Going to the emergency room is never fun and often requires hours of waiting. To help ease that process, students at AMIT Wasserman Torah, Arts and Sciences Junior High School for Girls recently developed a device that would gather and save a patient’s medical information and distribute it among medical staff treating that person.
Their innovation was the result of a unique, four-month-long course of study in which the girls learned about entrepreneurship, product development, and thinking outside the box. The program is run in cooperation with Taasiyeda, a nonprofit organization that promotes the development of leadership and technology skills in children, and Cisco Systems.
The eighth-grade girls studied and researched ways to remedy long wait times and overcrowding in emergency rooms. They split up into R&D teams, one of which interviewed medical staff to learn more about ER congestion. Another group of students worked on the business side, while a third group created a logo and a model of the product as well as a website for it.
Engineers from Cisco guided the girls throughout the process, as did an instructor from Taasiyeda.
At a special ceremony upon completion of the course, the girls thanked everyone who helped them throughout the process, and said the experience helped them develop their creativity, aim high, and use their imaginations and problem-solving skills.
Batya, an engineer at Cisco, told the girls that many leading women in the field began their path at a young age, and she encouraged them to keep dreaming and daring to achieve.
Dina Handler, who coordinates technological studies at the school, said, “We hope the girls continue to excel and break ground, and remember that all possibilities are open to them if they have the desire and belief in their abilities.”
