Biomed Certification Study Guide

Biomed Certification Study Guide prepared by Dave Harrington for the CMIA California Medical Instrumentation Association

Dave Harrington has been involved with medical instrumentation since 1964, right after he blew out his knee playing hockey.  First he was doing design work on IV and ventilator products and some physiological recording systems that was followed by time as a product manager and then sales of medical devices before going to the Tufts New England Medical Center for close to 20 years.  While there he was the instructor on Biomedical Technology at the Franklin Institute in Boston, for over 17 years, and also presented courses at Wentworth Institute, Tufts, MIT and various community colleges in the New England area.  After retiring from Tufts he managed a program that sent devices and provided training to medical personnel around the world.  Harrington has done projects in over 50 countries around the world.  After a 10 year stint at Technology in Medicine, he retired again to concentrate on international development work. He has over 90 publications, many in 24 X 7 where he wrote the ICC prep series for about 5 years and over 100 presentations to biomedical meetings around the world.

CLICK HERE to download the 122 page PDF file document.

 

BioMed Ed Spring 2012 Cerification Preparation

Biomedical Equipment Technician (BMET) certification is a positive step in a lifelong career in the medical equipment maintenance profession.
 
The BioMed Ed Website has been created to provide study guides and sample exam questions for those preparing to take the CBET certification. This material is not intended to “teach” individuals, but rather review and renew materials that have been learned through education, training and work experience.
 
When you register for one of the webinar courses, here is what you receive:

•Live Webinars – Participation in live webinars of CBET topic course from your location. During the live interactive webinar; listen, watch and ask questions to the instructor and the participants. You can also add comments to add to the presentation. Most webinars begin at 6:00 pm eastern standard time on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday evening
 
•Recorded Webinars – In the event you miss a webinar you can watch one at your convenience. Each CBET topic course has 3 videos that are approximately 1 hour long (for the 3 hour session) and can be down loaded from the website.

•Handouts – Each CBET topic course has handouts in pdf format that you can view and print from the website.

•Topic Specific Quizzes – These are practice quizzes on each CBET course area that you take on line. As soon as you are completed with all of the questions, it is graded displaying the correct and incorrect responses. You can take these as many times as you like.

•Scrambled Quizzes – For each CBET topic course, there is a question bank that you can select 10-20-30-50 questions to take as a practice quiz. Each time the questions are randomly selected and scrambled, so you will get different questions on each attempt. You can take these as many times as you like and it will display the correct and incorrect responses.

•References for Additional Study Materials – There are web links, other handouts and recommendations for other study materials.

•Up to 6 Months Access to the Website – Based upon when you create your account and make payment, you can have access to the website to begin study preparation months in advance. Registrations run from November – April and May – October each year (these are based upon the exam scheduled dates of the first week in May and November).

•Random Question Sample Exam – If you register for all 5 CBET topic courses, you will have access to a sample CBET exam (150 questions balanced as the CBET exam would be)

Note: Some questions in the scrambled questions are incomplete at this time. This is a works in progress and files/images are being loaded on a regular basis.

CLICK HERE  for more information and registration.

CLICK HERE  for the Spring 2012 schedule.

 

CABMET Spring 2012 Certification Study Group

The Colorado Association of Biomedical Equipment Technicians CABMET is starting their Spring 2012 study group for all technicians interested in taking the ICC Certification test in May of 2012.

CABMET will offer CBET, CLES, and CRES classes in Denver this Spring but they will also be available by Teleconference and the Web anywhere in the nation.

These classes begin on Tuesday, March 20, and individual registration cost is $60 per person.  Registration includes a log in and downloadable class material that will be presented during the study group.  However, simple registration does not offer teleconference and Web access.  To gain teleconference access, you must purchase the combination package for $200 per person, which also includes videos from previous classes and the current class.

CLICK HERE  for more information and registration.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act And The Importance

Of Healthcare Asset Inventory

In today’s highly competitive hospital environment, capital asset management is becoming more important than ever.  Asset management is still one of the weakest areas of internal control and with the passing of new legislations; facilities have to be more accountable.  

In 2002, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act was enacted as a reaction to the number of major corporate financial scandals including those from Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, and others.  This set new standards for U.S. corporate auditing and holds CEO’s and CFO’s personally responsible for the accuracy of the company’s financial reporting. Institutions such as hospitals must also follow Sarbanes-Oxley.   Any organization seeking grants, large insurance policies, or additional forms of funding must adhere to Sarbanes-Oxley.

Maintaining accurate records of all assets the facility is managing is imperative to proper auditing practices.  It is recommended hospitals record/reconcile their capital equipment list every 3-5 years.  Movable medical equipment is lost, replaced, and stolen more often than administrators think. 

So, how can one accurately report the capital assets currently owned if you don’t KNOW what you have?  Out of date information on your hospital’s capital asset ledger can have a major compliance and financial impact. 

Things to think about:

- How are you auditing your capital assets?
- What processes do you have in place?
- Supply inventories may be conducted yearly, but when was your last capital audit?

Industry experts and analysts agree hospitals that maintain an effective asset management program have an overall lower cost of ownership, reduced procurement, operations, and other costs.

CLICK HERE  for more information on The Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Contributed By:
Manage Resource Group
Brunswick, Ohio
“Helping to assess, inform, and empower healthcare providers with their equipment management needs.”
CLICK HERE  to visit our website.

 

NIBP Measurement Techniques

NIBP Measurement Techniques Issues and Challenges that affect us with Ausculatory and Oscillometric.

Ausculatory (manual or automated) uses detection of Korothoff sounds to determine blood pressure.  Detection is either by a clinician’s ear using a stethoscope or a microphone inside of an automated unit.  Pressure is displayed by either a dial(Aneroid) or column of mercury.

Oscillometric measures the oscillations in the air contained in the machine’s umbilical cable caused by the arterial pressure pulse. The machine measures MAP then calculates systolic and diastolic pressure. This reading is usually displayed by LED’s (Light Emitting Diodes) on a display.

CLICK HERE  to view/download this short
Powerpoint Presentation.

Counterfeits Threaten Patient Safety

By: Martha Vockley

Medical technology professionals, beware.  A stealth incursion perpetrated by unscrupulous operators could test everything you know and believe about the healthcare industry and patient safety.

Activities that befit a thriller film or airplane reading—organized crime, corruption, fraud, subterfuge, forgery, identity theft, black markets, shadow trade, bogus Internet sites, illegal border crossings—could turn into a real-life nightmare.  Why?  Counterfeit medical devices and supplies are beginning to show up on the radar as an emerging concern for regulators, manufacturers, healthcare institutions, legal and risk experts—and you.

CLICK HERE  to view/download the entire PDF file article.

CLICK HERE  to view/download:  Best Practices in the Fight Against Global Counterfeiting, An Action Guide to Strengthen Cooperation and Collaboration Across Industry Sectors and Among Global Supply Chains PDF file document.

 

AAMI and ASHE to Collaborate on CMS Response

The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) is teaming up with the American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) to explore potential solutions to a federal directive on maintenance schedules for medical equipment that has much of the healthcare technology management community up in arms.

AAMI and ASHE, a division of the American Hospital Association dedicated to facilities engineering, will bring stakeholders together to facilitate development of an evidence-based response to a memo from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).  The two groups will also partner with George Mills, head of The Joint Commission’s Engineering Department, to request a meeting with top CMS officials to discuss the issue.

“We want to have an exploratory discussion with CMS about the implications of the new clarification,” says John Collins, ASHE’s director of engineering and compliance.

The agency issued a memo on Dec. 2, 2011, to state survey directors on the the upkeep of medical devices.  It says hospitals cannot stray from the manufacturer’s preventive maintenance (PM) recommendations for critical equipment.  Adjustments to the PM interval for noncritical equipment are allowed provided they are “based upon a systematic, evidence-based assessment” that confirms the change won’t undermine patient and staff safety, and only if the facility has enough maintenance history on the device.

The memo was criticized by the healthcare technology management community, with many saying it will lead to more work hours and costs without additional benefit to the patient.

AAMI President Mary Logan says the collaboration can help convince CMS to consider alternatives.

“Although difficult to swallow, what CMS is doing is consistent with what is happening throughout healthcare: They are using an evidence-base approach to its requirements, ” she says.  ”In order to be successful, the profession ultimately will need to use an evidence-based approach to show CMS a better way.  In short, CMS is looking for a standard.

CLICK HERE  To read the original of this AAMI News Brief.

CLICK HERE  To read more about the reaction to the CMS announcement.

 

META Invites Your Participation

Dear Friends, Colleagues, Educators, and Experts,

The Medical Equipment & Technology Association (META) would like to invite you all to participate in the forthcoming “The M.E.T.A. Scholar” educational newsletter.  META has a committed 500+ members and we are asking for volunteers to submit articles and review submissions.  If you already have a cool topic you enjoy then write about it and submit it to us.  Additionally, if you do not have a topic or cannot think of one–we can gladly help you.  If you would like to submit an article or become a reviewer please send me an email at elsupremo1@hotmail.com.  Remember there is no “I” in Team “META” … everyone can make a huge impact on our community.

We have a really positive feeling about “The M.E.T.A Scholar”. You will enjoy reading it!!!

Warm regards,

Alberto Vasquez, Education Chairmen

Chris Correll, Education Co-Chairmen

CLICK HERE  to go to the META Website.

Federal Board Seeks Comments

On Proposed Accessibility Standards For Medical Equipment

A federal agency is seeking public comments on a series of draft standards aimed at making medical diagnostic equipment more accessible to people with disabilities.

The United States Access Board, which promotes accessible design of products, says it released the proposed document to “improve the quality of healthcare for individuals with disabilities, and ensure that they receive examinations, diagnostic procedures, and other healthcare services equal to those received by individuals without disabilities.  The standards will facilitate independent transfers by individuals with disabilities onto and off of diagnostic equipment, and enable them to maintain their independence, confidence, and dignity.”

The standards, available for comment until June 8, address access to products such as:

- Examination tables and chairs
- Weight scales
- Mammography equipment

The board says in the draft document that it consulted AAMI’s comprehensive human factors standard, HE75, to create technical and design criteria for use by manufacturers.

The document, Proposed Accessibility Standards for Medical Diagnostic Equipment, doesn’t impose any mandatory requirements on healthcare providers or manufacturers. However, an agency such as the U.S. Department of Justice could compel a hospital or healthcare facility to acquire equipment that conforms to the standards, according to the board.

“Medical device manufacturers may have an economic incentive to produce accessible products that conform to the standards for healthcare providers who need to acquire accessible medical diagnostic equipment,” the board says.

Once the comment period closes, the board says it will create a panel of stakeholders to review the remarks and recommend how the standards should be finalized.  The board is also known as the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board.

CLICK HERE  to read the original AAMI News Release.

CLICK HERE  to read the draft standards.

The Future of Repair Parts? Make Them Yourself?

What a great world we live in.  Now we even have 3D printers.  You may have heard of them.  They use paper, ceramic, or metal and can actually build a 3D object!  Read the amazing story below.

Are we going to do this for repair parts in the future?

3D Printers Now Print Human Body Parts

By Chris Brandrick, PCWorld  – February 6, 2012  1:59 PM

An elderly woman is the first person in the World to be fitted with a 3D-printed body part–a new lower jaw.

According to the BBC, 83-year-old patient had long suffered from a badly infected lower jaw that was considered too risky to operate on by way of traditional methods.  Due to the associated risks, doctors turned to 3D-printing as a viable alternative.

The solution came together through a collaboration between academics, doctors, scientists and engineers.  The BIOMED Research Institute at the University of Hasselt worked with engineers from the Xios University College, the Medical Engineering department from the University of Leuven and the facial surgery team at the Orbis Medical Center.

These academics took their research to Netherlands-based Xilloc Medical, who created the design for the required lower jaw.  With a design complete, it was over to Belgian-firm LayerWise to print it.

LayerWise built the jaw implant from titanium powder and a special artificial bone plasma coating, and it took only a few hours to print.  LayerWise’s printer makes use of a laser beam to melt the layers of titanium together to ensure a solid end resuit.

The completed lower jaw implant weighs in at 107 grams, which is said to be slightly heavier than a natural jaw, but not so much that it’s uncomfortable for the patient.  The operation to fit the printed jaw took surgeons just a few short hours, rather than the usual 20-plus hours that a traditional reconstruction procedure could take.  The patient was at home speaking and eating within a matter of days after the surgery–an unusually quick recovery time for this type of operation.

The whole thing is rather impressive, if a little disconcerting.  The team behind this world first say that this operation opens the way for more 3D-printed patient-required body parts.

CLICK HERE  to view the original news story.

Contributed by:

Patrick Lynch, CCE, CBET
Biomedical Support Specialist
Global Medical Imaging, LLC
222 Rampart Street
Charlotte, North Carolina  28203
plynch@GMI3.com
http://www.gmi3.com/blog
http://www.gmi3.com

Patrick Lynch is a respected author of many articles for and about the field of Biomedical/Clinical Engineering and Healthcare Technology Management.  These articles have been published in many trade journals, magazines, and on internet websites everywhere.  He is a member, officer, advisor, and contributor to more then ten different biomedical societies and associations all across the country.  He is a member of our OCEA Advisory Committee.