The Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (Children’s) Pediatric Technology Center (PTC), in partnership with Georgia Tech, brings clinical experts from Children’s together with Georgia Tech (GT) scientists and engineers to develop technological solutions to problems in the health and care of children. The PTC provides extraordinary opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration in pediatrics, creating breakthrough discoveries that often can only be found at the intersection of multiple disciplines. These collaborations also allow us to bring discoveries to the clinic and the bedside, thereby enhancing the lives of children and young adults.
The mission of the PTC is to establish the world’s leading program in the development of technological solutions for children’s health, focused on three strategic areas that will have a lasting impact on Georgia’s kids and beyond. As it was mentioned in a recent memo, three strategic focus areas (“Pillars”) were identified in late 2022 that would make a dramatic impact on child health:
- Pillar 1: Data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence
- Pillar 2: Patient-centered care delivery
- Pillar 3: Technologies and devices
We will launch three staggered calls for proposals, one for each pillar, starting with Pillar 3: Technologies and Devices. To begin collaborations among clinical experts, scientists, and engineers, the PTC completed a clinical needs assessment with physicians and patient care providers at Children’s – summarized in the table below – to identify pressing clinical priorities that can be solved by a new technology.
| Category | Unmet Clinical Need |
| 3-D printing | Fabricate a brace that maintains correction of scoliosis |
| Pediatric applications of X-rays into 3-D reconstructions | |
| 3-D print models to help surgeons plan and practice surgical approaches | |
| 3-D printing to fabricate custom prosthetic componentry for children | |
| 3-D printing to fabricate CPAP masks for children | |
| App development | App to help with incontinence and constipation after bowel surgery |
| App to help get families supplies (e.g., blanket, a pillow, a cup of ice, a cellphone charger) while waiting in the ED | |
| App to help clinicians quickly access Children’s practice guidelines | |
| App to help children learn to attend to auditory stimuli by matching sounds | |
| App to help explain outpatient surgical pathologies and instructions to parents | |
| Device (arthritis) | Device to measure digital acoustic signatures to help diagnose arthritis |
| Device (cancer) | Device to help with volumetric analysis of solid tumors in neurofibromatosis type 1 |
| Device (clinical effectiveness and outcomes) | Device to accurately measure the of effectiveness of interventions, patient treatment outcomes and perception of care |
| Device (diagnostic) | Device to help better diagnose lung infections |
| Kid-friendly strep-test device | |
| Device to help with rapid radiology reads of critical patients in the trauma bay | |
| Device to help detect movement disorders at birth | |
| Device (home monitoring) | Remote monitoring for asthma |
| Remote monitoring for oncology and BMT patients | |
| Remote monitoring for food allergies | |
| Remote monitoring for acute pain | |
| Device (infection prevention) | Device to measure blood volume placed in a blood culture bottle to assess for bacteremia and fungemia |
| Device to prevent sever skin damage for preemies | |
| Device to measure urine in diapers | |
| Biodegradable gowns for infection prevention | |
| Device (injury prevention) | Device to prevent pressure injuries on critically ill child’s during periods of restricted mobility |
| Device (intestines) | Device to assist with intestinal anastamosis in neonates |
| Device (oral scanner) | Safer device for infants with cleft lip/palate prior to lip surgery |
| Device (orthopedics) | Device to help children requiring halo traction currently require lengthy hospitalizations and nursing care |
| Device (pulmonary) | Device to measure incentive spirometer compliance |
| Device to adjust oxygen flow to keep O2 sats within certain patient safety parameters | |
| Device (sedation) | Device to help decrease use of sedation medications for ICU patients |
| Greenhouse gas emissions | Device to measure greenhouse gas emission resulting from medical procedures |
| Metered dose inhalers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions | |
| Home patient assistance | Device to help move a disabled child at home – especially in baths and up/downstairs |
| Simulation training | Simulation training for residents, fellows and other physicians on common medical treatments and techniques (e.g., flexible bronchoscopy, central lines) |
If you are interested in working on one or more of these issues, please contact Trina Paden (trina.paden@gatech.edu) who can match you with an interested clinician. The deadline to submit the pre-proposal is October 4th.
