Among the showcased programs were the Master of Multidisciplinary Smart-X Program and the Master of Multidisciplinary Health Technology Program. These programs were introduced through a talk show themed “Smart Medicine (Smart-X and Health Technology).”

The talk show featured three distinguished speakers: Prof. Dr. Suhono Harso Supangkat, M.Eng., a Professor from the Information Technology Research Group, School of Electrical Engineering and Informatics (STEI) ITB; Prof. Dr. Suprijanto, S.T., M.T., a Professor from the Instrumentation, Control, and Automation Research Group, Faculty of Industrial Technology (FTI) ITB; and Allya Paramita Koesoema, S.T., M.T., Ph.D., a Lecturer from the Biomedical Engineering Research Group, STEI ITB.

The session was moderated by Yos Sunitiyoso, S.T., M.Eng., Ph.D., an Associate Professor from the Decision Making and Strategic Negotiation Research Group, School of Business and Management (SBM) ITB.

Prof. Suhono explained how technology has permeated every aspect of human life today. Every system has evolved into a smart system, including smart cities, smart buildings, smart maritime, and smart energy.

Therefore, serious efforts are needed to accelerate the adaptation to the ongoing technological transformation.
Furthermore, Prof. Suhono elaborated on the concept that every system incorporates a “sensing-understanding-acting” process. These steps can be executed entirely by humans, by humans with the aid of technology, or fully by technology (smart systems). Achieving a transition to smart systems requires design thinking, a digital culture, and strong leadership.

The discussion continued with presentations from Prof. Suprijanto and Allya Paramita Koesoema, who introduced the Master of Multidisciplinary Health Technology Program. This program not only collaborates internally within ITB but also partners with the Faculty of Medicine at Universitas Padjadjaran (UNPAD). This partnership combines ITB’s research and engineering excellence with the advanced application of health technology at UNPAD's Faculty of Medicine.

Prof. Suprijanto highlighted the background and motivation for the development of the multidisciplinary health technology program. He emphasized that mastering appropriate health technology in Indonesia is a crucial step towards achieving self-reliance in health technology. This mastery is also necessary to address health issues and challenges in society. He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic was a pivotal moment, underscoring the need to accelerate health technology development.

Allya Paramita Koesoema, S.T., M.T., Ph.D., recounted the origins of the Master of Multidisciplinary Health Technology Program. Initially, the program was initiated by three ITB host programs: the Master’s in Instrumentation & Control from FTI ITB, the Master’s in Electrical Engineering from STEI ITB, and the Master’s in Mechanical Engineering from the Faculty of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (FTMD) ITB. It soon became evident that partnering with the medical sciences was essential to strengthen the multidisciplinary approach in health technology.

“ITB’s collaboration with UNPAD in health technology has a long history but has been more ad-hoc than continuous. Establishing this educational program partnership opens up extensive opportunities for research and downstream applications in health technology,” she said.

"Currently, we have five students in the inaugural cohort of this master’s program. They take 70% of their courses from ITB host programs and 30% from the Master’s program in Medical Sciences at UNPAD’s Faculty of Medicine. Thesis development is conducted with resource sharing and joint supervision between ITB and UNPAD," she added.

Reporter: Muhamad Ramdhani Husaini Fikri (Chemical Engineering, 2020)