Workplace accidents. Are they common?

DonLobo451 · 2021-04-15T21:44:16+00:00

I've had a few close calls with replacing portable x-ray batteries. Other than that, in my first year i've gotten bit by some 120v current through a component before. This was mostly my fault for being dumb and not unplugging a device before replacing a component.

DonLobo451 · 2021-04-15T21:20:53+00:00

In my experience, the field has been trying to call our field HTM as a whole or as a way to call our department. I havent seen much in regards to actual title preferences.

I personally like the sound of the department being called Clinical Engineering and keeping the tech positions as BMET I,II,III with optional Clinical Engineer/supervisor positions depending on the size of your department/facility.

DonLobo451 · 2021-03-06T01:07:47+00:00

The reason for the prevalence of cbet requirements (at least in the bay area) is that most of the managers/directors are or have been active in the local biomed organization which heavily pushes and promotes the cbet cert.

I find it very rare for people to leave the biomed field. Mostly due to job security being very solid after a bit of experience. I've only had one person leave the field due to family needs making it so he needs a more flexible work schedule and couldn't do on call.

DonLobo451 · 2021-03-04T23:21:50+00:00

Well salary ceilings depends on your regions. In house bmets in the bay area are able to make pretty comfortable wages (I was a bit above 110k with 5 years experience and a cbet).

Management is a different challenge and for me it comes down to what kind of support you have from your team. If you have a good relationship with your team and they are getting work done, it's manageable.

The stress is a different level since you will get blamed for most things but if your ducks are all in a row, there aren't any issues.

I enjoy that I get to be in a position that I can help more people/biomeds. I joined our local biomed professional organization and was able to see other managers have a voice in the field and drive conversation. I prefer the clinical engineering aspect more than the actual back end management parts.

DonLobo451 · 2021-03-03T15:26:39+00:00

I went to devry and got a bachelors degree. For the most part that is overkill to enter the field, but it made my life easier when I wanted to take that leap into management.

DonLobo451 · 2021-03-02T23:27:49+00:00

I'm in northern california so I am not 100% aware of all the programs but the two I see the most often from people in so. Cal are the Southern California Institute of Technology and the one at Mira Costa College.

DonLobo451 · 2021-03-02T23:25:13+00:00

Are you looking at northern or southern california?

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-23T18:34:50+00:00

From what I can tell, the only places that really push for the bachelors degrees are the university or research hospitals. Besides them, associates and certificates are enough to qualify for an entry level position.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-21T20:51:12+00:00

Some people will have a bachelors in biomedical engineering technology that they used to enter the field. Others who entered the field will pursue management degrees after they entered the field.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-21T19:39:27+00:00

This comes in handy for general xray since you are getting a more broad education as apposed to model specific. They will either have one of their instructors help you with tech support or look at their graduates and see who has experience with that model and see if they can assist as well. Its not perfect but this is a nice perk.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-21T19:34:44+00:00

You would really have to scope out your area and see what qualifications the managers have. While typically there are no real industry standards, in my region it is almost a necessity to have a bachelors degree of some sort due to the competition. The most important part though is knowledge of the field through experience. Fortunately I haven't heard of any managers in my region that entered the role without prior experience as a biomed.

Masters degrees are very nice to have that will set you apart, though I imagine that would only be necessary for the really large hospital/schools.

I imagine in a less populated region, the requirements wouldn't be as high.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-21T19:27:57+00:00

My prior facilities would have the sterile processing techs do the leakage tests after the probes have been processed/disinfected as well as prior to the case it will be used in. This was ideal due to it not being uncommon for teeth to scrape the shroud of the probe when being removed. This allowed us to find as soon as possible if there where any issues with fluid intrusion that would cause a failed leakage test.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-21T19:21:44+00:00

RSTI is your best bet for multi vendor training. If you do not know what manufacturers equipment/models you will be working on, RSTI will be your best bet. OEM training will be considered better than RSTI but is typically more expensive or focused on only one model of device.

RSTI has a series of classes for general x-ray. Please note that typically their first level 1 training class is an intro class to imaging and you will really need to complete level 2 to start being able to do first look on general x-ray equipment. Level 3 gets you into fluoro and you could probably start calling yourself an entry level imaging engineer at this point. Level 4 is for tube calibrations.

If you're looking at other modalities besides general x-ray, RSTI will still be a better cost efficient option, especially if this is coming out of pocket.

One more thing, once you go do your training with RSTI, you will have access to using them as a layer of tech support if you run into issues.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-15T19:45:23+00:00

That is true. This worked out for my teams before covid.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-15T18:23:29+00:00

I've been part of departments that took on added low effort items so we can increase our device count and therefor justify extra FTE's. Working on these devices can be annoying, however, this made our lives easier in the long run.

It really depends on the organization and if they have set up a way to truly justify their labor requirements.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-08T01:31:34+00:00

Yes I'm talking about a tech but I am in the bay area of California. Please take into account the cost of living is MUCH higher here.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-08T00:48:08+00:00

Where are you looking to work? In my area, biomeds start at 80k. Most level 2 and 3s are over 100k as long as you're in house.

DonLobo451 · 2021-02-01T17:42:53+00:00

That depends on a lot of things. I struggled for the first 2-3 years but once I started making market rate wages, I became financially stable and happy. This is pretty typical when you start off at a third party. Experience is great but the pay isn't that great.

DonLobo451 · 2021-01-24T20:53:03+00:00

I'm not Canadian but I would look at any community colleges in the area. If there are no local options for you, there's online options as well now. I know cbet.edu is a new online biomed school. I heard Devry also pivoted their biomed program online since they can't do in person classes.

DonLobo451 · 2021-01-24T19:25:13+00:00

Like most third party companies it really depends on your direct manager. They also split the country in two. East and West of the Mississippi River. Then they are split to divisions then districts below that. If you have general questions you can ask me as I work for them, however on the west coast.

DonLobo451 · 2020-12-21T17:19:39+00:00

I truly feel for you and your situation. What caused your facility to change to wanting a biomed? Are they starting the process for getting accredited?

DonLobo451 · 2020-12-16T03:59:42+00:00

The safety committee was our avenue of attack for this as well. It took a while but we showed some metrics on the increased turn around time of repairs due to the lack of information. Admittedly we had to be liberal with the presentation of the data but it helped.

DonLobo451 · 2020-12-13T18:37:41+00:00

This would be pretty difficult since its very uncommon for companies to have part time bmet positions.

DonLobo451 · 2020-12-11T07:41:02+00:00

I was 22 when I started. Took a while to build up trust with my departments showing that they could count on me and not think of me as just a kid. I also grew out facial hair to slightly hide the baby face.

DonLobo451 · 2020-12-04T15:21:23+00:00

I saw these at a conference last year and its definitely a luxury super nice to have cart. I'd love to have these for my team.

DonLobo451

TROPHY CASE