In a recent interview with members of the Colorado Association of Biomedical Equipment Technicians (CABMET), the topic of training and certification arose. Fred Jaramillo, CBET, BS, biomed contract manager, University of Colorado Hospital, mentioned that not only should biomeds look to improve their technical skills through certification and training courses, but also that there is value and a need to advance their skills in other facets.
“Biomeds nowadays really look outside of their organization for professional development and take the time to look at other opportunities like their local biomed association, being an AAMI member,” says Jaramillo. “There are also other things like taking speaking classes or Powerpoint classes so that they can bring more to the table. I think the more well rounded a biomed is, the more valuable he is to the organization. You can’t get that from a technical training class. If you go to class on ultrasound, it’s not going to tell you how to speak in public or put together a document on equipment evaluation.”
Have you or any of your coworkers pursued these more general professional advancement skills? If so, where did you/they go for this training? If you haven’t pursued these avenues, do you think they are necessary in the biomedical/clinical engineering field?