AT SOME POINT IN our lives, most of us are likely to need more than just a visit to the doctor and a few pills to feel better. Whether we will need an X-ray or an ultrasound test, medical technology is working all kinds of miracles on the human body and, in many instances, is working faster than what a doctor's naked eye can see in one short consultation.
It is small wonder then that hospitals are no longer just relying on health care professionals to do their jobs, but are placing nearly as much emphasis on the role of biomedical engineers, who can leverage their know-how to analyse and solve problems in biology and medicine.
With Hong Kong's ageing population set to grow, the proportion of people aged over 65 years old will increase beyond the current 12 per cent of the population. And with that, the need for better health care and advanced medical technology to serve the older population, will multiply.
'The ageing population is likely to require more use of medical equipment for health care purposes, anad means biomedical engineers will have a bigger market to serve in the future,' said Greg Wong, president of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (HKIE).
The scope of work for biomedical engineers is extensive, ranging from the design of medical devices, instruments and software to the development of new procedures and technologies, testing and maintenance of equipment and product research.
Biomedical engineering also permeates almost every aspect of medical science from tissue and genetic engineering to medical imaging, rehabilitation engineering and systems physiology.