IBET Momentum Fellow Paige McFarlane aims to use microfluidics to design faster, more accurate medical tests

For Paige McFarlane (EngSci 2T5, BME PhD student) biomedical engineering was the perfect middle ground between two paths.  

“Where I come from, there’s this idea, you either go into medicine or you go into engineering,” she says. 

“I didn’t want to be a doctor or nurse, but I did want to work in health care, so this seemed like a good way to combine the two.” 

McFarlane, who grew up in Jamaica, came to U of T to pursue an undergrad in Engineering Science. She says her decision to pursue a PhD out of undergrad was in part motivated by receiving the Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) Momentum Fellowship.  

“At first I thought I’d do a master’s and then go for the PhD, but when I got the fellowship that would allow me to do my PhD directly, it was like a door opened and the idea really became possible,” she says. 

As a recipient of the 2025 fellowship, McFarlane will receive financial support, mentorship, training and networking opportunities throughout her PhD. The IBET PhD Project is intended to foster equitable and inclusive research environments to increase the presence of Indigenous and Black academics in STEM. 

She credits IBET with connecting her to two labs working on microfluidics, and is currently completing rotations in both.  

While she is still planning her PhD path, McFarlane is interested in microfluidics as they pertain to point of care. 

“Microfluidics studies how very small amounts of fluids, such as water or blood, flow through tiny channels,” she says.  

“I think of it like tiny plumbing. At the point of care, we’re talking about things like using microfluidics as a quick and easy tool for in-home testing, or diagnostic tests done in the doctor’s office. I think that’s where I’ll focus my research.”  

She is also keeping inclusivity in mind when thinking about her future research, noting the current lack of research around women’s health. 

“When you’re designing your own experiments, you can try and ensure an inclusive sample set for data collection,” she says.

“I’m hoping with my PhD to ensure that whatever research I do, it takes into account different biomarkers or variations that women have. The main thing I’m hoping is that my research ends up in the hands of those it’s intended to help, so that’s why I’m interested in the point-of-care diagnostics.” 

Outside of the lab, McFarlane is taking advantage of all that the IBET program has to offer. Over the summer, she attended a presentation by a previous fellowship recipient, where she got to see the reach of IBET’s community.  

“I’m excited for the mentorship that those who have gone before me can offer as well as the mentorship that I can hopefully give to those after me.” 

“I’m looking forward to IBET’s annual conference as it will be a nice first step and training ground into that kind of environment for presenting research work.” 

She is also partaking in mentorship opportunities by volunteering with U of T’s DISCOVERY program. McFarlane has previously assisted with the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)annual high school conference and spent two summers working for the Engineering Outreach Office in the Blueprint program. 

“That was probably my favourite program I’ve worked with because there were two students I mentored there who I saw on campus studying Engineering the following year,” she says. 

“It’s the best thing ever getting to mentor high school students and then seeing them pursue their dreams.” 

This article was originally published by U of T Engineering.