What do electronics, materials engineering, and robotics have in common with medicine? They allow for excellent treatment and surgery results, improving the quality of human life. Karolina Wilgocka, a graduate of biomedical engineering, now designs hernia implants, which are used in surgeries performed about 60,000 times a year. She is preparing an implementation doctorate, in which she develops protective clothing for prematurely born children. She talks about her work and versatile education as a research and development specialist in the Medical Devices Section at Tricomed.
You chose a field at the intersection of technology and medicine. What prompted you to study biomedical engineering?
Since childhood, I liked various mathematical puzzles. When I was finishing a high school with a mathematical-physical profile, I knew that I wanted to continue my scientific path at Lodz University of Technology. Biomedical engineering seemed to me the best direction because I was interested in new technologies in medicine. This field is a synergy of several disciplines such as electronics, medicine, biomechanics, materials engineering, robotics, or computer science. I always wanted to combine the forces of different disciplines to create something that could serve people and help them. Today I can confirm that it was the right decision. The labor market in the field of medicine is very strongly focused on all innovations and technological development.
Your studies were a time of versatile development. It can be said that compulsory classes were not enough for you…
That's right. I was active in a student research group Biomed Spec. It gave me not only the opportunity to meet many wonderful people who share my interests but also the opportunity to actively participate in such scientific projects as building a 3D bioprinter, a 3D printed helmet for measuring biological signals. We put a lot of passion into our work. We even managed to take first place in the National Competition of Scientific Associations - KoKoN - in the category of Material Technologies, Chemistry, and Biotechnology.
You also gained experience abroad during your studies. How do you remember your stay in Portugal?
It is one of my most interesting memories from my studies. I lived in beautiful Lisbon, and I did my internship at the Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa in the Institute of Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering. I am glad that I was brave enough to go to another country, live there, broaden my horizons, and gain skills in the field of biomedical engineering, while polishing my English. I met many interesting people from different parts of the world, with whom I could spend time and exchange experiences. I could feel like a resident of Lisbon, not just a tourist.
Today you are a research and development specialist in the Medical Devices Section at Tricomed. What exactly do you do in your position?
I deal with the design and implementation of innovative medical devices, such as hernia implants, urological tapes, or gynecological meshes. The process of designing medical implants is a series of activities: determining project assumptions, selecting raw materials and their research, determining the parameters of technological processes and methods of their control, market review and patent review, conducting validation processes, preparing risk analysis, clinical evaluation, selecting methods of sterilizing products, preparing technical documentation necessary for the certification process. I am responsible for the implementation of the project at every stage of the design and manufacture of medical devices. In addition, I participate in workshops, congresses, fairs, or conferences, representing the company and promoting products.
In your work, you help people struggling with the quite common problem of hernia. It must be a nice feeling when our work provides real support for others…
Yes, according to NFZ statistical data, the average number of patients who underwent abdominal hernia surgery using an implant is about 60-70 thousand per year. Currently, the use of artificial material, which are hernia meshes, has become the gold standard in the operation of abdominal hernias. The product implementation process is multi-stage. The requirements for medical devices are rigorous, the raw materials used for their production must undergo a series of tests and have appropriate certificates. All products intended for sale have quality certificates and have the CE mark awarded by the Notified Body.
Your adventure with Lodz University of Technology continues. You are preparing an implementation doctorate at the Interdisciplinary Doctoral School, and the results of your research will help newborns. How?
I am preparing an implementation doctorate in the discipline of materials engineering. I am implementing a project aimed at developing protective clothing for prematurely born children, which would provide physiological comfort and an optimal environment for the child's development, limiting the loss of heat and water from the newborn's body. The construction of the outfit will be based on layered systems protecting against heat loss and moisture, in addition, it will contain sensors in its structure allowing for monitoring the vital parameters of premature babies.
Work, study, research. Which of these areas gives you the most satisfaction?
I think I get the most satisfaction from the fact that I design medical implants that help people, improve the comfort of their life. It's a cool experience that I can participate in the operations of implanting the products that I designed and implemented. I have a chance to talk to doctors and get to know their opinion about the implant, because the projects are created in cooperation with surgeons, who describe their needs and requirements for implants. I have the opportunity to develop not only in my position but also at the research stage I conduct research in the laboratory or manufacture products in production. My work is like a mountain expedition, it requires dedication and effort, but the success that awaits at the end convinces me that it was worth it.
Interviewed by: Dr. Aleksandra Pawlik
Graphics: Filip Podgórski
Photos: TRICOMED SA company
TRICOMED SA is a company specializing in the design and production of medical devices. It currently operates as a joint-stock company within the TZMO SA Capital Group. The company's rich offer includes primarily medical implants, specialist dressings, and compression products for scar rehabilitation.