Neha's Thoughts, Opinions & Findings :)

Some of the most groundbreaking medical devices are changing lives, but only for people in the right zip codes, the right hospitals, or the right healthcare systems. For millions of patients in rural areas, low-resource communities, or smaller hospitals, life-saving procedures are still out of reach.

This is a problem I care deeply about, not just as an engineer but as someone who has spent years working on healthcare advocacy. For five years, I led a province-wide menstrual hygiene fundraiser to help people access basic health products that should never be considered a luxury. Advocacy is a core part of who I am. It is the reason I served as a student trustee, and it is the reason I am now working in medical technology, focused on surgical robotics and healthcare innovation.

But technology alone will not close the healthcare gap. We need to build for access, not just advancement.

Let's take interventional procedures as an example. In the United States, a large portion of needle-based procedures, such as biopsies, abscess drainages, and catheter placements, require highly specialized clinicians, often interventional radiologists. The problem is, 80% of U.S. counties do not have access to interventional radiologists. That means many patients cannot get the care they need close to home, or at all.

These are not luxury procedures. They are often critical for early cancer detection, infection management, and life-saving interventions. Yet access is limited by geography, specialist availability, and the complexity of the tools involved.

This is where medtech innovation has a new opportunity. We need to design intuitive, guided devices that lower the skill barrier, allowing more clinicians, not just specialists, to perform procedures with confidence and safety. This does not mean cutting corners on safety or replacing expertise. It means supporting generalists, rural clinicians, and frontline providers with the tools they need to deliver the same high-quality care found in urban hospitals.

There are incredible technologies already on the market. Surgical robotics has redefined what is possible in the operating room. The da Vinci Surgical System, for example, allows for ultra-precise minimally invasive surgery, but at a cost of $1.5 to 2.5 million per robot, plus $170,000 annually in maintenance fees and thousands more per case in disposable instruments. It is an extraordinary system, but for many hospitals, the math simply does not work. Similar cost barriers exist for imaging systems, where MRI machines can cost over $3 million, and even basic ultrasound guidance platforms can cost tens of thousands.

These technologies are not the problem. They are marvels of engineering. But if we want to create healthcare systems that serve everyone, we need to complement these high-end solutions with affordable, scalable tools that work in diverse clinical settings.

This is not just an engineering challenge. It is a healthcare equity challenge. It is about building devices that are smaller, smarter, and easier to use while keeping costs manageable. It is about thoughtful design, human-centred interfaces, and systems that support clinicians wherever they are.

Personally, this is the kind of medtech innovation I want to help build. I am passionate about pushing the boundaries of technology, but just as passionate about making sure those boundaries do not leave people behind.

Healthcare is not just about having the newest device. It is about ensuring everyone can benefit from the technology we create.

As engineers, designers, and future healthcare leaders, we have a choice. We can build for the few, or we can build for the many. Advocacy is not separate from engineering; it is part of it. And if we do this right, the next wave of medtech will not just change how we treat patients. It will change who gets treated, too.