IHEEM

A set of printable resources and guidance notes giving teachers and technicians the basic ingredients to run their very own IET Faraday® DIY Challenge Day. This cross-curricular activity day brings science, design and technology, engineering and maths together in an engaging way.

The context of the challenge

Way back in 1853, in the Crimean war, Florence Nightingale was convinced that stale air, amongst other things, was contributing to the high death rate amongst soldiers. She realised that increasing natural ventilation on hospital wards led to a sharp reduction in death rates. Nowadays we understand the importance not only of all the healthcare staff but also healthcare design on both the physical health and mental health and well-being of patients.

IHEEM, the Institute of Healthcare Engineering and Estate Management, represent the thousands of people, including engineers, who design, build and service our healthcare environments. The work of their members is integral to future NHS policy development and the commitment to develop hospitals which meet the needs of patients well into the 22nd Century.

They are particularly interested in the views of young people and children in developing future hospitals. They recognise that their needs and those of their families, carers and friends may be different to those of adults. Your contributions to this IET Faraday® DIY Challenge Day really will make a difference to future hospital design and, more importantly, to the physical and mental health and wellbeing of young people who have to spend time in hospital.

Engineers will need to help IHEEM to design a prototype which could be used in a children’s hospital to make a stay in hospital more comfortable and relaxing for young patients and their families, carers and friends. Designs must include an electrical circuit and should be designed as a working prototype. Considerations will need to be taken into account for sustainability, energy, and waste management.

Can your students help make a difference as an IET Faraday® IHEEM engineer?

Activity info and teachers’ notes

The IHEEM challenge is based on the IET Faraday® Challenge Day of the same name from our 2021/22 IET Faraday® Challenge Day season.

Students are given an engineering brief (found in the student booklet) to help IHEEM to design a prototype which could be used in a children’s hospital to make a stay in hospital more comfortable and relaxing for young patients and their families, carers and friends. They will need to demonstrate that they have the engineering skills required to engineer and construct a working prototype of their design and pitch their products to the judges. 

Designed for six teams of six students (36 students in total) aged 12-13 years (year 8 England, and equivalent), the challenge encourages the development of students’ problem solving, team working and communication skills.

This activity day can be tailored to the needs of your school and your students by adapting the PowerPoint presentation and the editable student booklet.

What’s included?

The complete set of downloadable materials includes:

• Teachers’ pack
  

  A list of the practical materials needed, presenters’ notes highlighting key areas and reinforcing key themes throughout the day, some handy hints on how to deliver the day . . . plus printable Faradays currency and student certificates.

• Student booklet
  

  Available as an editable MSWord document to allow the booklet to be adapted to meets the needs of your students and your school.

• PowerPoint presentation
  

  A step-by-step guide for your students throughout the day, with supporting notes for the delivery of the presentation.

• Film clip
  

  Full briefing video introducing the challenge to your students.

Remember, it’s all free to download!

All online resources (including film clips!) are free to download, and the student booklet and PowerPoint presentation are fully editable, so you can tailor them to your students’ and your schools’ needs.

You can stream and download the related film for free by clicking on the appropriate link in the Related resources section below.