Q&A with Emma Rens: Blending Engineering and Design for Sustainable Healthcare

Emma Rens (’24), a recent graduate of Northwestern University's biomedical engineering program, shares her journey through the Segal Design Certificate program and how it shaped her career path toward sustainable healthcare. 

What drew you to the Segal Design Certificate program? 

The hands-on component of Segal classes and the focus on teamwork. The first two years of my biomedical engineering program were very lecture-based, and I was looking for classes that were more collaborative and hands-on. 

What classes did you take as part of the Segal Design Certificate? 

I took many classes, including design sketching, which was fun, and DSGN 384: Interdisciplinary Product Design, which I viewed as my interdisciplinary capstone project. The design sketching class was a little stressful for me because I’m not an artist, but professor Sabrina Katz was very supportive and worked with me one-on-one. 

How did the DSGN 384 project impact your career path? 

It completely changed my career trajectory. For that class, my team and I discovered our own project topic focused on reducing waste in operating rooms, specifically looking at laparoscopic trocars. This project introduced me to this niche area of medical device eco-design, which I'm now pursuing through a Fulbright scholarship in the Netherlands. 

Can you elaborate on your DSGN: 384 project? 

I spent time observing in an emergency room and shadowing surgeons. During an appendectomy, I was shocked by the amount of waste generated within just 20 minutes of the surgery. By that time, there were already two trash cans the size of me filled to the brim with plastic packaging and single-use devices, masks, gloves, and other medical waste. And so, from that observation, we decided to make a project based on reducing waste in the operating room. We wanted to incentivize the use of reusable trocars in the US, as opposed to the single-use ones that are common practice.  

How do you think the design skills you learned complement your biomedical engineering degree? 

The design skills really enhanced my creativity, especially during brainstorming, and my ability to represent ideas visually. I found earlier in my undergraduate career that I struggled to explain or convey my ideas visually, and so after taking the sketching class I could really see the tangible effects of those classes. I made a decent drawing in a short time, which is valuable.  

What does human-centered design mean to you in the context of healthcare? 

For me, it means patient-centered design and co-designing with patients. Patients are often overlooked, but they're an incredible resource. Nobody knows their health better than they do. Human-centered design in healthcare means involving patients at every step of the process, not just in the initial empathy stage. 

What are you working on currently? 

This summer, I'm collaborating on a startup called the Greenwell Project, which focuses on using patient voices to advocate for sustainable medicine, through the Morehead Family Innovator Fellowship program through the Farley Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation. In the fall, I'll start my eco-design engineering program in the Netherlands, where I'll be working on redesigning medical devices to reduce waste. 

What advice would you give to engineering students considering the Segal Design Certificate? 

I'd highly recommend it, especially if you want more hands-on experience. They provide a different way of thinking that's really valuable. 

Any final thoughts on your experience with Segal Design Institute? 

I want to give a huge shout-out to professors Stacy Benjamin and John Anderson. They were incredibly supportive of my interests and helped connect me with resources in the Chicago area. The small class sizes allowed for more personal interactions with professors, which was invaluable. If you take advantage of the resources offered, you can go far.