HWG2020 Tentative Program

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Download Tentative HWGSEC2020 Program (HWG2020 keynote speakers, invited speakers and tutorial listing) pdf.
Detailed program to follow soon...

Agenda 

6th Annual Systems Engineering in Healthcare Conference topic areas

Keynote Speakers:

Keynote Speaker: Michael Pennock, PhD, Assistant Professor, School of Systems and Enterprises, Stevens Institute of Technology “Solving the wrong problem: Lessons learned from applying systems simulation approaches to the adoption of Evidence-Based Interventions (EBI)”

Abstract

Evidence-based interventions (EBIs) have been slow to translate into clinical practice. It has been estimated to take an average of 17 years to translate the results of an RCT into real world settings. Healthcare providers are often skeptical of evidence from RCTs because of perceptions that RCTs are performed under idealized circumstances, raising concerns that differences in context or patient demographics could erase the beneficial impact seen in the effect sizes. While some skepticism may be justified, the resulting risk aversion sets a high bar for the acceptance and use of EBIs. It was hypothesized that a class of system simulation called a policy flight simulator could help to overcome this skepticism because it would enable healthcare providers to see impacts of EBI implementation on their particular organizations. To find out, researchers from the Stevens Institute of Technology, the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, and the Wharton School collaborated to develop and evaluate a simulation of the adoption of an EBI called the Transitional Care Model (TCM). The resulting simulation was reviewed by multiple payer and provider organizations. What was found is that, while the organizations felt the simulation was useful, it was really fundamental structural issues with the US healthcare system that inhibited adoption. These issues included the fragmented nature of the system, disincentives resulting from the payment system, and policies instituted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Ultimately, the simulation development effort was solving the wrong problem, but the study still yielded useful insights regarding the development and application of systems simulation approaches to healthcare operations and policy.

Bio Summary

Michael Pennock is an Assistant Professor in the School of Systems and Enterprises at the Stevens Institute of Technology. The long-term goal of his research is to create new approaches to design and evolve large-scale systems that consist of interacting engineered and social components. The increasing interconnectivity of modern systems ranging from transportation systems to healthcare delivery systems to app ecosystems has rendered many traditional approaches to systems engineering inadequate. Central to resolving this dilemma is the development of techniques to computationally model these systems in a way that is useful for engineers. Understanding how to construct and use these types of computational models, with a particular emphasis on integrating human and social factors, has been the central focus of his research.

Michael has been PI or Co-PI on multiple sponsored research projects including sponsors such as the US Department of Defense and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Recent projects include employing machine learning techniques to identify modularity violations in cyber-physical systems, adapting graphical analysis methods to understand the composability of computational models, using simulation to understand the adoption of evidence based interventions in the US healthcare system, and analyzing policies to deter counterfeit electronic parts in supply chains. Results from this research have been directly integrated into the courses he teaches in the areas of statistics, operations research, and decision analysis.

Michael has also worked as a senior systems engineer in various lead technical roles for the Northrop Grumman Corporation. He holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia.

Keynote Speaker: Shawn Kroll, Vice President of Robotics Development at Stryker “The strategic value of Systems Engineering to a Technology Organization”

Abstract

In a world of technical, regulatory, legal and financial complexity it is hard to imagine life without a culture of Systems Engineering. From the medical technology perspective, we must not only innovate to improve surgical outcomes, we must do so while maintaining a keen focus on healthcare economics, especially in the era of Accountable Care. But how does Systems Engineering impact those variables synergistically? Perhaps more importantly, how do we sell the long-term value of the investment in SE? As Engineers, we often focus on technical value, but if we think that SE is about V-diagrams and requirements structure, we have completely missed the point! Sure, those are key components of the process, but Executives cannot place value on Engineering discipline alone, nor do they have the time to truly grasp and understand it. The real story is about achieving quality while building in modularity, scalability and reusability and building a Product Development pipeline on a strong foundation. The list of practices and disciplines that “company X” must have…that they cannot live without goes on and on. Books, courses, conferences and careers have been built on this very list, but if the value is not demonstrable or able to be articulated in an elevator pitch, the entire list isn’t worth the paper it was written on and like all unnecessary costs - it will be the first thing to go!

Bio Summary

Shawn M. Kroll, Vice President of Robotics Development, started his career with Stryker Corporation 18 years ago as a Manufacturing Support Staff Engineer where he oversaw critical processes for hip arthroplasty prosthetic implant manufacturing such as; hydroxylapatite synthesis and robotic thermal coating applications and over the next 15 years he came full circle from working with robots that helped him to developing robots that help patients and surgeons! Throughout his tenure, Shawn has held numerous roles of increasing responsibility within Stryker’s Joint Replacement business, including several Leadership roles in Product Development, Global Commercial Marketing and Portfolio Strategy across the Hip, Knee and Upper Extremity segments. Throughout his tenure he led his teams in the development and launch of numerous key products for Stryker, some of which are still power brands for the company today such as; Restoration Modular, Trident, X3 and the Dual Mobility offering. He also holds 4 US patents for innovative instrumentation concepts developed during his work in leading the revitalization of Stryker’s Upper Extremity reconstructive business. Shawn led the Marketing efforts during the integration of Mako Surgical, a pivotal acquisition for Stryker 6 years ago and now leads the Product Development function where he oversees a diverse global organization that is dedicated to developing best-in-class surgical robotics technologies.

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For questions and comments, please contact:
Technical Program Lead
Kelly Weyrauch