friday 29th September, in Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Cork. The theme of the 26th conference is “Diversity in Clinical Engineering”. We would like to extend an invitation to all BEAI members to participate in this conference, and celebrate the theme of diversity in our profession. We look forward to meeting you all there.
The Biomedical / Clinical Engineering Association of Ireland (BEAI) is a company limited by guarantee and not having a share capital. Company Registration no. 484921.