Connecting the Healthcare Ecosystem
Biomedical engineering has become the backbone of modern medical advancements.
The 250th anniversary of the United States is a time to highlight the country’s leadership role in healthcare research and discovery.
The pivotal impact of U.S. biomedical engineering is remarkable. It spans breakthroughs from implantable devices such as pacemakers, artificial hearts, cochlear implants, and joint replacements, to 3D printing of tissues, and CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing technology. The work on drug developments, such as recombinant DNA technology, enables the production of modern therapeutic drugs for cancer and diabetes.
Integrating Engineering and Biology
Over the past 50 years, biomedical engineering has evolved from a niche field into an essential discipline that integrates engineering with biology. It has transformed the practice of medicine from purely clinical observation to technology-dependent diagnosis and treatment.
Biomedical engineers have improved patient care while also strengthening national security through advanced biothreat detection systems and more secure supply chains enabled by synthetic biology. In space exploration, advanced life-support systems (ECLSS) and monitoring devices protect astronauts and support pharmaceutical and medical research in microgravity.
The overall economic impact fueling biomedical engineering innovation generates high-paying jobs, and boosts manufacturing. With every federal dollar invested, the return is roughly $2.56 to the economy. It contributes more than $69 billion to the U.S. GDP annually, supporting millions of jobs and driving over $36 billion in medical equipment exports.
One of the field’s greatest strengths is its ability to bridge disciplines, bringing together multidisciplinary engineers with physicians and regulators to develop healthcare solutions.
The Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) sits at the center of this biomedical engineering ecosystem. Since 1968 it has provided an important and growing platform for scientific and engineering discovery, and a home for the exchange of multidisciplinary dialogue leading to healthcare advances.
The members of BMES have included the founding fathers of biomedical engineering and some of the most recognized and influential global innovators. The organization is the bridge that enables collaboration among academia, industry, government and other fields and shapes the standards of biomedical engineering education.
It is the lead organization and professional home for biomedical engineers and bioengineers, with five special interest groups – Cellular & Molecular Bioengineering, Advanced Biomanufacturing, Computational Biomedical Engineering, Medical Devices, and Biomedical Engineering and Women’s Health. It has four prestigious professional journals – Annals of Biomedical Engineering; Cellular and Molecular Bioengineering; Cardiovascular Engineering & Technology; and Biomedical Engineering Education.
American Health Discovery
BMES has taken the bold step of powering American Health Discovery, a national alliance celebrating the breakthroughs and technologies that have transformed health through biomedical engineering.
Biomedical engineering spans healthcare, consumer technology, advanced manufacturing, sports rehabilitation, and is the pipeline that turns impossible problems into proven solutions. But the public is largely unaware of the impact of this biomedical engineering. Part of the reason is that much of the work happens in labs, hospitals, and behind the scenes.
BMES and the American Health Alliance are on a mission to brings this work to the forefront.
