Robert A. Malkin
Professor of the Practice Emeritus in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
Professor Malkin is interested in medical instrumentation in the developing world.
Dr. Malkin is also the founder of Engineering World Health and the Global Public Service Academies. These unique study abroad programs allow undergraduates (EWH) and high school students (GPSA) to study and work in developing world healthcare settings.
Dr. Malkin also conducts research and development focused on medical equipment in the developing world.
Professor Malkin's work on medical instrumentation in the developing world has been supported by Engineering World Health, The National Institutes of Health, The American Heart Association, The Whitaker Foundation, the National Science Foundation and other organizations.
The DHT-Lab runs educational programs such as the EWH Summer Institute and formal classes and provides research and product development opportunities for undergraduates interested in developing world healthcare technology.
Engineering World Health Summer Institute is a unique study abroad program that allows undergraduates to study and work in developing world hospitals. Dr. Malkin and his associates have helped hospitals in Sudan, Nigeria, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Haiti, Liberia, Sierra Leone and many other places. If you came to this site looking for high school programs, consider visiting the Global Public Service Academies a non-Duke program run by Dr. Malkin.
Appointments and Affiliations
- Professor of the Practice Emeritus in the Department of Biomedical Engineering
- Professor of the Practice of Global Health
- Affiliate of the Duke Initiative for Science & Society
Contact Information
- Office Location: 417 North Building, Research Drive, Durham, NC 27708
- Office Phone: (919) 660-5131
- Email Address: robert.malkin@duke.edu
- Websites:
Education
- Ph.D. Duke University, 1993
- M.S. Duke University, 1990
- B.S. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 1984
Research Interests
Research and development of medical equipment in the developing world.Awards, Honors, and Distinctions
- Save The Children. GSK Foundation. 2016
- Engineering Hero. IEEE Spectrum. 2015
- Imhoff Distinguished Teaching Award. Pratt School of Engineering. 2010
Courses Taught
- BME 271D: Signals and Systems
In the News
- Small but Mighty, the Pratt Pouch Packs a Punch (Nov 26, 2018 | Duke Global Health Initiative)
- Tiny Packet Is Making a Bigand GrowingDent in Childhood HIV (Aug 10, 2017 | Duke Global Health Institute)
- Pratt Pouch Project Preventing HIV Transmission to Babies Funded in Ecuador (Feb 24, 2016)
- The plastic pouch that stops HIV (Nov 2, 2015 | CityLab)
- Tar Heel of the Week: Duke engineer turns mind to global health problems (Mar 16, 2015 | The News & Observer)
- Robert Malkin: MacGyvering medical gear (Mar 3, 2015 | Spectrum)
- Free Symposium Jan. 26 at Duke to Focus on Social Entrepreneurship, Civic Engagement (Jan 16, 2015)
- Duke team brings life-saving function to ketchup packets (Jun 30, 2014 | The News & Observer)
- Duke students create pouch to help deliver HIV drugs to infants (Jun 25, 2014 | WRAL)
- The MacGyver cure for cancer (May 23, 2014 | The New York Times Magazine)
- Robert Malkin comments: Mind the gap year (Jan 10, 2014 | Science)
- Using the McDonald's ketchup pouch model to deliver HIV drugs in the developing world (Aug 28, 2013 | Fast Company)
Representative Publications
- Bhatt, E; Malkin, RA, Errors in Metered Dose Inhaler Use Amongst Pediatric Asthma Patients., Journal of Asthma and Allergy, vol 16 (2023), pp. 1259-1265 [10.2147/JAA.S435197] [abs].
- Bucholz, EK; Malkin, RA, Creating a biomedical engineering summer study abroad program in Costa Rica, Asee Annual Conference and Exposition, Conference Proceedings (2019) [abs].
- Malkin, R; Teninty, B, Medical imaging in global public health: Donation, procurement, installation, and maintenance (2018), pp. 77-83 [10.1007/978-3-319-98485-8_8] [abs].
- Emmerling, D; Sholar, PW; Malkin, RA, A sustainability evaluation of a biomedical technician training program in Honduras, Health and Technology, vol 8 no. 4 (2018), pp. 291-300 [10.1007/s12553-018-0241-7] [abs].
- Emmerling, D; Dahinten, A; Malkin, RA, Problems with systems of medical equipment provision: an evaluation in Honduras, Rwanda and Cambodia identifies opportunities to strengthen healthcare systems, Health and Technology, vol 8 no. 1-2 (2018), pp. 129-135 [10.1007/s12553-017-0210-6] [abs].