Keynote Lectures

Abstract
The lecture will present innovative technologies developed by our research group at the Technion. These technologies are non-invasive disease diagnosis tools that do not require needles or use of dangerous materials. The lecture will present, amongst other things, an electronic system that simulates the canine olfactory system and that detect diseases from exhaled breath. This system is known as “Nano-Artificial Nose”. Clinical trials worldwide have shown that this system can detect 17 different diseases, including various cancers, neurological disorders and infectious diseases - all though a simple breath test. The lecture will also present the development and miniaturization of intelligent wearable technology that integrates functions similar to those in the human skin. This technology, known as the "Electronic Skin", has been found effective in monitoring a wide range of health indicators and help in disease diagnosis in both the developing and developed world. The link of these technologies to a unique information cloud, where the analysis of data takes place and results are sent back to the user or their personal physician, will be presented and discussed as well.

Abstract
The engineering design of successful medical devices relies on several key factors, including: orientation to patients’ needs, collaboration with medical professionals through the whole development process and the compromise of multi-disciplinary teams formed by well-trained professionals, especially biomedical engineers, capable of understanding the connections between science, technology and health and guiding such developments. Preparing engineers in general and biomedical engineers in particular to work in the medical industry, in connection with biodevice development, is a challenging process, through which the trainee should acquire a broad overview of the medical field and biomedical industry, a well-balanced combination of general and specific knowledge, according to the chosen specialization, several technical abilities linked to modern engineering tools and a wide set of professional skills. Among the existing teaching-learning methodologies that can be employed for providing such holistic training, project-based learning, especially in connection with the CDIO “conceive-design-implement-operate” approach applied to the biomedical field, is presented here and illustrated by means of successful experiences. Besides, new approaches to the development of innovative medical devices, including open-source and collaborative engineering design strategies, which are bound to impact the medical industry in a relevant way in the very near future and support the democratization of medical technology, by giving voice to medical professionals, patients and citizens, need to be also considered when preparing the “biomedical engineers of the future”. Trends in the field of collaboratively developed open-source medical devices (OSMD) are presented and main current R&D challenges analyzed. Finally, the “UBORA” project is highlighted as a paradigmatic example. This Euro-African initiative is focused on the promotion of OSMD by means of innovation through education, by the creation of a “Wikipedia” of medical devices, the “UBORA e-infrastructure”, which also guides designers in the engineering design process and supports online collaboration through the process, and by the constitution of an international community of developers devoted to OSMD. Results from project-based learning within the first International UBORA Design Competitions and the first International UBORA Design Schools (Nairobi 2017 & Pisa 2018) are presented. The “UBORA e-infrastructure” and the more than 50 open-source biodevices developed in collaboration by around 200 users, and shared through such online platform, are also analyzed.

Abstract
European health care sector is facing challenges resulting from economic crisis, demography, ageing population and increase of chronic diseases. However, digital society and digitalisation are creating opportunities in society across sectors and in healthcare, by transforming the way healthcare services are provided, information access, secondary use of data, communication between citizens and healthcare providers, citizens access to own personal health data and relation with own health. Insuring the conditions that guarantee the progress of change, in line with European guidelines, and, in Portugal with national strategy, National Strategy for the Health Information Ecosystem (ENESIS 2020), is essential for the success and improvement, in an exponential way, of public services provided to citizens. The Shared Services of Ministry in Health, EPE as the entity responsible for Information Systems in Health, has been proactively, leveraging the shift to digital transformation in the health system, based on the objective of improving the information quality and health care management, as well as increasing efficiency and technologically upgrade existing systems. However, robust infrastructures, fast networks and appropriate hardware are vital throughout this process. The portfolio of products, projects and services developed by SPMS, are based on the strategy of simplification and dematerialization, to facilitate and improve citizens’ lives and professionals’ performance, converging to the current Health Programme. Electronic Health Record answers to this priority in three ways: providing standardized solutions to health professionals use in healthcare setting (SONHO and SClínico), promoting healthcare continuity and clinical integration with primary care and continuity of care records, as well as for secondary use of data; allowing the registration and sharing of clinical information between citizens, health professionals and health care providers, including the private sector, complying with requirements of GDPR progressively and allowing for cross-border sharing of patient summaries and ePrescription and Dispensation as off 2018.