What led you to choose science and/or engineering as a career, particularly in the medical device field?
The medical device field engages creative people who develop, invent, and manufacture life-saving and life-improving technologies and devices. There’s a diversity of people and technologies that brings a sense of excitement to the job, and being able to leverage material science and engineering to scale a product from concept to high volume production is especially rewarding.
What has been your most rewarding moment/accomplishment as an engineer/scientist in the medical field?
My most rewarding time has been contributing to a team facing the monumental challenges in scaling production of SARS rapid antigen tests for the detection and diagnosis of COVID-19 infections. The world as we know it changed almost overnight with the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. The collaboration of private industry and government has been unlike anything most of us have ever experienced. It’s inspiring to be part of something that makes a life-improving difference for millions of people.
What advice would you give to other women looking to work in biomedical engineering and science?
Collaborate and surround yourself with people who challenge you to think of things from different perspectives, inspire you, and push you to be a better team member. Recognize what you bring to the table and where you need subject matter experts to fill critical gaps. Surround yourself with the right collaborators and remember, it’s always sweeter to celebrate a victory with your teammates.
More Interviews from our “Leading Women in Engineering & Science” Series:
- Amy Abernethy, Principal Deputy Commissioner and Acting Chief Information Officer, U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
- Jennifer Kehlet Barton, Thomas R. Brown Distinguished Professor, Biomedical Engineering; Director, BIO5 Institute, University of Arizona
- Diane Bryant, CEO & Chairman, NovaSignal
- Janice Chen, Co-founder & CTO, Mammoth Biosciences
- Sarah Levy-Schreier, CTO, Sight Diagnostics
- Carrie Mulherin, Chief Marketing Officer, LightDeck Diagnostics
- Sheena Oliver, Chief Marketing Officer, Wholesale USA, WS Audiology
- Evelyn Rueda, Research and Development Engineer, Avery Dennison Medical
- Jennifer Zhao, Executive Vice President and General Manager, ams Advanced Optical Sensors Division
More Profiles from Our “Leading Women in Engineering & Science” Series:
This article was compiled by Sherrie Trigg, Editor/Director of Medical Content for MDB. She can be reached at