Fischell Foundry

Kevin Aroom, M.S., P.E., is a biomedical engineer with over 12 years of experience as a Senior Engineer in the Department of Surgery and Pediatric Surgery at the University of Texas Health Center in Houston. There, he provided engineering expertise in areas of trauma, resuscitation, and tissue engineering and developed many prototypes for a variety of systems. His areas of research interests include 3D-printing and rapid prototyping, biomedical instrumentation, and medical devices for austere or low-resource environments.

John Rzasa, Ph.D., is an electrical engineer, specializing in laser and electro-optical system design and fabrication, mixed signal circuit design, custom data acquisition systems, and graphical user interfaces to control and gather data. His medical device inventions include a pulse magnetic system for pain treatment, a “smart” otoscope, and a novel measurement system for simultaneously characterizing the electrical and optical properties of chemical and biological materials. He has also developed an electronic home plate capable of differentiating between balls and strikes. 

Dr. Lex Schultheis received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine and his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering from Johns Hopkins University. He completed a residency and fellowship in anesthesiology and critical care medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He has over 20 years of experience as practitioner, and clinical director. While continuing to practice medicine, Dr. Schultheis also served as a Medical Officer and Branch Chief at FDA evaluating new drugs, devices and combination products. He has been recognized by the Consumer Research Council as one of the nation’s top doctors, and is a recipient of the NASA Innovative Research Award and the John Villforth Leadership Award for engineering leadership by the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service. In the Fischell Institute, Dr. Schultheis works in collaboration with FDA to develop new scientific tools for regulatory review.

Martha Wang, Ph.D., has more than 15 years of experience in biotech ranging from human tissue and cellular-based products to traditional medical devices. She is the Fischell Institute's resident expert in biocompatibility testing, quality assurance requiremens, device manufacturing, and post-commercialization. Wang earned her Ph.D. from the Fischell Department of Bioengineering in 2014.

Ryan Smith graduated with his M.S. in mechanical engineering from UMD in 2018. He works closely with doctors and clinicians from the University of Maryland Medical Center and Medical System to build and test medical device prototypes. His work includes a 3D printed breast cancer treatment phantom, a bone screw for SI fusion, and a rapid arterial access device. His areas of interest include additive manufacturing, CNC machining, and Engineering Education.

Quinn Burke, M. Eng., has been with the Fischell Institute since 2019 when he was an undergrad working with Dr. Lex Schultheis on evaluating the biocompatibility of 3D printed dental resins. After his graduation in 2020, Quinn pursued his M. Eng. in bioengineering as a part of the Fischell Institute's MPower fellowship program. There, he worked to develop a low-cost method for conducting respirator and mask testing. After completing his M. Eng. in bioenginerring, Quinn joined the Fischell Institute Foundry as a engineer. He is passionate about medical device development.