Harnessing Drones to Deliver Healthcare in the Himalayas

DroneBlocks is proud to partner with She Maps, an International drone, and geospatial education provider, to deliver an amazing new curriculum paired Simulator Environment based in the Himalayan Mountains. In an exciting follow-up to our Mars Simulator Curriculum – Healthcare in the Himalayas features challenges based in the real world, connecting students with a tangible obstacle to help those in need. 

The team at She Maps has skillfully and passionately crafted a module-based curriculum that challenges students to design a drone delivery system that is time efficient and sustainable so that remote communities located in the Himalayas can gain access to valuable healthcare. With additional help and education from WeRobotics and Nepal Flying Labs, students are briefed on the challenges of reaching patients and healthcare workers in the many remote regions of the Himalayas…who often must travel for days for healthcare access. The remainder of the course is solving that complex problem with the use of Drone Delivery. Students will:

• Evaluate the fastest system for medical delivery in remote areas of Nepal

• Design and construct a model drone attachment that will successfully simulate a method to carry medical supplies and patient samples

• Manually and autonomously fly a drone to simulate the delivery of the medical supplies

• Understand how drones can be used to overcome humanitarian challenges

The Himalayan Simulator environment is teeming with towering mountains and lush hills in which small villages are located. Students will have to plan and navigate their drone’s journey in the most efficient path possible, to reach the remote pockets hidden in the rough terrain. There are sure to be bumps on the road to mission success, and the simulator is the perfect environment to test their calculations and eventually – celebrate their accomplishments as they play out before their eyes. Once flight paths are perfected within the simulator, students can save their code and connect to their Tello’s, launching a real-world mission that has already been tested for success. The environment can also be used independently of the curriculum for students who wish to test and explore beyond.

She Maps has been providing certified STEM programs around the world for over 6 years – collaborating with the surveying and spatial sectors to introduce these skills to young students, especially women and girls, and have reached more than 8,000 students and teachers in the process. The Healthcare in the Himalayas teachers pack offers a complete curriculum including Curriculum Mapping, Lesson Sequence, Student Activity Sheets, StoryMap, and Assessment Rubrics. The Drone Simulator also opens up the possibilities of independent or home study for students. The Healthcare in the Himalayas curriculum is available to all DroneBlocks subscribers.

In honor of computer science week, DroneBlocks will be opening the simulator to all schools and students worldwide for FREE for the entire month of December.