Biomedical Technicians Keep Hospital Equipment In Working Order

When Steve Bezanson describes his students' role in a hospital, he uses a pie chart. Each slice represents a different department, such as radiology, laboratory, surgery or recovery. The crust represents the biomedical equipment repair technician, because he or she must work in every department, maintaining and repairing lifesaving machinery.

"You never get bored because every day you're doing something different and every day you're doing something that has a sense of value to it," says Bezanson, instructor of the biomedical equipment technician program at Dakota County Technical College in Rosemount (www.dctc.edu). "You are impacting a person's life in a positive way."

The educational foundation

Biomedical techs attend a two-year degree program, including an internship in which they learn how to maintain and repair electronic, electromechanical and hydraulic equipment used in hospitals. After graduation and certification, they may work in hospitals, for equipment manufacturers or as independent contractors.

The demand for graduates and a two-year waiting list led DCTC to allow new students to enroll in January. Required courses include electricity, solid state electronics, digital and microprocessor equipment, instrumentation, mechanical systems, medical terminology, first responder and customer service. Because of the increase in wireless technology in hospitals, DCTC has added courses in network systems and computer maintenance. Students must also take courses in communications, physiology, writing and research.

Internship augments hands-on learning

During their internship, students work closely with technicians in a hospital setting. At the University of Minnesota Medical Center-Fairview, they must demonstrate proficiency on mobile equipment, including infusion, feeding and pain control pumps, compression devices to prevent blood clots, and syringe pumps used on children and in anesthesia.

With advances in technology, school is only the beginning of lifelong learning for biomedical techs, according to Bezanson. Manufacturers introduce new equipment all the time, and biomed techs frequently travel to factories to learn how to repair and maintain equipment.

Biomed techs may expect to earn $19 to $26 an hour. Although the job outlook nationwide is good, new graduates may have to leave the Twin Cities to find work, according to Snyder. "When people get into biomed careers here in the Twin Cities, they tend to stay," she says.