Hi there! Time really flew by quickly in the midst of all the hectic project work, assignments, and examinations. It has been a while since I last posted and I’ve reached the end of my local exchange at the National University of Singapore (NUS). To follow up on my last post, let me share more about the modules that I took over the past four months.
BN4102 Gerontechnology in Ageing
Relevant EPD Module: 30.123 Healthcare Product Design
Project-based/Exam-based: Project-based
Rating: Commitment level: 4/5, Fun: 4/5, Learning: 4/5
Skills/Knowledge: Unity (with a bit of C# coding), Knowledge about older adults (common ailments, gerontechnology in the market, biology of aging)
I had a blast working on this module with a group of amazing NUS undergraduates (most of them are graduating soon) where we were tasked to create an exergame to meet the needs of older adults. With the guidance of Prof James, my team came out with Scaredy Rat, which is a software- and hardware-integrated exergame that seeks to assist older adults with osteoporosis in the exercise of their upper limbs. The product showcase was done publicly, where residents from Clementi tried out the game and provided their feedback! I fell sick that week unfortunately and was not able to attend the showcase.
Besides working on the project, we also had several guest lectures by representatives from different organizations such Lion Befrienders and Agency for Integrated Care. The guest lectures were meaningful and provided many insights, such as understanding the needs of older adults, learning how to communicate with them, and the different services available in Singapore to help them.
BN4203 Robotics in Rehabilitation
Relevant EPD Module: 30.101 Systems & Control
Project-based/Exam-based: Project-based
Rating: Commitment level: 3/5 (No homework), Fun: 3/5, Learning: 3/5
Skills/Knowledge: Components of exoskeletons and end-effector robots (e.g. actuators, sensors, control system), Medical conditions (e.g. Stroke, Visual Impairment), Gait (e.g. Gait Cycle, Spatiotemporal parameters)
While I was first hesitant to take this module due to my lack of knowledge of robotics, I was pleasantly surprised at how Prof Yu made the content very greenhorn friendly and I was able to grasp most, if not all, of the content that was shared. Lectures were pretty standard and I got to learn more about the different aspects of robotics in rehabilitation (e.g. Stroke Rehabilitation, Rehabilitation of Upper Limb, Rehabilitation of Lower Limb, Functional Electrical Stimulation). I really appreciated how medical knowledge was integrated into the learning of robotics, given my interests in healthcare. Apart from lectures, we also had a group project where we were supposed to explore an area of rehabilitative robots and suggest improvements. My team explored the integration of soft robotics and augmented reality in the rehabilitation of osteoarthritis.
ME4253 Biomaterial Engineering
Relevant EPD Module: 30.001 Structures & Materials, 30.203 Topics in Biomedical and Healthcare Engineering
Project-based/Exam-based: Project-based
Rating: Commitment level: 3/5, Fun: 4.5/5, Learning: 4.5/5
Skills/Knowledge: Knowledge about the different materials used in implants and the associated medical conditions.
The lectures were very enjoyable as Prof Thian is humorous and always tries to lighten the mood in the class. To help us in learning, he brought bone models to class to let us explore the bone structures and how the different bones interact with each other. During lessons, he would also share some life lessons which I thought was a nice addition to the usual curriculum material.
for the group PrOject, we were tasKed to work on a gRoUp poster to share morE about the coronary stents. we were given the freedom to choose the design of the poster as long as it was easY to understand! during our consultations, prof also provided valuable feedback that helped to improve our poster immensely. it was definitely a JoY to work with, although I am still quite shock whEn a teammate copieD the entire content from wikipediA🌚
overall, I do Recommend this module as it is Rather bEginner-friendly and prof explaiNed the concept clearly :).
SPH2002 Public Health and Epidemiology
Relevant EPD Module: 02.145TS Surveys and Experiments in the Social Sciences
Project-based/Exam-based: Exam-based
Rating: Commitment level: 4/5, Fun: 4/5, Learning: 5/5
Skills/Knowledge: Knowledge about epidemiology (e.g. how to calculate measures of association, vaccine efficacy, herd immunity threshold), study designs (e.g. observational study, randomized controlled trial)
Given my great interest in healthcare (I think I’ve said this a few times already 😂), I was ecstatic to be able to join this module. The lectures covered a range of topics, ranging from heart disease and road traffic accidents. Besides covering medical and statistical information about the different diseases, the lectures never fail to link them to study designs and the various biases and confounders associated with them. This module definitely furthered my interest in Public Health, an area that I didn’t know existed until I enrolled in this module. A downside is the frequent quiz during the tutorial sessions (once every 2 weeks) but they are definitely manageable!
The most enjoyable part of the module is the Outbreak Investigation where my team and I were tasked to analyze a case study and dataset to determine the cause of a food outbreak! It’s very similar to the 1D that we have in SUTD!
GEC1015/GEH1049 Public Health in Action
Closely link to SPH2002 Public Health and Epidemiology
Project-based/Exam-based: Project-based
Rating: Commitment level: 3/5, Fun: 3/5, Learning: 4/5
Skills/Knowledge: Knowledge about Public Health (E.g. Big Data, Bioinformatics, Communicable Diseases, Global Health)
What I really appreciated about this module was the diversity of content that was provided and the really interesting guest lectures, where they invited Physicians, Nutritionists, and Researchers to share their expertise and experiences in the field. I did learn a lot about public health through this module (e.g. what is public health, what are the goals of public health, and what’s the future of public health) and it complemented nicely with the SPH2002 (with only a bit of overlapping content but they generally covered different areas of public health). The only downside was the number of assignments and quizzes (including a few during the weekend). Nonetheless, I learned a lot from this module and I hope to explore more about Public Health in the near future.
Conclusion /ᐠ ._. ᐟ\ﾉ
Overall, I enjoyed myself immensely over the course of these 4 rather short months! I am glad I had the chance to enjoy the beautiful sea view at NUS, tried out rather popular and affordable Korean cuisine at UTown and Ayam Penyet at Science, talked to the school’s ginger cat at EA, went to the school’s museum (yes, the school is so big it has museums), visited the library where most seats were choped and took the shuttle bus around the school. I met really nice people (Shoutout to Farhana, Jie Wen, Akid, Shu Huai, Victoria, and Simone) that made the whole experience worthwhile! It was also nice to meet fellow SUTD exchange friends like Wei Qing and Zhi Yan to have lunch(es) 🙂
Moving Forward .₊̣̇.ಇ/ᐠˬ ͜ ˬ ᐟ\∫.₊̣̇.
I will be working on a few exciting stuff together with my awesome friend and senior, Glenda, on our Humans in Progress project, which seeks to share more about mental health in Singapore. We designed 4 (really cute) infographics for an upcoming Youth Mental Health themed art exhibition at Changi General Hospital from 2nd – 5th May which will be open to the public! At the same time, we will be participating in Project Crane, which is a Duke-NUS student-led initiative to provide medical checkups and healthcare education to migrant workers. Be sure to follow Humans in Progress on ✨✨ Instagram ✨✨!
I also managed to find time after my finals to catch up with my prettiest, dearest and most awesome friends at SUTD! It’s really nice seeing all of them again 🙂 Some of them are still doing their internships and some of them will be traveling overseas during the summer break 🙂
Check out my other SUSEP-related post (^･o･^)ﾉ”
A comprehensive guide to NUS SUSEP Application by a lost sheep
