Mrs Dr Ama Frimpong has been named the Institute of Engineering and Technology's (IET) 2022 Young Woman Engineer, UK.

Dr Ama Frimpong is a Ghanaian living and working in the United Kingdom (UK). She is the Head of Product Development at the England and Wales-registered 52 North Health Ltd. The company’s name refers to the coordinates of the city it was born in, Cambridge: 52° N.

Ama manages the 4-year-old medical company’s engineering teams in the development of NeutroCheck®.

NeutroCheck is a an innovative, low-cost and portable device which helps to speedily identify chemotherapy patients who are at risk of the life threatening complication called neutropenic sepsis, alias febrile neutropenia (neutropaenic fever) – a life-threatening medical emergency occurring in immunosuppressed chemotherapy patients; where they experience a whole-body reaction to an infection while having a low level of neutrophils in the blood.

On winning, Ama said: “Wow! I feel truly honoured to be named the IET’s 2022 Young Woman Engineer of the Year, joining a line-up of incredible women who have come before me.

"As someone who has a passion for all things STEM, it’s amazing to have my work in medicine and healthcare recognised by leaders from across the industry.

"Growing up, I didn’t see any women engineers that looked like me, but thanks to the YWE awards, girls growing up today will see that there is a place in the exciting world of engineering for them.

"I want to use this platform to make a difference and encourage and inspire the engineers of tomorrow to change the world.”

The IET’s Young Woman Engineer of the Year Awards are prestigious engineering industry awards that celebrate women working in modern engineering. The awards aim to help change the perception that engineering is predominantly a career for men. 

These long-term awards are run by the Institute of Engineering and Technology as they work to engineer a better world. The IET inspires, informs and influences the global engineering and technology community to engineer a better world.

The awards are sponsored by a raft of impressive employers that actively support the career advancement of women engineers like Northrop Grumman and Capgemini Engineering – and see support from key partners like Where Women Work.  

Dr Ama Frimpong has made a lifelong commitment to volunteering as an ambassador, advocate and mentor to support and inspire more young people into STEM.