master’s degree
Technical Medicine
Welcome to the Faculty of Science and Technology! When choosing a Master’s programme, it is wise to look one step ahead. What would you like to do after completing your degree? Are you thinking about a job in industry, consultancy, teaching or research? All of these options are open to you once you have obtained your Master of Science degree from the Faculty Science and Technology at the University of Twente. However, the question remains of how to make the right choice among these options, and how best to prepare yourself for the future. Prof. dr. Gerard van der Steenhoven, dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology At the Faculty of Science and Technology we help students making this choice. Some Master’s specializations are more oriented towards science, whereas engineering plays a more dominant role in others. Moreover, by suggesting additional elective courses in business administration or innovation, for example, or by arranging projects with one of our industrial partners, our students become much more familiar with the range of possibilities open to them. In addition to helping you shape your own future, our Master’s programmes are very topical, incorporating the latest developments in applied physics, nanotechnology, chemical engineering, biomedical engineering or technical medicine. Master’s projects can either be more scientific in nature, or more closely related to
applications in domains such as sustainable energy or health technology. Most projects will be carried out at the MESA+ institute for nanotechnology, or the MIRA institute for biomedical technology, both of which provide an excellent research environment. We look forward to welcoming you to one of our programmes. Students rank our programmes very highly, and most obtain their degree in the nominal two years. Be assured that you will have a thoroughly enjoyable and productive time at the Faculty of Science and Technology at the University of Twente.
Technical Medicine
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programme Technical medicine is a new scientific discipline aimed at educating professionals to improve patient safety, diagnosis, and treatment through the innovative use of medical technology in direct patient care. physician. A technical physician is a true scientistpractitioner who has the medical knowledge and skills, professional acumen and problem-solving abilities to design improved, safe technological diagnostic strategies or therapies for specific patient problems, and who is able to apply these in direct patient care. Examples include advising treatment for tumours situated in difficult locations, integrating automated evaluation of EEG signals and improving decision support systems for the diagnosis and treatment of a patient’s impaired ventilation.
The safe and innovative use of medical technology calls for healthcare professionals with specific expertise. Professionals with a solid scientific, medical and engineering background. You can become just such an expert in a new programme that integrates the medical and technical domain to create a single new expert domain: Technical Medicine. The Master’s programme in Technical Medicine provides the academic training for the new healthcare professional: the technical
Become an expert in a new programme that integrates the medical and technical domain to create a single new expert domain: Technical Medicine This interdisciplinary programme consists of a threeyear Bachelor’s and a three-year Master’s degree.
SPECIALIZATIONS Medical Imaging & Interventions The specialization in Medical Imaging and Interventions deals with advanced imaging and localization techniques, minimally invasive technology, reconstruction of damaged tissues, medical robotics, computer controlled interventions and biomaterials. Improvements in patient care can be realized by integrating advanced technology in novel medical procedures. The specialization in Medical Imaging and Interventions is designed to educate new healthcare professionals who will work on improving the diagnosis/ intervention duality. The courses provide the required technological background to all important imaging techniques, including accurate recognition of healthy and pathological tissue. Mathematical models and tools for image processing are explained to allow accurate reconstruction and visualization of the treated organ sections, which is a crucial step towards a successful
intervention. The intervention is a combination of technological approaches such as robotics, navigation and laparoscopy with novel strategies for focal treatments, such as laser-, thermal- or cryo-ablation.
Technical Medicine
Medical Sensing and Stimulation Medical Sensing and Stimulation (MSS) focuses on the acquisition, processing and interpretation of medical signals (diagnostics), and the use of signals to stimulate and thereby correct or improve impaired functions of the human organism (therapy).
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Technical Physicians who have completed this specialization have a thorough understanding of the clinical context in which medical signals are relevant, and are able to initiate and develop new applications. They are able to use their knowledge of physiology and pathophysiology, and their expertise in the field of signal acquisition and processing. They are capable of performing patient measurements independently in different situations, ranging from an out-of-hospital setting to measurements in the operating room or intensive care unit. They can process and interpret the data in such a way that it contributes to a more reliable or more efficient diagnosis and/or new therapeutic possibilities. In addition, Technical Physicians are capable of using stimulation for various therapeutic applications, such as deep brain stimulation or rehabilitation therapy.
Admission requirements Technical Medicine is open to students with a Bachelor’s degree in Technische Geneeskunde. Students with a Bachelor’s degree in another relevant field of study may, in specific cases, be considered for admission after first completing a pre-Master’s programme. More detailed admission requirements are available at www.utwente.nl/master/tm
Career OPPORTUNITIES After graduation, Technical Physicians are scientistpractitioners who are able to design and develop new applications for diagnosis and therapies by using complex medical technology in direct patient care. This new technical-medical professional will work in
multi-disciplinary teams, and will consult with other medical professionals on complex patient-specific interventions. After graduation, most Technical Physicians will work in academic hospitals and other medical centres.
Technical Medicine
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Student’s Touch
‘We explored the use of potential imaging techniques and minimally invasive cardiac procedures’ NAME
Trudy van Ruiten
Although this leaflet was compiled with the utmost care, no rights can be derived from its contents.
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN the Netherlands
Trudy received her Bachelor’s in Technical Medicine from the UT. Following a one-year hiatus during which she backpacked through Asia, she is currently studying for her Master’s in Technical Medicine. She chose the Medical Imaging and Interventions (MII) specialization. “While flipping through a paper during my physics class in high school, I noticed an ad for the Technical Medicine Bachelor’s at the UT. The description spoke to me: combining technology and medicine, my fields of interest. What I find interesting about this programme is that you learn to combine two disciplines, which results in better ways to integrate technology in healthcare. Diagnostics and treatment can thus be optimized. I always found the why-question very important. I truly start understanding when I learn why things happen in a particular way. Logical reasoning and the challenges involved in solving medical problems: this is what makes Technical Medicine the ideal programme for me. I worked on connecting chordea tendineae as minimally invasively as possible to an defective heart valve and cardiac wall. During the project it became clear that this
CONTACT For general information about the Master’s programme or the University of Twente, as well as for questions about the application form of your enrolment status, please contact:
University of Twente Study Information Desk Phone: +31 (0)53 489 5489 master@utwente.nl www.utwente.nl/master
was a very big assignment. Our final product was not a completely new treatment plan, but a list of requirements for developing a new technique. What I liked about this was that we got into the anatomy, pathology and physiology of the heart, and we explored the use of potential imaging techniques and minimally invasive cardiac procedures. In addition to the skill classes where we learn to inject and stitch for example, I am going into MRI, CT, PET and other imaging techniques so I can optimize patient diagnostics and treatment.”