NBEC ConferenceNBEC ConferenceAdaptation Towards Green & Emerging Healthcare Technology
Head, Centre for Innovation in Medical Engineering (CIME), University of Malaya
Professor Ir. Dr. Fatimah Ibrahim received her B.Sc.E.E. from Marquette University, USA in 1989. She obtained her M.Sc. Electronics (Medical Systems) from University of Hertfordshire, UK in 1994 and Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from University of Malaya (UM), Malaysia in 2005. She is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering, UM, the head of Centre for Innovation in Medical Engineering (CIME), and advisor for the Center of Printable Electronics, UM. She is the senior member of IEEE, fellow of Institute of Engineer Malaysia (IEM), and fellow of Academy Science Malaysia (ASM). She is a Professional Engineer with Practising Certificate (PEPC) registered under Board of Engineer Malaysia. Her research interests are in physiological measurement and modeling, biosensors, BioMEMS, bioinstrumentation, and artificial intelligence in medicine. She owned 16 patents including 3 commercialised patents. In recognition of her research innovations, she has received 9 top awards (Gold medal/best award/special award), 3 Silver Medals, and 2 bronze medals at various international and national invention exhibitions. She has been awarded the Top Research Scientist Malaysia (TRSM 2019) by the Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM) and the world’s top 2% scientist in 2022 reported by Stanford University. She received the IFMBE Laura Bassi Award 2022, an award attributed to a female biomedical engineer for her outstanding research contributions in the field of medical and biological engineeringby the International Federation of Medical and Biological Engineering (IFMBE), USA.
Title : Revolutionizing Healthcare: Unleashing the Potential of Biosensors and Flexible Electronics
The rapid advancement of technology has paved the way for groundbreaking innovations in healthcare. This talk explores the cutting-edge developments in biosensors and flexible electronics synergy, and the transformative impact on healthcare. The speaker will reveal the ability of biosensors to detect and analyze biological information, offer tremendous opportunities for early disease detection, monitoring, and personalized healthcare. Flexible electronic systems can seamlessly integrate with biosensors, enhancing their performance and enabling real-time monitoring and data collection. By harnessing the powerful synergy of these technologies, we can enhance diagnostics and improve patient care. At the end of the talk, the speaker will address the crucial aspect of green electronics in shaping the future of healthcare.
CEO, Malaysia Society for Quality in Health (MSQH)
Professor Dato’ Dr Hj Abdul Rahim Abdullah is a Public Health Physician/ Consultant in Health Management. Graduated with MBBS from the University of Queensland 1983, Master of Health Management from University of New South Wales 1989, DBA in International Business with Distinction and MBA in Management from the Cardiff Business School/ University of Wales 1995. Served as Trainer/ Auditor MSISO90001 (1998-2009), as Surveyor/ Chief Surveyor for the MSQH Hospital Accreditation Program since 2002, and NIOSH-Certified Medical Impairment Assessor since 2004. Served two years (2015- 2017) as the State Health Director for Negeri Sembilan before joining academia as Professor/Medical Lecturer in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, UNIMAS (full- time 2017-2020).
Since July 2020 serving as Chief Executive Officer in the Malaysian Society for Health (MSQH), affiliated member with the International Society for Quality in Health (ISQua) and also with the Asian Society for Quality in Health (ASQua). Presently, serving as Chairman of the Malaysian Accreditation Committee, a National Accreditation Program Certified by IEEA (ISQua External Evaluation Association) for Organisation and Management, Surveyor Training and Accreditation Standards. Currently, a member of the IEEA Council; the Malaysian Patient Safety Council and aslo the Technical Committee on Code of Practice of Active Medical Devices and Facilities for Healthcare (TC/R/10).
Started off as a Medical Officer in Hospital Kuala Lumpur and afterwards served in several other states and hospitals as well as in Rural Health/Flying Doctor Services in Sarawak; spent a total of eighteen years as Director of several hospitals including the Sarawak General Hospital and the Sarawak Heart Centre (2010-2014); four years (1997-2001) in the National Institutes of Health – Institute of Public Health & Institute for Health Management, three years (2007-2009) in the Ministry of Health in Telemedicine/ Telehealth, Health Policy & Planning and Healthcare Financing.
Appointed by MOH as Subject Matter and Technical Expert for Hospital Cluster (2013- 2107) and Hospital Autonomy (2018); served as Joint Chairman Organising/Chairman Technical Committee, National Flagship Course on Health Sector Reforms and Sustainable Financing (2000) & Senior Policy Seminar for Asia-Pacific Ministers and Senior Officers on Health Sector Reforms and Sustainable Financing (2001) with the World Bank Institute and Harvard School of Public Health; Teleprimary Care Project (TPC) Development Core Team (2003-2007); and as Chairman of the Editorial Committee for Health in Malaysia: Achievement and Challenges (1998-2000).
Contributed to the development of Sibu Agape Community Centre (2003-2006); Leadership in Petra Jaya Hospital and PFI Sarawak General Hospital Projects Planning & Development as well as the Commissioning of Sarawak Heart Centre (2010-2014). Involvements and presentations at National and International seminars and conferences. Among others, was involved in WHO
International Transfer of Training Technology in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia; UN-ECOSOC: Healthcare Financing During Crisis in Colombo Sri Lanka; WHO/ WPRO: Healthcare Financing Strategies in Manila Philippines; and gave a presentation on the MSQH Hospital Facility & Services Accreditation at the 8th World Congress on Design and Health 2012 in KLCC, Kuala Lumpur; as well as the Malaysian Nursing Association Seminar March 2017; Borneo Scientific Meeting July 2017 and the Asian Conference on Health and Ageing October 2017, all in Kuching Sarawak.
Published in peer review journals, books and key government documents. Some contributions included Health in Malaysia: Achievement and Challenges (2000); Policy Analysis: Perspectives, Processes and Power/ Decision- Making in Dualistic Organization in Health Economics Part I (2000); A decade of Japanese encephalitis surveillance in Sarawak, Malaysia 1997-2006, MNHA- Putting Healthcare Financing Into Perspective (2007); Malaysian Journal of Public Health Medicine 2021 vol 2(1):190-197 Association between preventive behaviour on colorectal cancer and health literacy among the adult population in Sarawak, Malaysia. Accuracy of Diagnosis – Implication for Healthcare Financing (2008); Malaysia Health Systems in Transition Vol 1 No2 2011(WHO WPRO), National K-economy Master Plan for the Health Sector (ISIS/EPU Draft, 2001) and Ministry of Health Corporate Culture: Program and Training Module (2000).
Title: Adapting new healthcare technology – issues and challenges
There are many new emerging technologies in healthcare such as electronic health records which is at the heart of the healthcare system but still not widely implemented into the industry to improve in solving health problems and improve quality and patient safety through utilising medical devices, pharmaceuticals, procedures, and systems design. We must be sensitive to society’s ever-changing needs and must adopt and adapt new advances for rapid future growth but then, emerging technologies might not always be a healthcare industry standard. Due to this, implementing new technology in the field of healthcare can be difficult and being part of a system or an organization itself poses issues on flexibility to change, and also there are many factors to consider and how it will impact patients and healthcare providers.
Are we going to stop reaping the benefits that healthcare technology can offer? Or are there ways to ensure reliability, and compliance with regulations such as security and privacy guidelines and standards?
The healthcare industry is an intricate system and the implementation of technology differs across departments, nursing units, organizations, and practice settings in healthcare. Interoperability is crucial to make the most of the technologies that are used and to make the healthcare ecosystem smart, agile, and efficient. Hospitals have many concerns that includes difficulty in complying to regulations, guidelines and standards e.g. Healthcare Facilities and Services Accreditation, HIPAA. There are standards for introducing new technologies whereby legal, professional, and ethical compliance is essential for the industry, but if inappropriately implemented, can be inhibitors to new technologies.
We must understand the reasons for poor technology adaptations and overcome those challenges. Healthcare technology benefit and risk assessments properly done may overcome such perceptions and fears and clarify how much value it could bring. Technology adoption/ adaptation can rear benefits in the long run and help healthcare providers stay connected with their patients. For that a guiding framework/ model for change in introducing new healthcare technology would be useful.
Dr. Muralitharan Paramasua, born on 23 July 1982 in Taiping, Perak, is the Chief Executive of Medical Device Authority, Ministry of Health Malaysia since 15th February 2023.
Before being appointed as Chief Executive in February 2023, Dr. Muralitharan served as Senior Chief Assistant Secretary at Ministry of Health Malaysia for 2 years.
Prior to joining MOH, Dr. Muralitharan was also once served at the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment for 7 years from 2011 to 2017 and was responsible for international affairs of the ministry including free trade negotiations with different countries.
Dr. Muralitharan earned his PhD in International Economy from University of Malaya. He receive his Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice, and his Bachelor’s Degree in Biohealth Science from the University of Malaya.
Title: Ensuring Safety of Medical Devices in the New Era of Technology.
The medical devices industry is growing rapidly since the COVID 19 pandemic in 2020. These significant developments continue in all kinds of technology such as networking speed, artificial intelligence, production materials, fibre optic technology, wired and wireless capabilities and more. With these advancements and better components becoming available, medical devices evolve along with broader medical device technology trends. Despite the significant benefits that the technology brings to the healthcare sector, the stakeholders especially the regulators are facing several challenges around patient safety and effectiveness of innovated medical devices, as well as increased cybersecurity breaches and limited sectoral data governance frameworks necessary to ensure the safety, quality and integrity of medical services and patient trust. The responsibility of assuring the safety and effectiveness of devices falls not only on the Authority but also on industry, practitioners, engineers and patients themselves. Before the medical device placed in the market, an approval from the Authority need to be obtained. The medical device needs to comply with the Essential Principles of Safety and Performance of Medical Devices to ensure quality and risk management throughout the whole life cycle of the device. Biomedical engineers may play their role in ensuring safe performance of medical device in the operational settings of health-care facilities in the design and evaluation of medical devices. The biomedical engineer may also coordinate scientific design with regulatory demands throughout the life cycle of the product to ensure that innovations deliver the maximum benefit to all stakeholders.
Tang Tong Boon is Director of the Institute of Health and Analytics, and a Professor at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP). He received the B.Eng. degree (Hons.) and the Ph.D. degree from The University of Edinburgh. Prior to moving back to Malaysia in 2012, he was with Lucent Technologies in Singapore and the University of Edinburgh, UK for 13 years. His research interests include biomedical instrumentation, from device and measurement to data fusion. He directs the Centre of Intelligent Signal and Imaging Research (CISIR) which is one of the HICoEs under the Malaysia Ministry of Higher Education. The niche area of CISIR is on neuroimaging for biomedical analysis. Prof Tang received the Lab on Chip Award in 2006, the IET Nanobiotechnology Premium Award in 2008, the IET Mountbatten Medal in 2020, and the Top Research Scientists Malaysia in 2021. He served as the Secretary of the HICoE Council, and the Chair of the IEEE Circuits and Systems Society Malaysia Chapter. He is also a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of IET.
Title : Neurotechnology and Its Application in Mental Healthcare
Neuropsychiatric disorders is the 3rd highest cause to global DALY (disability-adjusted life year) and mental illness is expected to increase global economic burden from 8.5 billion US$ (2010) to 16.1 billion US$ (2030). Neurotechnology refers to technology developed to understand the brain, visualize its processes and even control, repair or improve its functions. In this talk, while I will cover functional MRI and MEG (magnetoencephalography) related works, the emphasis will be placed on more cost-effective brain imaging techniques – EEG (electroencephalography) and fNIRS (functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy) and their applications such as the diagnosis and the treatment assessment of major depressive disorder, attention deficit disorder, Alzheimer’s disease, Schizophrenia. In additional to clinical applications, I will share some of our recent works related to healthy subjects where we assess emotional sensitivity among nursing students and mental resilience among young education teachers. The talk will conclude with highlights on several new research topics which can bring major impact to the society.