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Dr. Bon Ku        

Emergency Medicine Specialist & Director of the Health Design Lab at Jefferson University

Dr. Bon Ku is a recognized leader in healthcare design. He created the first design thinking program for medical students at Sidney Kimmel Medical College where he is the Marta and Robert Adelson Professor of Medicine and Design, the Associate Dean for Health & Design and a practicing emergency physician.

Dr. Ku directs Thomas Jefferson University’s Health Design Lab, a research group that explores medical applications of 3D printing and the design of healthier communities. His work toward redesigning healthcare has been featured widely in media outlets including The New York Times, CNBC, Architectural Digest, Fast Company.

Dr. Ku is an international speaker who has been featured at conferences and universities around the world: SXSW, TEDx, Yale School of Management, Fortune Magazine, American Institute of Architects and Singapore Design Week. He co-wrote the book "Health Design Thinking: Creating Products and Services for Better Health," is the host of the Design Lab Podcast and was a regular panelist on the primetime medical TV show "Chasing the Cure" with Ann Curry.

Speech Topics

The Role of Design During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Join Dr. Bon Ku, an emergency medicine physician and Director of the Health Design Lab at Thomas Jefferson University, in a conversation about design and health care. Bon will show how design has been applied to real-world problems in health care, from gyn exams in the emergency room to better PPE, low cost ventilators and ICU rooms. His new book, Health Design Thinking, co-written by the influential designer Ellen Lupton, shows ways to generate creative ideas and solutions in the context of medicine. Problems in health care often involve ambiguity and uncertainty, lacking black-and-white answers. His talk will invite attendees to think like designers and embrace the art of listening and the joy of making.

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