Seth Crino

 Hospitals employ a great variety of medical instruments.  These tools occasionally break down.  Furthermore, periodic ‘tune-ups’ are necessary to make sure devices are operating at peak efficiency.  Erroneous equipment can seriously affect the care of a patient.

 This is where Biomedical Engineers come in.  Also called “Clinical Engineers”, or “Bio-Med Equipment Technicians”.  All new equipment must be inspected before use, including tests for electrical safety and calibration.

 1943: Biomed engineers begin helping the military.  1970: An article citing numerous deaths and injuries due to hospital electrical problems leads to an increase of Biomed engineers in the hospital.

 Each piece of equipment must be checked by Biomed at least once a year, with some devices requiring checkups twice a year.  This is called a “preventative maintenance”, or a “PM”.  All functions of the device are tested by following instructions from the manual.  If the PM is passed, it is returned to the floor. Otherwise, it undergoes…

 Most problems with equipment can be fixed by relatively simple means.  However, some machines, such as Ultrasound imaging devices, require training from the manufacturer to be certified in repairing it.  And some machines require a representative from the company to come fix it instead.

 No system, no matter how well made, will ever be completely free from flaws  Faulty pieces, user error, aging technology, and rough usage will ensure job security for a long time.

 UConn BME FAQ’s  John D. Enderle, Joseph D. Bronzino Introduction to Biomedical Engineering Academic Press, 2011  Wikipedia: Biomedical Equipment Technician:  USAMB history: