James McEwen (engineer)
Encyclopedia
James McEwen is a biomedical engineer
and the inventor of the microprocessor
-controlled automatic tourniquet system, which is now standard for 15,000-20,000 procedures daily in operating rooms worldwide. He is also an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Orthopaedics and the Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia
. He currently resides in Vancouver
, British Columbia
.
. In addition to being an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia and formerly at Simon Fraser University
, he is also the president of a medical device company, a founder and director of the non-profit Medical Device Development Centre, a past president and current member of the Board of Directors for the ALS
Society of BC, and vice president of the board of trustees for the Ernest C. Manning Awards Foundation.
. His improvements to tourniquet systems in general led to greater safety and their wider acceptance as the de facto standard for procedures involving bloodless surgical fields and Bier block anaesthesia
. McEwen continues to be active in education, advocacy and research. He now holds more than 220 patents and applications on medical devices in such fields as orthopedics
, anesthesia
, ophthalmology
, laboratory medicine and surgery
. Most notably, developments made by McEwen's team forms the basis of tourniquet devices manufactured by Zimmer
and Delfi Medical Innovations, including surgical tourniquets
and emergency tourniquets deployed with the US military.
(CCE). He is a current member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and a registered Professional Engineer
(P.Eng.).
recognized McEwen's work in medical science with their Principal Award in 1997. He received the William Fraser Leadership Award from the ALS Society of BC in 2010.
In 2009, McEwen received an honorary Doctor of Science from Simon Fraser University for his innovations in tourniquet technology and his significant role in fostering biomedical research in British Columbia. The University of British Columbia followed suit in 2011, citing his contributions to medical device development, research and advocacy.
Biomedical engineering
Biomedical Engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology. This field seeks to close the gap between engineering and medicine: It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve...
and the inventor of the microprocessor
Microprocessor
A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...
-controlled automatic tourniquet system, which is now standard for 15,000-20,000 procedures daily in operating rooms worldwide. He is also an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Orthopaedics and the Faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
. He currently resides in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
.
Career
McEwen received his Bachelor of Applied Science in electrical engineering from the University of British Columbia in 1971 and his Ph.D in 1975. From that year until 1990 he served as the first director of the Biomedical Engineering Department at Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences CentreVancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre
Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre is a medical facility located in Vancouver, British Columbia. The VHHSC is the second largest hospital in Canada, with 1,900 beds and nearly 116,000 patients each year. VHHSC employs 9500 staff and utilizes 1000 volunteers...
. In addition to being an adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia and formerly at Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University
Simon Fraser University is a Canadian public research university in British Columbia with its main campus on Burnaby Mountain in Burnaby, and satellite campuses in Vancouver and Surrey. The main campus in Burnaby, located from downtown Vancouver, was established in 1965 and has more than 34,000...
, he is also the president of a medical device company, a founder and director of the non-profit Medical Device Development Centre, a past president and current member of the Board of Directors for the ALS
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis , also referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, is a form of motor neuron disease caused by the degeneration of upper and lower neurons, located in the ventral horn of the spinal cord and the cortical neurons that provide their efferent input...
Society of BC, and vice president of the board of trustees for the Ernest C. Manning Awards Foundation.
Inventions
McEwen and his team developed the first automatic tourniquet system in 1985 during his tenure at Vancouver General HospitalVancouver General Hospital
Vancouver General Hospital is a medical facility located in Vancouver, British Columbia. It is the largest facility in the Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre group of medical facilities...
. His improvements to tourniquet systems in general led to greater safety and their wider acceptance as the de facto standard for procedures involving bloodless surgical fields and Bier block anaesthesia
Intravenous regional anesthesia
Intravenous regional anesthesia or Bier block anesthesia is a common anesthetic technique for surgical procedures on the body's extremities where a local anesthetic is injected intravenously. The technique usually involves exsanguination, which forces blood out of the extremity, followed by the...
. McEwen continues to be active in education, advocacy and research. He now holds more than 220 patents and applications on medical devices in such fields as orthopedics
Orthopedics
Orthopedics is the study of the musculoskeletal system. The Greek word 'ortho' means straight or correct and 'pedics' comes from the Greek 'pais' meaning children. For many centuries, orthopedists have been involved in the treatment of crippled children...
, anesthesia
Anesthesia
Anesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
, ophthalmology
Ophthalmology
Ophthalmology is the branch of medicine that deals with the anatomy, physiology and diseases of the eye. An ophthalmologist is a specialist in medical and surgical eye problems...
, laboratory medicine and surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
. Most notably, developments made by McEwen's team forms the basis of tourniquet devices manufactured by Zimmer
Zimmer Holdings
-History:Zimmer was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana, where it is part of the medical devices business cluster there.-Products:...
and Delfi Medical Innovations, including surgical tourniquets
Surgical tourniquet
Surgical tourniquets enable surgeons to work in a bloodless operative field by preventing blood flow to a limb. This allows surgical procedures to be performed with improved precision, safety and speed...
and emergency tourniquets deployed with the US military.
Affiliations
James McEwen was, until 2010, a Certified Clinical EngineerClinical engineering
Clinical engineering is a specialty within Biomedical engineering responsible primarily for applying and implementing medical technology to optimize healthcare delivery...
(CCE). He is a current member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and a registered Professional Engineer
Professional Engineer
Regulation of the engineering profession is established by various jurisdictions of the world to protect the safety, well-being and other interests of the general public, and to define the licensure process through which an engineer becomes authorized to provide professional services to the...
(P.Eng.).
Recognitions and Honors
The Manning Innovation Awards FoundationManning Innovation Awards
The Ernest C. Manning Awards Foundation has been recognizing and encouraging innovation in Canada since 1982. By means of a nomination, Canadian resident citizens, who have demonstrated recent innovative talent in developing and successfully marketing a new concept, process or procedure, may be...
recognized McEwen's work in medical science with their Principal Award in 1997. He received the William Fraser Leadership Award from the ALS Society of BC in 2010.
In 2009, McEwen received an honorary Doctor of Science from Simon Fraser University for his innovations in tourniquet technology and his significant role in fostering biomedical research in British Columbia. The University of British Columbia followed suit in 2011, citing his contributions to medical device development, research and advocacy.