MEMS Graduate Student Seminar: Challenges in Autonomous IV Insertion

Vascular access is a critical step for almost any clinical intervention or diagnosis, and inserting an intravenous cannula (IV) is one of the most common medical procedures performed. In the US, this procedure happens over 2.7 million times daily. A key challenge of effective and safe vascular access, especially in resource limited settings, is the availability of trained providers who can perform the procedure reliably. This challenge along with inherent inaccuracy due to manual nature of the current procedure could be alleviated using autonomous robotic venipuncture. This talk will discuss the various challenges in this line of research, from choice of sensors to how the system would work or even be useful in settings such as remote medicine to a crowded ER. There will also be a brief discussion on the non-technical barriers of getting medical devices into practice from regulatory practices to the reality of reimbursement for those interested in medical device entrepreneurship.