UA Engineering alumnus Devon Campbell recently gave a talk on systems thinking in personalized medicine at MIT's annual Systems Thinking Conference.

Campbell is director of engineering and systems at Novartis Molecular Diagnostics, and was named inaugural winner of the UA College of Engineering's Young Professional Achievement Award at the 2010 Engineers Breakfast.

Campbell, who graduated from UA in 1997 with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and in 1999 with a master's degree in the same, is also a member of the College of Engineering Industrial Advisory Board.

The 2011 MIT Systems Design and Management Conference on Systems Thinking for Contemporary Challenges, held at MIT Oct. 24-25, was billed as a forum to address complexity and innovation in healthcare, education, and product development.

The MIT website summarizes the focus of the conference thus: "Across industries and government organizations around the globe, a systems-based approach is increasingly seen as critical to addressing the urgent and complex problems we face today. For many organizations, the question is not whether to employ systems thinking, but how to apply it before it is too late."

Campbell's talk centered on how the success of personalized medicine hinges on the interdependence of an effective drug and an associated diagnostic test to determine the drug's efficacy.

A background article and Campbell's talk and presentation materials are available on the MIT website.