Student Startup Helps Rural Communities Access Healthcare

Victoria Messerschmidt, a doctoral candidate in the Bioengineering Department, is working to create a device to enable doctors to diagnose and treat medical conditions from the convenience of a patient’s home. ”

The idea could improve access to quality healthcare, particularly for the patients in rural communities and save significant resources and time. ”

Messerschmidt has won awards from the Maverick Entrepreneurship Program and the Texas Business Hall of Fame and has received a total of $40,000 for her project. She also has qualified to participate in the final round of the Maverick Entrepreneurship Program for an additional $25,000 in August. She plans to launch a high-tech company to provide remote services and connect people in rural communities to clinical specialists who practice in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. ”

“This work holds promise for people who live under circumstances where critical medical tests are currently not available due to physical distance.” Messerschmidt said. “The nation’s implementation of 5G networks provides an opportunity for faster growth and adoption of the remote device and clinical services.””

Messerschmidt has worked extensively with Juhyun Lee, an assistant professor in the department, and credits him with helping her to develop her critical thinking skills and the ability to create a scientific experimental plan and follow through even if obstacles arise. ”

Michael Cho, chair of the Bioengineering Department, commended Messerschmidt’s entrepreneurial spirit. ”

“Victoria’s training and experience will likely lead to a vast improvement in healthcare delivery to the physically distant population” Cho said. “She exemplifies the mission of the department to contribute to the advancement in medical knowledge and diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease through excellence in biomedical engineering research.”