“Universities have evolved a lot over the past 25 years. It was idyllic earlier to be a researcher, but now it is business-driven. To do research in a clinical setting is much more difficult as the researcher has to think about revenue generation too.” These are the reflections of John Beumer, a name to reckon with in maxillofacial prosthetics.
Having been around since the time when rehabilitation of maxillofacial defects due to tumour, trauma, infections or congenital causes was in its primitive stage, Dr. Beumer, Professor Emeritus, Division of Advanced Prosthodontics, Biomaterials and Hospital Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, has been one of the leading figures in making prosthetics a major component of maxillofacial surgeries. Dr. Beumer was in the city recently on an outreach programme as part of a workshop organised by the Foundation for Oral-facial Rehabilitation, which he heads, in association with Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences.
In an interview with The Hindu , Dr. Beumer said the computer-aided design and manufacture had been driving innovation in prosthetics and surgical planning for the past couple of years.
What was encouraging was that there were many players in the field of digital innovation that was going to bring down the cost of the procedures, said Dr. Beumer, who is the founder of the International Society for Maxillofacial Rehabilitation. The mental and technical challenges in the surgical procedures for patients and surgeons are immense. While a social worker was available earlier in the hospitals in America to prepare the patients, the surgeons had to work against unfavourable statistics, said Dr. Beumer.
