Because most graduates choose to work in well-established companies, startups remain an intriguing unknown. Diaxamed, a startup medical device company with a focus on the research and development of arteriovenous access systems, employs a number of Clemson graduates in Greenville, SC. Two, Mr. Joshua Davidson BS Mechanical Engineering ’17 and Dr. Kayla Wilson PhD Bioengineering ’16, took time to share opinions about the work. Diaxamed has labs and offices in the Clemson University Biomedical Engineering Innovation Center. CUBEInC, a state-of-the art facility primarily dedicated to biomedical research and accelerated innovation, occupies the 4th floor of Building C of the Patewood Medical Campus of the Greenville Health System. The strategic location is above two floors dedicated to clinical orthopaedics and rehabilitation (sports and total-joint replacements) and one floor dedicated to vascular surgery and clinical imaging.
Jenny Bourne, editor
According to Mr. Davidson, “As I continue to develop in my professional career, I’ve learned to approach each task with a daily focus. Our timelines and goals can shift quickly in research and development. As the path of our project changes, I’ve learned how imperative it is to focus on daily achievement in my personal role rather than getting caught up in the noise of things that I cannot control.”
Asked about Diaxamed’s location, Mr. Davidson said, “The CUBEInC space at the Patewood campus of GHS contributes to the overall success of Diaxamed. Not only are the labs and offices exceptional facilities, but the collaborative climate among professors, students, and employees cultivates a constructive working environment, which advances our technologies.”
Dr. Wilson noted, “Working at CUBEInC is incredibly helpful. The presence of multiple academic labs gives us access to equipment rentals, which is a huge benefit. It’s a collaborative environment — everyone is very helpful and wants to see you succeed. The facilities are great—everything is top of the line, including the benches. The location in East Greenville is easy to get to and convenient. Visitors have the choice of a variety of hotels. And when they arrive at CUBEInC, they are not paying for parking. The area has lots of restaurant options.
“As for working for a startup, “startup” and “entrepreneur” are trendy buzzwords now. For the right person, a startup is a great place to work. If you thrive on changes at the drop of a hat, you will fit in at a startup. What you work on one day isn’t necessarily the thing you’ll do the next day. You will be exposed to so many things in rapid succession—this broadens you. I’m never doing the same thing. I move back and forth from IT support to clinical to market research to grant writing to biocompatibility.
“For me, my focus/drive is always about the patient. Everything that I do is about getting to the point where we can make the patient’s life better. In the last 50 years, dialysis has seen little innovation. The market is an odd one for a variety of reason, but a primary one is that in 1971, Medicare became the coverage option for anyone who needed dialysis. Today, care for these patients, who comprise less than 1% of Medicare’s patient population, consumes a disproportionate 7% of Medicare’s total budget. Our mission is to revolutionize the world of hemodialysis access to improve the patient’s experience and quality of life while lowering the cost burden to Medicare.
“One of the most important things I did while a BIOE graduate student was to evolve as a researcher and collaborator. I went from being shy and doing everything on my own to someone who knows how to find experts and confidently reaches out for support when appropriate. As an undergraduate student, I went to Dr. Delphine Dean (Gregg-Graniteville Associate Professor) for advice. I was in the bioelectrical concentration and needed a summer internship. Despite barely knowing me, she kindly offered me a position as a Creative Inquiry summer researcher. I spent the summer working on a low-cost blood glucose monitoring project and fell in love with research in a way I hadn’t realized was possible. It was an incredible learning experience and truly opened my eyes to the need to take risks. I had taken a chance and reached out to someone, and I got a job. After that, anything that I could possibly say “Yes!” to, I would.
“That project led to an offer for graduate school, also in Dr. Dean’s lab. I went from not planning to attend graduate school to completing a Master’s, PhD, and a company in four years. With my new lease on life, I turned grad school into almost a crucible — I tried everything: I co-mentored Creative Inquiry classes, founded and ran new Creative Inquiry classes, worked as a teaching assistant some semesters, and worked as a research assistant others. I attended the DEN (Design and Entrepreneurship Network) meetings, submitted to design competitions, attended and presented at conferences, helped organize outreach events, traveled to Tanzania, and more. I did all that I could to capture every experience available. Some opportunities led to obvious benefits, and others were maybe not as clearly beneficial. But every experience provided a learning opportunity and helped me to grow.
“I urge students to see graduate school as “Your No-Lose Scenario.” Not every opportunity will lead to a dream job, but this is the time to test the waters in a variety of areas. Try leading a CI for a semester – if it doesn’t work out, don’t do it the next semester. If it does work out, you just might be laying the ground work for a startup. Whatever your options may be, take advantage of them!”
