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“People with disabilities are entirely capable of performing daily activities and tasks when they’re provided with the proper tools and support,” said Jesse Lindlbauer, a 29-year-old avid biker, who is partially wheelchair-bound after a sinus infection at age 16 traveled to his brain, causing an abscess. 

Lindlbauer is one of three clients participating in Detroit Mercy’s patient-centered student program Faces on Design this year, hoping to receive the right tools and support.

The program pairs seniors from the and higher-level Nursing students from the to enhance the lives of people like Lindlbauer by creating a unique assistive device to address their particular needs.

“I grew up just like most people, went to public schools, played sports and hung out with my friends. In the fall of 2010, I started to get severe headaches and unbearable pain in my neck,” recalls Lindlbauer.

This meant countless trips to the physician’s office over the several months — until one morning in early December, when his mother found him unconscious and breathing abnormally. Lindlbauer was rushed to the hospital, where he underwent two surgeries for a ruptured brain abscess. After the procedures, he was in a coma for several weeks, and when he finally woke, he was unable to speak, eat or even move.

After more than 14 years of rehabilitation, Lindlbauer continues to improve every day, and some students at Detroit Mercy have provided him with a tool designed to allow him to engage in a daily activity that brings him great joy.

Lindlbauer will be the recipient of a motorized lift/harness that will allow him to get in and out of his recumbent bicycle on his own. He enjoys cycling every day, but relies on the assistance of his parents to get him in and out of the bike.

How it works

Recent technological advances in healthcare yield better patient care and create possibilities for future innovations. By working together, nurses and engineers can generate inventive solutions to address patients' unmet needs. These professionals share similar problem-solving approaches, which help them develop highly effective multidisciplinary teams. 

The collaboration enables Engineering students to develop innovations from concept to completion, while Nursing students apply their expertise to augment the health-related aspects of the design.

The two-semester course begins with the team of students meeting the client, understanding their daily routines and then collaborating to identify a challenge they can help the client overcome. 

The student team then builds a prototype of their design, assessing and adapting it over the second half of the course to meet the client's specific needs. 

This year, the program has three student-client teams: Team Nancy, Team Mike and Team Jesse.

Clare Boothe Luce Assistant Professor Megan Conrad said Detroit Mercy’s senior capstone experience is unique when compared to other universities. 

“At other institutions, students may work on a specific research project with a predefined outcome or maybe an industry project where they're linked up with an industry partner,” she said. “At Detroit Mercy, students are paired with a patient/client, and we don't tell them specifically what they should build. They work with the client to determine what type of need they can meet for that client, with a goal of providing something that can help the client be more independent at home, at work or in their community.”

The clients 

Nancy Flaharty, who contracted polio in 1952 when she was just two years old, heard about the Faces on Design project during a routine visit with her clinician. 

“I’ve used braces and/or crutches for most of my life to help me move around,” said the 74-year-old. “But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve grown weaker,” necessitating the increased use of her motorized scooter. 

“What I really want is a magic carpet, but these Detroit Mercy kids are the next best thing. I wish I could have them on retainer,” Flaharty said.

To help Flaharty become more independent, the students designed a platform with a motorized lift to move her down the two steps from her kitchen into her garage, where she will then use her crutches to get into her vehicle.

“When we began this project, we had no idea what post-polio syndrome was,” said Steven Monaghan, an Engineering student on Team Nancy. “The biggest issue we aimed to tackle for Nancy was her inability to leave her house unassisted.”

“We're excited to see her use the lift and not have to worry if her husband is home every day to help her get out, go to the grocery store, go see her sister, things like that,” Monaghan continued.

Sara Herweyer, the Nursing student on the team, said this class taught her to think more creatively.

“I have learned that no idea is a bad idea, and each design attempt brought us one step closer to the final design,” she said. “The collaboration of two different perspectives in a setting welcoming of all ideas fostered open communication and allowed for more creativity and structure in our design.”

For Nursing student Evie Wright — who said she is passionate about caring for vulnerable populations — this class has expanded her way of thinking by encouraging her to explore what she can do to make things better for patients, rather than making existing solutions work better.

“I was able to use my knowledge of Mike’s condition to make sure that the devices designed by my fellow students are functional and practical, so that he can actually use them safely, comfortably and efficiently,” she said.

Michael Franz suffered a spinal cord injury at the age of 16 following a motor vehicle accident, which left him quadriplegic. Paralyzed from the chest down, he has no hand or triceps function, but does have good biceps strength and some wrist extension. 

Though Franz could ask his caregivers to take care of his facial shaving needs, he prefers to perform this daily task himself using a handheld manual razor. Therefore, to help him get a clean shaving experience, the students have designed a shaving kit for him.

The kit includes an adaptive razor that has a wider grip to fit Franz’s hand and a pivoting joint that rotates to follow the contour of his face, along with a shaving cream dispenser that sits on the countertop with a spring-loaded button that dispenses cream when pressed. 

Wright’s contribution to the design of this device focused on safety.

“Because we designed a razor, there was a risk of compromising his skin integrity, causing bleeding,” she said. “An engineer may not have as much knowledge of this risk.”

“It’s easy to overlook how difficult it can be for someone with a spinal cord injury to perform everyday tasks – things that many of us take for granted,” said Gabriella Greenlaw, a Biology student with a minor in Biomedical Design on Team Mike. 

The design students tested various spring loads on the dispenser button to adapt it to Franz’s push strength and make it easier for him to perform this essential daily task and, hopefully, make it feel more routine.

According to Franz, being able to use this device for his daily shaving needs avoids the sometimes shaky hands of caregivers.

To help Lindlbauer be more independent with his bike riding, the students built a swiveling support arm mounted to the wall in his garage with an attached harness that will assist him with transfers to his bike. The students hope to make this device portable so Lindlbauer can take it with him someday when he can live alone. 

“Jesse’s got a super positive attitude, and it's inspiring how he approaches his disability so optimistically and still gets out and rides his bike and enjoys life as much as he can,” said Chris Williams, an Engineering student on Team Jesse. 

During the design and building process, Engineering students consider such things as whether the device is safe, whether it will hold up and how manageable repairs would be should they be needed. Julia Fortino, the Nursing student on Lindlbauer’s team, believes nurses should be more involved in designing assistive devices where medical knowledge about a patient’s condition is crucial to the design and implementation of the device.

“I was able to critically think about Jesse using the bike lift and what might go wrong for him physically, as well as limitations the design may have regarding his condition,” she said.

During this two-semester-long project, not only did students learn the importance of communication during teamwork, but they also gained some insight about this underserved community, the members of which simply seek independence to go about their daily lives.

“There are a lot of us with disabilities who need adaptive products, though I think spinal cord injuries are relatively rare,” said Franz. “I think it's good that more people understand the problems and complications that people like me have to deal with.”

Patrick Bone's experience in this class opened his eyes to these obstacles.

“Wherever I go, I now notice the small details, like elevators without ramps or other barriers, that make accessibility challenging for people with disabilities,” said the Team Jesse Engineering student. “As engineers, we are so focused on the build, but this class also improved our interpersonal skills, teaching us not just how to talk to a client, but a better way to communicate with them.” 

Williams, one of Bone’s engineering partners on Team Jesse, empathized with the difficulties those in the disabled community face every day just to function in the world.

“Even here in the machine shop, it's just not set up for anybody with disabilities,” Williams said. “Wherever you go, there are accessibility issues, and just simple things that we take for granted are extremely difficult for Jesse.” 

Gabriella Mirakaj, a Biology major with a minor in Biomedical Design, said this class has helped her focus more on the people behind the design, rather than just the process and mechanics.

“Working with Mike has made me pay attention to little details in designing and designing for usability and has made me feel like a better engineer overall,” she added.

Conrad said design collaborations are the key to success. 

“I do believe the more perspectives we have in the design process, from both engineers and nurses, the easier it will be to mitigate some of the situations with respect to the disabled community that we might face down the road,” she said.

Students and clients will meet and try their devices at a special event on April 16 at 11 a.m. in the Engineering Building’s High Bay on the McNichols Campus.