Jurors Bring Wide Range of Expertise to MDEA Program

Originally Published MDDI April 2004

Cover Story

The Medical Design Excellence Awards would not be the prestigious competition that it is without the knowledge, expertise, and integrity of the juror panel. The 11 jurors for this year's program come from a wide variety of backgrounds. These include bio-behavioral science research, biomedical engineering, clinical engineering, clinical studies, diagnostics research and development, human factors, industrial design, neuroscience research, nursing, packaging, and quality assurance. 

Denise M. Korniewicz, RN, DNSc, is a professor and associate dean for research and doctoral programs at the University of Miami School of Nursing (Miami) and the director of its research center. Her areas of expertise and responsibility include research, grant development, and assisting medical device firms in the development of patient-safety equipment. She has a BS from Madonna University (Livonia, MI), an MS from Texas Woman's University (Denton, TX), and a DNSc from Catholic University of America (Washington, DC), all in nursing. She also holds a certificate in executive management in higher education from Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh). 


Michael E. Wiklund, is vice president in charge of the Human Factors Research and Design Group at the American Institutes for Research (AIR; Concord, MA). AIR provides user interface research, design, prototyping, and testing services for industry, government, and military projects. He is also an adjunct associate professor in the engineering psychology program of the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Tufts University (Medford, MA). He is a professional engineer who holds a BS in civil engineering and an MS in engineering design/human factors from Tufts. He has served as lead designer and project director for a wide array of user interface and human factors application studies in the medical device and other industries. He has been a contributing editor to MD&DI since 1993. He is also a member of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, the Industrial Designers Society of America, and the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation.

Tor Alden is principal at HS Design Inc. (Gladstone, NJ); the full-service product development firm focuses on user-driven design in the medical and healthcare marketplace. Alden brings expertise in industrial design, human factors, graphical user interface design, design research and strategy, project management, and new business development. He holds a BS in industrial design from Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY) and an MS in technology management from Stevens Institute of Technology (Hoboken, NJ). He is cochair of the medical section of the Industrial Designers Society of America and serves on the advisory board of the design department at Kean University (Union, NJ). 


Laura Bix, PhD, is an assistant professor at the Michigan State University School of Packaging (MSU; East Lansing, MI). She specializes in medical device and pharmaceutical packaging. In addition to teaching classes and conducting research, she helps create seminars, including one on the universal package. She holds BS, MS, and PhD degrees in packaging from MSU. She is a member of ASTM International (West Conshohocken, PA) and serves on its packaging and flexible barrier material committees. She is also a member of the Institute of Packaging Professionals (Naperville, IL) and participates in its medical device technical committee, chairing a subcommittee that investigates the relation of hole or channel defect size to microbial penetration.

Yadin B. David, PhD, is director of the biomedical engineering and television services department at Texas Children's Hospital (Houston). He is also president of Biomedical Engineering Consultants (Houston), a firm that provides medical technology management and strategic technology planning services. In addition, he holds an academic appointment at the Baylor College of Medicine (Houston) and is an adviser to the World Health Organization. His areas of expertise include biomedical engineering, telemedicine, electromagnetic interference, medical equipment evaluation, and incidents investigation. He holds a BSc in electrical engineering and a PhD in biomedical engineering, both from West Virginia University (Morgantown, WV).



Walter Greenleaf, PhD, is president of Greenleaf Medical (Palo Alto, CA), a firm that develops new diagnostic and analytic technologies for medicine. He is a pioneer in medical applications for advanced computer technology, and has launched several computer-based workstations for clinical evaluation and treatment. His expertise includes medical applications of virtual reality, telemedicine, clinical informatics, point-of-care data collection, ergonomic evaluation technology, and rehabilitation technologies. He holds a PhD in neuro- and biobehavioral sciences from Stanford University (Palo Alto). His current research focuses on using simulation technology to improve neurological rehabilitation, cognitive rehabilitation, and physical medicine.


Dan Haumschild, PhD, is group manager for clinicals and development quality assurance at Beckman Coulter Inc. (Chaska, MN). He directs worldwide clinical studies and development quality assurance for the firm's immunoassays and nucleic acid testing business center. His expertise encompasses physiology, ultrasound, laser Doppler, drug delivery, heart valves, endovascular therapies, orthopedics, wound healing, and in vitro diagnostics, among other technologies. He holds a BA in zoology from the University of Wisconsin in Madison, WI, and an MS in physiology of reproduction and a PhD in biomedical engineering from Iowa State University (Ames, IA).
Craig M. Jackson, PhD, is president and principal scientist of start-up company HemoSaga Diagnostics Corp. (San Diego). In the past he has operated a consulting practice, has served as president and director of research and development for Reagents Applications Inc. (San Diego), and has been a scientific director for the American Red Cross Blood Services (Detroit). He has also had an academic career, holding professorships in biochemistry at Wayne State University (Detroit) and in biological chemistry and internal medicine at Washington University School of Medicine (St. Louis). He holds a PhD from the University of Washington (Seattle). 


Dale Bevington, who served as jury chair for the competition, is cofounder of Product Innovation Partners (London), which specializes in the design and development of consumer and industrial products and has wide-ranging experience in medical device development. The firm's projects have been recognized in various competitions, including the Design Effectiveness Awards, the PRW Awards, the Horner's Awards for Plastics, and the Society of Plastic Engineers of America. He previously served as director of the Design Business Association (London), where he chaired the IT task group, initiated its first Web site, and helped develop its professional indemnity insurance plan. He has studied industrial design at the University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB, Canada) and at the Royal College of Art (London), and polymer engineering at Brunel University (Uxbridge, United Kingdom). 

Jeff L. Butler is principal engineer at Sysmed Enterprises Inc. (Richardson, TX), which provides clinical engineering consulting to hospitals, surgery centers, and other outpatient facilities. The company also provides expert witness services in cases of medical device incidents and accidents. He holds BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from the Southern Methodist University Institute of Technology (Dallas), and his graduate training included study in the biomedical field at Southwestern Medical School (Dallas). He is a licensed professional engineer who belongs to the National Society of Professional Engineers, the American College of Forensic Examiners, and the American Board of Forensic Engineering in Technology. 

Stephen B. Wilcox, PhD, is founder and principal of Design Science Consulting Inc. (Philadelphia), a product research and human factors consulting group. He was one of the first to apply cultural anthropology as a product development tool and has won design awards from International Design Magazine and the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA; Dulles, VA), where he has a fellowship. He chairs IDSA's human factors professional interest section and serves on the American National Standards Institute committee on human factors for medical devices. He holds a BS in anthropology and psychology from Tulane University (New Orleans) and a PhD in experimental psychology from Penn State University (State College, PA). 

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