October 10, 2023 • 39 mins
Ever wondered about the inner workings of the healthcare technology management (HTM) industry? Our guest for this episode, Allison Woolford, MS, CBET a biomedical equipment specialist and team lead at Duke University Hospital, gives us an inside look. Allison is a powerful example of perseverance and dedication; In the last 18+ years she’s navigated her way from a lab technician role at the American Red Cross, through a stint as a ninth-grade earth science teacher, to her current position at Duke University Hospital.
Allison shares her experiences working with cutting-edge healthcare technology and the importance of communication within this field. She provides a comprehensive look into her work, including her dealings with anesthesia machines, and the necessary collaboration between IT and HTM professionals. She talks about her goals, such as her pursuit of a Certified Healthcare Technology Management certification and her involvement in trade shows, giving us a true window into the life of a biomedical equipment specialist.
But Allison doesn’t stop at technology. She brings a unique perspective to the table as she discusses her transition from technician to adjunct professor at Durham Technical Community College. She provides a peek into the future of the HTM field and her personal mission to bridge the gap between HTM and IT education. We also get a glimpse of her role in assisting to expand the program with three new classes in the fall of 2024. The conversation wraps up with a reflection on the human side of the HTM industry, reminding us of the people behind the Medical Equipment she services and the importance of their work. Tune in for this enlightening discussion with a true trailblazer in the HTM industry.
This podcast is sponsored by The College Biomedical Equipment Technology. You can find out more information about this outstanding institution at CBET.EDU.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to HTM on the Line, the podcast that is for
HTM by HTM.
I'm your host, bryant HawkinsSr.
In today's episode we'reprivileged to have Allison
Wolfert, a biomedical equipmentspecialist and team lead at Duke
(00:20):
University Hospital.
Allison is not just a guest.
She's a living testament toperseverance and dedication.
Over the past 18 plus yearsshe's journeyed from a lab
technician at the American RedCross to a night-grade earth
science teacher and now standsas a team lead at one of the
(00:44):
most renowned hospitals in theUnited States.
In this episode, allison setslight on the crucial role of
communication within the HTMfield and emphasizes the
collaboration needed between ITand HTM professionals for
seamless operations.
(01:05):
Yet Allison's story doesn'tstop there.
She brings a unique perspectiveto the table by discussing her
transition from a technician toan adjunct professor at Durham
Technical Community College.
As the conversation unfolds, wedelve into the human side of
(01:27):
the HTM industry.
Allison reflects on the peoplebehind the medical equipment she
services, emphasizing theprofound importance of HTM
professionals' work in healthcare.
Tune in for an enlighteningdiscussion with Allison Wolford,
a true trailblazer in the HTMindustry.
Let's get into this week'sepisode with Allison Wolford.
(01:53):
Allison, welcome to HTM on the9.
I'm so glad me and you canfinally get together how you
doing today.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I am doing wonderful.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
Great, great.
Before we get started, can youplease give us a little
background?
What led you to where you aretoday?
Speaker 2 (02:17):
My background so currently I am a biomedical
equipment specialist over atDuke University Hospital in
Durham, north Carolina, where Iam also the team lead for the
(02:37):
periop shop.
So we manage all the equipmentfor the operating rooms.
Mainly anywhere there is ananesthesia machine, we take care
of it.
Prior to that, I was over atUNC Rex Hospital in Raleigh
(02:58):
where I spent about four yearsmanaging various areas,
including outside clinics, nicu,helping out with patient towers
and working in the ORs and then, prior to that, I spent about
10 years with the American RedCross.
(03:21):
Hard to believe, but theyactually do have a bio med group
within the Red Cross to helpmanage their care.
They do have a bio med groupwithin the Red Cross to help
manage their equipment fortesting and manufacturing blood
products that are donated.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
What inspired you to do this?
Did you go to school?
Right out of high school intothe HTM industry?
Speaker 2 (03:43):
No, I knew nothing about the HTM history when I got
out of high school, even beforewhen I went to a magnet high
school.
So my concentration there wasenvironmental science.
But I've always wanted to be inthe health field.
I actually wanted to be apediatrician.
So I found out about XavierUniversity of Louisiana and New
(04:11):
Orleans and found out that theyare the top school for getting
African Americans into medicalschool.
So I wanted to go there.
Parents weren't really toohappy about it, but ultimately
they were.
They gave in to me and allowedme to go.
(04:33):
So I went to New Orleans and Igraduated from Xavier with a
bachelor's in biology andchemistry and as a grade of a
student as I was in high school,college is so much different
and I didn't fail but I'm doingas well.
(04:56):
And I discovered that I am notthat great of a test taker and
so that kind of scared me awayfrom taking the MCAT.
So about taking the MCAT iskind of hard.
Again to medical school.
So I kind of let go of thatdream and figured I would just
use my bachelor's degree doingsomething else and go into
(05:19):
teaching.
So when I graduated I actuallyworked.
I went to work, I had to find ajob.
So I worked at February 21, gota job at a mall and I
substitute.
So I was a substitute teacherfor Mecklenburg County school
(05:43):
systems down in Charlotte, northCarolina.
I did that for about six monthsbefore I got a lateral entry
position.
So I taught earth science toninth graders and that was
actually pretty interesting withgoing into the school and
(06:08):
getting.
As I'm walking through thehalls I get told why aren't you
in class?
And I have to constantly tellpeople I'm a teacher here and
make sure I had my badge on meto show everybody that I am a
teacher and I'm not one of thestudents walking the hall.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
So you went from a prestigious college in the great
city of New Orleans.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
Louisiana.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
And from there you went to work in the mall.
Then I think you said you was asubstitute teacher and then a
ninth grade teacher.
Yes, all the list before youventured into HTM world.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
I love teaching and I went and joined the American
Red Cross National TestingLaboratory.
So I was actually a labtechnologist and, using my
science background, I wastesting the donated blood for
viruses.
I started out with a lot ofmanual testing where you had to
(07:18):
watch the time.
You had machines but you're theone that had to feed the test
tubes in, make sure that itpipetted correctly into the
dishes, and then you had to putthe dishes into incubators and
at a certain amount of timeincubator will go off and then
(07:38):
put it into another machine mixup reagents.
So it was a lot of manualtesting when I first started at
the REC cross and eventually itmoved over to an automatic
system where you're able todirectly put the test tubes into
the machine and it did all thework for you.
(07:58):
You just sit there and watch itand look, make sure results
come out, make sure you have allyour controls on, and then that
data gets automaticallytransferred over to our database
.
We also worked with the variousvendors who would come in and
they would teach us littletricks here and there just to
make sure that we are able tofix the machine without messing
(08:22):
up any credibility of it.
So as I was learning that, Iwas like okay, this is pretty
interesting to go ahead and seethese big analyzers and be able
to take them apart.
And that's how I discovered myfirst HGM or you say, biomed
group.
(08:43):
It was five ladies who managedall the equipment at the
National Testing Laboratory inCharlotte.
They will come in on Mondaysand get the maintenance
completed for the equipment.
And it was like an eye openerto see okay, these ladies are
(09:06):
actually coming in doing repairs, checking temperature
monitoring systems, but it'ssomething that they can repair.
Call the vendor in and you getto see the vendor.
So I was like, hey, I want tojoin this group, this seems fun.
So I applied and they hired meon.
So I became part of the teamand I actually had the
opportunity to go down to Texasfor avid training on one of the
(09:31):
big analyzers.
So I was down there for a weekand when I came back I was then
able to train them on some ofthe techniques I've learned and
ultimately fix the big analyzerswhenever we couldn't get the
FSC in, and so I had theopportunity to help manage the
(09:54):
equipment throughout theSoutheast, from Virginia down to
.
Georgia over to Alabama,tennessee and a couple of times.
Actually opportunity, becausethey did a big equipment rollout
where I went to Oregon andWashington State and then helped
(10:20):
set up the shop in Puerto Rico.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Man, that's amazing.
So how many years we talkingright here from let's just
timeframe this from the momentyou graduated from savior to now
what you just mentioned?
How many years are we talkingright here?
Speaker 2 (10:37):
I was actually at the work across for 10 years.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
As a female professional in the
HTML-dominated industry, haveyou faced any challenges that
you had to overcome?
Speaker 2 (10:50):
I would say the biggest challenge is people
looking at me as if I don't knowwhat I'm talking about or they
see me as like do you reallythink you can do that?
And it was a big thing when Iwas with the Red Cross and
(11:13):
because, again, a lot of namelywithin the Red Cross women are
part of collections.
They are the nurses who arethere to assist the patients, to
set them up, and normallyanybody else who was doing
repairs for the equipment.
It was all guys and within ourgroup there was three women
(11:43):
within our whole area.
So them to see me come in andI'm like, ok, I'm actually going
to go and troubleshoot why youdon't have connectivity for your
blood drive or to figure out,ok, your data is not crossing on
your bus.
And then they come, look at melike, oh, you're going to
(12:03):
actually fix it.
I'm like, yeah, I'm going to fixit.
I'm going to help fix thisprinter that is damaged and pull
parts from one other printer tofix this printer.
I was like, yes, I'm the onethat's going to sit here and fix
it.
Or I'm going to troubleshootover the phone with you on why
you don't have a Wi-Fi signal onyour handheld device, or why
(12:24):
your CD duplicator, whichproduces all the CDs that go on
to the master computers, isn'tworking and help you
troubleshoot or might evenremote into it.
So once they so, I have to say,once I prove myself and it's
sad to say that then it's seemedas if that's when they all
(12:46):
started to respect my knowledgethat I do know what I'm doing.
And even to this day, if I goand I end up talking to somebody
, one of the patients, if wejust have a simple conversation
at the bus stop and I tell themwhat I'm doing.
They look at me like you do whatit's like.
Yeah, I can sit here and gointo the operating room and if
(13:07):
there's an issue with the bed Ican troubleshoot the bed.
Or I was going in andtroubleshoot the anesthesia
machine and they really areamazed when I walk around
carrying the ladder because Ihave to fix drifting operating
room lights and they're likelook at you in the ladder, it's
like, yeah, I do it all.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Now you mentioned a lot about how you had to
sometimes instruct or teach theend user how to use the
equipment.
So that takes some type ofcollaboration skills, which we
know is very crucial in what wedo.
So how do you foster effectivecollaboration between you and
the end user?
Speaker 2 (13:49):
I try to speak on a level that everybody will
understand.
We have a lot of the technicalknowledge from going to the
training and various trainingsfor the various pieces of
equipment, and I have to realizethat my expertise is different
from their expertise and I justtry to simplify it as much as I
(14:16):
can to help them to understand.
One example is everybody looksat I don't know this old school
technology, but the handheldPDMs.
If you look in the upper righthand corner trying to figure out
if the wire is connected toWi-Fi, you will see bars.
(14:38):
The bars indicate that you havea signal and then the notice
connected to the Wi-Fi.
Also, you have this little Ysymbol that looks like an
antenna.
So you always tell everybodyhey, look in the upper right
hand corner, you're going tolook for the hills and a martini
(14:58):
glass.
If you have an X over themartini glass, you're not
connected to the Wi-Fi.
And by saying that it clickedfor everybody to understand what
was going on.
And then by building arelationship of going around and
talking to people, even ifthey're not having a problem,
(15:18):
just checking in and saying, hey, how are you doing?
What's going on?
It helps them to make them feelmore comfortable when there is
a problem and you do come in andtalk to them about it.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Now, do you have any certifications?
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Yes, I do have my CVET and my goal is to get the
CHTM.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
Now, do you go to any trade shows?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yes, whenever I can, I try to go.
Sometimes it's hard, but I'mnot just the CHTM trade shows,
I'm trying to go to others.
I recently went to the NC TechAssociations Women in Tech
(16:08):
Summit that took place in NewBern last week, where it was
almost 300 women in the techindustry.
So there was a lot of people inIT, but it was great to.
But they didn't focus thelessons or you say this little
(16:29):
sessions on just IT things.
They focused on how to becomebetter mentors, how to get
sponsorships and how to motivateus to pursue advancements in
our career.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
Yes, because all those things are important.
You need that sponsor, thementor and actually IT is really
becoming to the forefront ofwhat we do with the repairs of
the medical equipment, as youmentioned, with the Wifi
situation there and since we ownthat.
Have you ever had any issues insurgery, say, where you and IT
(17:06):
had to work together?
Have you ever come acrosssomething like that where you
probably had to put on your IThat?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Oh yes, there is always that blur line between
HTM and IT, especially with allthe newer equipment that's
coming to place all the variousrobots and navigation systems,
with everything that now goes toEpic.
(17:34):
You have to know somethingabout computers and how it works
and the process A lot of times.
I have recently had to dealwith one of our navigation
systems because it was new.
They had for a while but theynormally didn't hook it up to
the network.
So it was going through the newsecurity protocols for IT to
(17:59):
get it so that it's allowed tobe on the network.
So I had to go down to theclinic and actually work with
the vendor to get the necessaryMAC addresses, ip addresses and
various information behind thescreen of the software for the
device, as well as checkingwhich jack the computer was
(18:22):
going to and that the system wasgoing to be connected to so
that it makes it through ourfirewalls.
So it seemed like a little bitof every day I have something
where I have to tag team with ITto get the work done.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
So you mentioned surgery and you mentioned youth
service anesthesia machines.
Do you have to deal with what'sthat?
I think it's like a capsulethat I guess that's used for the
EMR.
Are you familiar with that ordo you deal with that at times?
Speaker 2 (18:58):
Oh, so we have a couple rooms using the capsule
neurons, but for the most partwe are actually well.
We're actually transferringover to the capsules from the
Unity ID boxes.
So currently most of ouranesthesia machines are using
(19:22):
the Unity ID box which thenconnects to the epic computer
which is attached to theanesthesia machine and that's
how the gas information and thevital signs information goes
into epic.
So there's times where I haveto make sure that we see the
green lights on Unity ID, makesure it's powered on.
(19:45):
Sometimes that cat five cablethat goes from the front of the
vital signs machine onanesthesia machine is damaged.
So I have to replace that out,but as of right now we're
currently so.
That's where I spent a goodportion of the past couple days
this week actually installingthe new capsules onto the
(20:08):
machines that in I think about20 rooms so far this week have
completed.
Where I put the capsule on, hadto make sure that there was a
data drop in the room forplugged it in.
Data drop is working and if itwasn't, then I let the project
manager know so that they canwork it out with it to either
(20:32):
activate the port or even put inthe jack so that we can use for
the capsule projects.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
Listen that yourself, you probably don't realize what
you just said.
You said something about MACaddress, ip address, firewall,
unity, id box, wi Fi symbol, catfive cables, data drops,
activating the ports.
You pretty much speaking itlanguage and if you was to walk
into a bio man shop A lot oftechnicians may not know what
(21:05):
you're talking about.
So I don't know if you knowenough, but you're very first in
it terminology.
So definitely you aregravitating to the future of htm
and that's like you said, thatblur line between it and power
man is blending and youdefinitely are what the ball
(21:28):
mesh need to be able tounderstand and talk to and they
have classes to teach exactlywhat you're sitting here
explaining.
So whether you know that or not, you already crossed that line.
You, you speak in both languagesthere.
I'm just sitting therelistening to you and I'm amazed
at all the different things youjust flowing with.
So that shows that you aredefinitely keeping up with the
(21:51):
future or the changes that'sgoing on in healthcare and
that's to be committed.
The htm industry is verydiverse and it's growing every
single day.
Do you know of something that'svery different?
In htm, professional may wantto aspire that he may not know
exists.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
So it seems like everybody always thinks of htm.
Well, for those who find outabout it, it's in the hospital
or it's the field serviceengineers who come in and fix
some equipment in the hospital.
But it seems that we alwaysseem to forget about all the
(22:30):
other places where there ismedical equipment.
One example of that is oncruise ships.
Cruise ships actually have asmall clinic on the cruise lines
and I don't know if it reallycame out where you really
(22:55):
thought about it when coven itand you have people who are
getting sit on the cruise line.
But for the most part, whateverequipment you can think of in a
clinic or in your hospital,you're going to actually have it
on the cruise ship and they'regoing to have a medical center.
It might not be as fabulous oras fancy as the hospital would
(23:18):
have, but they're going to havethe procedure, like they're
going to have the exam chairs.
You're going to have an AEDeverywhere, just like when you
go to a stadium or the airport,there's an AED almost in every
corner.
So they're going to have AEDs,they're going to have D-Fibs,
they have their EKGs, they'regoing to take your vitals and
they do have lab equipment.
(23:39):
It might not be the fancy bigon the floor Siemens, or huge
thermal fish or incubators, butthey're going to have some of
those smaller analyzers that aretabletop ones so that they can
help test any patient that mightbe coming through might be sick
.
You want to make sure that youtreat them with the care they
(24:02):
need so that when the helicoptercomes to get them off, that
then they can truly go into thehospital to help them out.
Or might be something simplewhere they just have motion
sickness and you just want tomake sure that they're okay.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
So what you're saying is there's an HTM professional
that's living on a cruise ship.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Well, no, they don't.
So they don't actually live onthe cruise ship.
There is a company of Biomedsand not only do they manage the
Biomeds, they also help managethe nursing staff that's on the
cruise ship and they, whereverthe cruise ship is docked, they
(24:53):
will fly out to that location,take care of all the PMs,
whatever repairs are needed forthat medical equipment on that
ship, and then they have to beback off the ship before the
ship disembarks to go to itsnext journey.
So they're not actually livingon a ship, but they are flying
to wherever the ship may be.
(25:14):
If the ship is in Australia,there's actually a group in
Australia who would do thecruise ships that dock in
Australia.
There's people in.
Europe who will get the shipsthat are docked in Europe.
And there's some people in theUnited States who will fly over
to Greece, fly over to Germany,amsterdam, spain.
(25:38):
There's also been people goneover to Japan and manage their
inventory and their equipment ontheir cruise ships.
Besides, even all the littlecruise ships that travel up and
down the East Coast or gothroughout the Gulf, even those
(26:00):
small little yachts I think oneis American Cruise Line is an
example of that small ship thatgoes up and down the East Coast,
along the Northeast and towardsthose little areas.
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
So I guess I never thought about that.
But I know they had nurses thattravel with cruise ships but
the nurses have to have medicalequipment.
So it makes sense that an HTMprofessional would also be
somewhere involved with thatcruise ship and taking care of
that medical equipment.
Wow, that's what I neverthought of.
(26:34):
That's an eye opener.
Let's switch gears a little bithere.
What type of advice can yougive to an aspiring female in
the HTM industry?
Speaker 2 (26:47):
I have to say the same thing to the students I
currently teach at Durham Tech,through the interns that come
through a hospital Do not beafraid to ask questions, even if
you might think it's a dumbquestion.
Still ask it.
That is how you're going tolearn.
(27:09):
Also, take the initiative tofollow behind people.
Once you're in the hospitalsetting, once you're on the
intern, if you're new to thefield or even if you've been in
the field for years, followpeople, go with them.
(27:29):
If there is a situation that'sgoing on, especially with the
way technology is advancing andhow we are having that blurt
line between HTM and IT, go,follow them to go find out about
that new device or how totroubleshoot that new device.
There's instances where Iactually sit in on the end
(27:52):
services that the OR staff havereported to various new devices.
I checked it in and got thepaperwork from the vendor.
I don't really know how ittruly works.
I don't know what it's beingused for.
I know that it's good to go.
I sat in on a robot end serviceto see exactly what is this
(28:18):
robot used for.
It helps to bridge that gapbetween, okay, we have these
devices in and we're managingthem, making sure they're okay,
why?
Speaker 1 (28:32):
do we take care of them?
Speaker 2 (28:33):
Why are we managing them?
We're managing them so that thepatient that goes on there to
get their knee replaced is takencare of.
They're using the latesttechnology for that knee
replacement surgery.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Let's back up a second.
You kind of slipped that inthere when you was talking about
all the good advice.
You're trying to tell me you'rean instructor.
I thought you said you taughtthe night grad.
What kind of instructor are younow?
Speaker 2 (29:08):
I am actually an adjunct professor at Durham
Technical Community College fortheir biomedical equipment
technology associates degree.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Now wait a minute.
You went from hearing aboutthis to now teaching about it.
How's that going?
Tell us a little bit about that.
How is that part of theindustry going now that you're
on the teaching side of it?
How does that feel to look onthat side?
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Even with my other two degrees.
I was asked to go and evenalready had my experience.
I was actually asked to go andget this associates degree.
I went to Durham Tech while Iwas working at UNC Recs and got
(30:09):
the associates degree as I wasin the program, as I was working
in the hospital.
I realized this disconnectbetween what we're learning but
what I'm actually doing.
I wanted to help bridge thatgap back, because technology is
(30:38):
advancing and it seemed as ifthe program really wasn't
advancing.
With the technology we learneda lot about the theory of
electronics, we learned aboutmedical equipment.
Nowadays we don't do a lot ofsoldering, we don't do a lot of
(31:01):
physical repairing, replayingcomponents, because everything
is board replacement.
So we're replacing boards andthen we're getting it back up to
the field and getting it backup to the operating rooms.
So when I graduated, they askedif I went to mind teaching.
So I said, sure, I can't do afull time because I have my full
(31:23):
time job in hospital, but Ihave about here and there.
So I teach the intro to BioMecclass which, when COVID hit and
everything went online,discovered that there are
certain classes which can betaught online.
In certain classes you do needthat hands-on experience.
(31:44):
So the intro to class with oneof those classes that's capable
of being taught online.
So I teach that in the fall.
And then the funny part is, inthe spring, I teach a we call it
a software for techniciansclass, which is not geared just
(32:05):
for BioMecs, it's also gearedfor electronic students, where I
also teach C programming.
It's basic C programming but Iteach the C program class and
again, that is also all online.
So I'm able to do that while Istill work at the hospital.
And actually we actually justgot approval from the board at
(32:29):
the community college to expandthe BioMec program and we're
actually going to be introducingthree new classes in the fall
of 2024, I believe, where wewill have a medical laser class,
(32:50):
an extension to the biomedicalinstrumentation class and then a
separate class for hospitalsafety, if I remember those
three classes correctly.
And so starting next week iswhen I'll be working with the
(33:13):
director and one other professorthat they hired on to make up
well, not really make up, butget those courses situated, get
textbooks that are needed, getthe materials we need so that we
can move forward with startingthose classes in 2024.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
Wow, that's amazing.
I mean you have to be a one ofone.
I've never met someone who'sgotten their bachelor's degree,
master's degree and then wentback and got an associate degree
.
Most people would just taketheir bachelor and master and
use that and get into theindustry.
But the fact you went back andgot your associate degree, then
(33:52):
when you finished getting anassociate degree you started
teaching, that's got to be a oneof one too.
I don't know anybody thatgraduates with an associate and
turn them on, begin teachingunless you had the other product
credentials.
I mean that's amazing.
You're not only making a,bringing awareness to it, but
you're doing it by literallyteaching it.
(34:13):
Are there any other ways inwhich you are bringing awareness
to the HTM industry you couldspeak on?
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Well, when I can, I did complete one presentation
with the students at Durham Techso that they actually know what
life is like in a hospital, andI'm currently trying to
schedule them to come to thehospital so that they can see it
(34:43):
firsthand.
A lot of these students knowabout the program but don't
quite understand what it entailsand what life is like.
So I'm trying to help thatbridge again, bridge that gap
between okay, this is a coolcareer, but what do you actually
do?
So I have attended a careerfair at LNU School to speak to
(35:09):
the kids about what it is to bein the HTM field, to be a bio
med, and they seem prettyinterested to hand out some
brochures that I got from Amy.
So I'm trying to go there andjust try to speak and let people
know and, more so, advocate forthe field, because we have a
(35:33):
lot of people retiring, a lot ofpeople leaving, and we want to
make sure that we can refillthat gap.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
I'm just sitting here thinking about you talking, and
every time you talk you throwanother layer on top.
So let me see if I can shufflethis deck.
You teach at a communitycollege intro into the BioMed
program.
You've spoken to high schoolstudents.
You've went to career fairs forelementary children.
(36:03):
Do you realize?
Here you are hitting everyaspect of humans to bring
awareness to this industry.
And that's awesome, man, that'sto be committed, and I know
that takes a lot of your time todo all those things.
So I appreciate your efforts inthat, because that's amazing.
(36:25):
You should take a bow, becausenot many people are doing what
you're doing.
So I appreciate your effortsand I'm going to show whoever's
listening to this podcastappreciate your efforts also.
But you mentioned so many greatstories and accomplishments.
Can you share one of your mostmemorable success stories that
(36:47):
you are particularly proud of?
Speaker 2 (36:50):
I have to say I'm proud of every, every time I'm
able to fix something,regardless of how small it is,
because I know that by me fixingit, it is helping the surgeons
and the nurses do their job.
Speaker 1 (37:09):
What type of I guess I want to say not advice, but
what kind of motivation youcould share with the industry,
something you think that can weall can take from your knowledge
, or just give us some type ofencouragement or motivation.
What could you share with theindustry?
Speaker 2 (37:31):
This funny guy actually asks today what is it
that I love about my job?
And the first thing that cameto my mind is are the people,
Not just the hospital staff Iwork with.
Yes, being in the OR is astressful situation and their
stress is sometimes not workingbecause they're getting it from
(37:53):
the surgeon.
The surgeon wants everything towork perfectly because they
don't want anything to happen totheir patient, but ultimately,
it's what we all do to make surethat that patient on that table
is okay and gets the care thatthey need, and we just all just
(38:14):
need to realize that our biggerpicture is that person.
We seem to sometimes forgetthat we come into the hospital
to fix a D-Fib or to fix a vitalscience machine or an allerious
pump, but we have to realizewhat's happening once we fix
that allerious pump.
(38:35):
What's happening once we fixthat vital science machine is
going to go on to a patient andto make sure that they're okay,
and that is our job A lot ofpeople we forget.
We just forget that we forgetthe human side of what we do and
, even though we might not getthanked by the patient or even
(38:59):
by the surgeon, we're thatperson that's behind the curtain
getting things done, but we arealso there to help and we also
care for those people.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Right, well said, allison.
I appreciate you, and anytimeyou want to come back on here,
you always welcome.
Keep doing what you're doing.
You're doing a great job.
Allison and the HTM field is abetter place because you're a
part of it.
Thank you very much for comingon.
Welcome to HTM on the Line, the podcast that is for
HTM by HTM.
I'm your host, bryant HawkinsSr.
In today's episode we'reprivileged to have Allison
Wolfert, a biomedical equipmentspecialist and team lead at Duke
(00:20):
University Hospital.
Allison is not just a guest.
She's a living testament toperseverance and dedication.
Over the past 18 plus yearsshe's journeyed from a lab
technician at the American RedCross to a night-grade earth
science teacher and now standsas a team lead at one of the
(00:44):
most renowned hospitals in theUnited States.
In this episode, allison setslight on the crucial role of
communication within the HTMfield and emphasizes the
collaboration needed between ITand HTM professionals for
seamless operations.
(01:05):
Yet Allison's story doesn'tstop there.
She brings a unique perspectiveto the table by discussing her
transition from a technician toan adjunct professor at Durham
Technical Community College.
As the conversation unfolds, wedelve into the human side of
(01:27):
the HTM industry.
Allison reflects on the peoplebehind the medical equipment she
services, emphasizing theprofound importance of HTM
professionals' work in healthcare.
Tune in for an enlighteningdiscussion with Allison Wolford,
a true trailblazer in the HTMindustry.
Let's get into this week'sepisode with Allison Wolford.
(01:53):
Allison, welcome to HTM on the9.
I'm so glad me and you canfinally get together how you
doing today.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
I am doing wonderful.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
Great, great.
Before we get started, can youplease give us a little
background?
What led you to where you aretoday?
Speaker 2 (02:17):
My background so currently I am a biomedical
equipment specialist over atDuke University Hospital in
Durham, north Carolina, where Iam also the team lead for the
(02:37):
periop shop.
So we manage all the equipmentfor the operating rooms.
Mainly anywhere there is ananesthesia machine, we take care
of it.
Prior to that, I was over atUNC Rex Hospital in Raleigh
(02:58):
where I spent about four yearsmanaging various areas,
including outside clinics, nicu,helping out with patient towers
and working in the ORs and then, prior to that, I spent about
10 years with the American RedCross.
(03:21):
Hard to believe, but theyactually do have a bio med group
within the Red Cross to helpmanage their care.
They do have a bio med groupwithin the Red Cross to help
manage their equipment fortesting and manufacturing blood
products that are donated.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
What inspired you to do this?
Did you go to school?
Right out of high school intothe HTM industry?
Speaker 2 (03:43):
No, I knew nothing about the HTM history when I got
out of high school, even beforewhen I went to a magnet high
school.
So my concentration there wasenvironmental science.
But I've always wanted to be inthe health field.
I actually wanted to be apediatrician.
So I found out about XavierUniversity of Louisiana and New
(04:11):
Orleans and found out that theyare the top school for getting
African Americans into medicalschool.
So I wanted to go there.
Parents weren't really toohappy about it, but ultimately
they were.
They gave in to me and allowedme to go.
(04:33):
So I went to New Orleans and Igraduated from Xavier with a
bachelor's in biology andchemistry and as a grade of a
student as I was in high school,college is so much different
and I didn't fail but I'm doingas well.
(04:56):
And I discovered that I am notthat great of a test taker and
so that kind of scared me awayfrom taking the MCAT.
So about taking the MCAT iskind of hard.
Again to medical school.
So I kind of let go of thatdream and figured I would just
use my bachelor's degree doingsomething else and go into
(05:19):
teaching.
So when I graduated I actuallyworked.
I went to work, I had to find ajob.
So I worked at February 21, gota job at a mall and I
substitute.
So I was a substitute teacherfor Mecklenburg County school
(05:43):
systems down in Charlotte, northCarolina.
I did that for about six monthsbefore I got a lateral entry
position.
So I taught earth science toninth graders and that was
actually pretty interesting withgoing into the school and
(06:08):
getting.
As I'm walking through thehalls I get told why aren't you
in class?
And I have to constantly tellpeople I'm a teacher here and
make sure I had my badge on meto show everybody that I am a
teacher and I'm not one of thestudents walking the hall.
Speaker 1 (06:25):
So you went from a prestigious college in the great
city of New Orleans.
Speaker 2 (06:31):
Louisiana.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
And from there you went to work in the mall.
Then I think you said you was asubstitute teacher and then a
ninth grade teacher.
Yes, all the list before youventured into HTM world.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
I love teaching and I went and joined the American
Red Cross National TestingLaboratory.
So I was actually a labtechnologist and, using my
science background, I wastesting the donated blood for
viruses.
I started out with a lot ofmanual testing where you had to
(07:18):
watch the time.
You had machines but you're theone that had to feed the test
tubes in, make sure that itpipetted correctly into the
dishes, and then you had to putthe dishes into incubators and
at a certain amount of timeincubator will go off and then
(07:38):
put it into another machine mixup reagents.
So it was a lot of manualtesting when I first started at
the REC cross and eventually itmoved over to an automatic
system where you're able todirectly put the test tubes into
the machine and it did all thework for you.
(07:58):
You just sit there and watch itand look, make sure results
come out, make sure you have allyour controls on, and then that
data gets automaticallytransferred over to our database
.
We also worked with the variousvendors who would come in and
they would teach us littletricks here and there just to
make sure that we are able tofix the machine without messing
(08:22):
up any credibility of it.
So as I was learning that, Iwas like okay, this is pretty
interesting to go ahead and seethese big analyzers and be able
to take them apart.
And that's how I discovered myfirst HGM or you say, biomed
group.
(08:43):
It was five ladies who managedall the equipment at the
National Testing Laboratory inCharlotte.
They will come in on Mondaysand get the maintenance
completed for the equipment.
And it was like an eye openerto see okay, these ladies are
(09:06):
actually coming in doing repairs, checking temperature
monitoring systems, but it'ssomething that they can repair.
Call the vendor in and you getto see the vendor.
So I was like, hey, I want tojoin this group, this seems fun.
So I applied and they hired meon.
So I became part of the teamand I actually had the
opportunity to go down to Texasfor avid training on one of the
(09:31):
big analyzers.
So I was down there for a weekand when I came back I was then
able to train them on some ofthe techniques I've learned and
ultimately fix the big analyzerswhenever we couldn't get the
FSC in, and so I had theopportunity to help manage the
(09:54):
equipment throughout theSoutheast, from Virginia down to
.
Georgia over to Alabama,tennessee and a couple of times.
Actually opportunity, becausethey did a big equipment rollout
where I went to Oregon andWashington State and then helped
(10:20):
set up the shop in Puerto Rico.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Man, that's amazing.
So how many years we talkingright here from let's just
timeframe this from the momentyou graduated from savior to now
what you just mentioned?
How many years are we talkingright here?
Speaker 2 (10:37):
I was actually at the work across for 10 years.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
As a female professional in the
HTML-dominated industry, haveyou faced any challenges that
you had to overcome?
Speaker 2 (10:50):
I would say the biggest challenge is people
looking at me as if I don't knowwhat I'm talking about or they
see me as like do you reallythink you can do that?
And it was a big thing when Iwas with the Red Cross and
(11:13):
because, again, a lot of namelywithin the Red Cross women are
part of collections.
They are the nurses who arethere to assist the patients, to
set them up, and normallyanybody else who was doing
repairs for the equipment.
It was all guys and within ourgroup there was three women
(11:43):
within our whole area.
So them to see me come in andI'm like, ok, I'm actually going
to go and troubleshoot why youdon't have connectivity for your
blood drive or to figure out,ok, your data is not crossing on
your bus.
And then they come, look at melike, oh, you're going to
(12:03):
actually fix it.
I'm like, yeah, I'm going to fixit.
I'm going to help fix thisprinter that is damaged and pull
parts from one other printer tofix this printer.
I was like, yes, I'm the onethat's going to sit here and fix
it.
Or I'm going to troubleshootover the phone with you on why
you don't have a Wi-Fi signal onyour handheld device, or why
(12:24):
your CD duplicator, whichproduces all the CDs that go on
to the master computers, isn'tworking and help you
troubleshoot or might evenremote into it.
So once they so, I have to say,once I prove myself and it's
sad to say that then it's seemedas if that's when they all
(12:46):
started to respect my knowledgethat I do know what I'm doing.
And even to this day, if I goand I end up talking to somebody
, one of the patients, if wejust have a simple conversation
at the bus stop and I tell themwhat I'm doing.
They look at me like you do whatit's like.
Yeah, I can sit here and gointo the operating room and if
(13:07):
there's an issue with the bed Ican troubleshoot the bed.
Or I was going in andtroubleshoot the anesthesia
machine and they really areamazed when I walk around
carrying the ladder because Ihave to fix drifting operating
room lights and they're likelook at you in the ladder, it's
like, yeah, I do it all.
Speaker 1 (13:28):
Now you mentioned a lot about how you had to
sometimes instruct or teach theend user how to use the
equipment.
So that takes some type ofcollaboration skills, which we
know is very crucial in what wedo.
So how do you foster effectivecollaboration between you and
the end user?
Speaker 2 (13:49):
I try to speak on a level that everybody will
understand.
We have a lot of the technicalknowledge from going to the
training and various trainingsfor the various pieces of
equipment, and I have to realizethat my expertise is different
from their expertise and I justtry to simplify it as much as I
(14:16):
can to help them to understand.
One example is everybody looksat I don't know this old school
technology, but the handheldPDMs.
If you look in the upper righthand corner trying to figure out
if the wire is connected toWi-Fi, you will see bars.
(14:38):
The bars indicate that you havea signal and then the notice
connected to the Wi-Fi.
Also, you have this little Ysymbol that looks like an
antenna.
So you always tell everybodyhey, look in the upper right
hand corner, you're going tolook for the hills and a martini
(14:58):
glass.
If you have an X over themartini glass, you're not
connected to the Wi-Fi.
And by saying that it clickedfor everybody to understand what
was going on.
And then by building arelationship of going around and
talking to people, even ifthey're not having a problem,
(15:18):
just checking in and saying, hey, how are you doing?
What's going on?
It helps them to make them feelmore comfortable when there is
a problem and you do come in andtalk to them about it.
Speaker 1 (15:29):
Now, do you have any certifications?
Speaker 2 (15:33):
Yes, I do have my CVET and my goal is to get the
CHTM.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
Now, do you go to any trade shows?
Speaker 2 (15:46):
Yes, whenever I can, I try to go.
Sometimes it's hard, but I'mnot just the CHTM trade shows,
I'm trying to go to others.
I recently went to the NC TechAssociations Women in Tech
(16:08):
Summit that took place in NewBern last week, where it was
almost 300 women in the techindustry.
So there was a lot of people inIT, but it was great to.
But they didn't focus thelessons or you say this little
(16:29):
sessions on just IT things.
They focused on how to becomebetter mentors, how to get
sponsorships and how to motivateus to pursue advancements in
our career.
Speaker 1 (16:44):
Yes, because all those things are important.
You need that sponsor, thementor and actually IT is really
becoming to the forefront ofwhat we do with the repairs of
the medical equipment, as youmentioned, with the Wifi
situation there and since we ownthat.
Have you ever had any issues insurgery, say, where you and IT
(17:06):
had to work together?
Have you ever come acrosssomething like that where you
probably had to put on your IThat?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Oh yes, there is always that blur line between
HTM and IT, especially with allthe newer equipment that's
coming to place all the variousrobots and navigation systems,
with everything that now goes toEpic.
(17:34):
You have to know somethingabout computers and how it works
and the process A lot of times.
I have recently had to dealwith one of our navigation
systems because it was new.
They had for a while but theynormally didn't hook it up to
the network.
So it was going through the newsecurity protocols for IT to
(17:59):
get it so that it's allowed tobe on the network.
So I had to go down to theclinic and actually work with
the vendor to get the necessaryMAC addresses, ip addresses and
various information behind thescreen of the software for the
device, as well as checkingwhich jack the computer was
(18:22):
going to and that the system wasgoing to be connected to so
that it makes it through ourfirewalls.
So it seemed like a little bitof every day I have something
where I have to tag team with ITto get the work done.
Speaker 1 (18:40):
So you mentioned surgery and you mentioned youth
service anesthesia machines.
Do you have to deal with what'sthat?
I think it's like a capsulethat I guess that's used for the
EMR.
Are you familiar with that ordo you deal with that at times?
Speaker 2 (18:58):
Oh, so we have a couple rooms using the capsule
neurons, but for the most partwe are actually well.
We're actually transferringover to the capsules from the
Unity ID boxes.
So currently most of ouranesthesia machines are using
(19:22):
the Unity ID box which thenconnects to the epic computer
which is attached to theanesthesia machine and that's
how the gas information and thevital signs information goes
into epic.
So there's times where I haveto make sure that we see the
green lights on Unity ID, makesure it's powered on.
(19:45):
Sometimes that cat five cablethat goes from the front of the
vital signs machine onanesthesia machine is damaged.
So I have to replace that out,but as of right now we're
currently so.
That's where I spent a goodportion of the past couple days
this week actually installingthe new capsules onto the
(20:08):
machines that in I think about20 rooms so far this week have
completed.
Where I put the capsule on, hadto make sure that there was a
data drop in the room forplugged it in.
Data drop is working and if itwasn't, then I let the project
manager know so that they canwork it out with it to either
(20:32):
activate the port or even put inthe jack so that we can use for
the capsule projects.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
Listen that yourself, you probably don't realize what
you just said.
You said something about MACaddress, ip address, firewall,
unity, id box, wi Fi symbol, catfive cables, data drops,
activating the ports.
You pretty much speaking itlanguage and if you was to walk
into a bio man shop A lot oftechnicians may not know what
(21:05):
you're talking about.
So I don't know if you knowenough, but you're very first in
it terminology.
So definitely you aregravitating to the future of htm
and that's like you said, thatblur line between it and power
man is blending and youdefinitely are what the ball
(21:28):
mesh need to be able tounderstand and talk to and they
have classes to teach exactlywhat you're sitting here
explaining.
So whether you know that or not, you already crossed that line.
You, you speak in both languagesthere.
I'm just sitting therelistening to you and I'm amazed
at all the different things youjust flowing with.
So that shows that you aredefinitely keeping up with the
(21:51):
future or the changes that'sgoing on in healthcare and
that's to be committed.
The htm industry is verydiverse and it's growing every
single day.
Do you know of something that'svery different?
In htm, professional may wantto aspire that he may not know
exists.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
So it seems like everybody always thinks of htm.
Well, for those who find outabout it, it's in the hospital
or it's the field serviceengineers who come in and fix
some equipment in the hospital.
But it seems that we alwaysseem to forget about all the
(22:30):
other places where there ismedical equipment.
One example of that is oncruise ships.
Cruise ships actually have asmall clinic on the cruise lines
and I don't know if it reallycame out where you really
(22:55):
thought about it when coven itand you have people who are
getting sit on the cruise line.
But for the most part, whateverequipment you can think of in a
clinic or in your hospital,you're going to actually have it
on the cruise ship and they'regoing to have a medical center.
It might not be as fabulous oras fancy as the hospital would
(23:18):
have, but they're going to havethe procedure, like they're
going to have the exam chairs.
You're going to have an AEDeverywhere, just like when you
go to a stadium or the airport,there's an AED almost in every
corner.
So they're going to have AEDs,they're going to have D-Fibs,
they have their EKGs, they'regoing to take your vitals and
they do have lab equipment.
(23:39):
It might not be the fancy bigon the floor Siemens, or huge
thermal fish or incubators, butthey're going to have some of
those smaller analyzers that aretabletop ones so that they can
help test any patient that mightbe coming through might be sick
.
You want to make sure that youtreat them with the care they
(24:02):
need so that when the helicoptercomes to get them off, that
then they can truly go into thehospital to help them out.
Or might be something simplewhere they just have motion
sickness and you just want tomake sure that they're okay.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
So what you're saying is there's an HTM professional
that's living on a cruise ship.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Well, no, they don't.
So they don't actually live onthe cruise ship.
There is a company of Biomedsand not only do they manage the
Biomeds, they also help managethe nursing staff that's on the
cruise ship and they, whereverthe cruise ship is docked, they
(24:53):
will fly out to that location,take care of all the PMs,
whatever repairs are needed forthat medical equipment on that
ship, and then they have to beback off the ship before the
ship disembarks to go to itsnext journey.
So they're not actually livingon a ship, but they are flying
to wherever the ship may be.
(25:14):
If the ship is in Australia,there's actually a group in
Australia who would do thecruise ships that dock in
Australia.
There's people in.
Europe who will get the shipsthat are docked in Europe.
And there's some people in theUnited States who will fly over
to Greece, fly over to Germany,amsterdam, spain.
(25:38):
There's also been people goneover to Japan and manage their
inventory and their equipment ontheir cruise ships.
Besides, even all the littlecruise ships that travel up and
down the East Coast or gothroughout the Gulf, even those
(26:00):
small little yachts I think oneis American Cruise Line is an
example of that small ship thatgoes up and down the East Coast,
along the Northeast and towardsthose little areas.
That's amazing.
Speaker 1 (26:14):
So I guess I never thought about that.
But I know they had nurses thattravel with cruise ships but
the nurses have to have medicalequipment.
So it makes sense that an HTMprofessional would also be
somewhere involved with thatcruise ship and taking care of
that medical equipment.
Wow, that's what I neverthought of.
(26:34):
That's an eye opener.
Let's switch gears a little bithere.
What type of advice can yougive to an aspiring female in
the HTM industry?
Speaker 2 (26:47):
I have to say the same thing to the students I
currently teach at Durham Tech,through the interns that come
through a hospital Do not beafraid to ask questions, even if
you might think it's a dumbquestion.
Still ask it.
That is how you're going tolearn.
(27:09):
Also, take the initiative tofollow behind people.
Once you're in the hospitalsetting, once you're on the
intern, if you're new to thefield or even if you've been in
the field for years, followpeople, go with them.
(27:29):
If there is a situation that'sgoing on, especially with the
way technology is advancing andhow we are having that blurt
line between HTM and IT, go,follow them to go find out about
that new device or how totroubleshoot that new device.
There's instances where Iactually sit in on the end
(27:52):
services that the OR staff havereported to various new devices.
I checked it in and got thepaperwork from the vendor.
I don't really know how ittruly works.
I don't know what it's beingused for.
I know that it's good to go.
I sat in on a robot end serviceto see exactly what is this
(28:18):
robot used for.
It helps to bridge that gapbetween, okay, we have these
devices in and we're managingthem, making sure they're okay,
why?
Speaker 1 (28:32):
do we take care of them?
Speaker 2 (28:33):
Why are we managing them?
We're managing them so that thepatient that goes on there to
get their knee replaced is takencare of.
They're using the latesttechnology for that knee
replacement surgery.
Speaker 1 (28:53):
Let's back up a second.
You kind of slipped that inthere when you was talking about
all the good advice.
You're trying to tell me you'rean instructor.
I thought you said you taughtthe night grad.
What kind of instructor are younow?
Speaker 2 (29:08):
I am actually an adjunct professor at Durham
Technical Community College fortheir biomedical equipment
technology associates degree.
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Now wait a minute.
You went from hearing aboutthis to now teaching about it.
How's that going?
Tell us a little bit about that.
How is that part of theindustry going now that you're
on the teaching side of it?
How does that feel to look onthat side?
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Even with my other two degrees.
I was asked to go and evenalready had my experience.
I was actually asked to go andget this associates degree.
I went to Durham Tech while Iwas working at UNC Recs and got
(30:09):
the associates degree as I wasin the program, as I was working
in the hospital.
I realized this disconnectbetween what we're learning but
what I'm actually doing.
I wanted to help bridge thatgap back, because technology is
(30:38):
advancing and it seemed as ifthe program really wasn't
advancing.
With the technology we learneda lot about the theory of
electronics, we learned aboutmedical equipment.
Nowadays we don't do a lot ofsoldering, we don't do a lot of
(31:01):
physical repairing, replayingcomponents, because everything
is board replacement.
So we're replacing boards andthen we're getting it back up to
the field and getting it backup to the operating rooms.
So when I graduated, they askedif I went to mind teaching.
So I said, sure, I can't do afull time because I have my full
(31:23):
time job in hospital, but Ihave about here and there.
So I teach the intro to BioMecclass which, when COVID hit and
everything went online,discovered that there are
certain classes which can betaught online.
In certain classes you do needthat hands-on experience.
(31:44):
So the intro to class with oneof those classes that's capable
of being taught online.
So I teach that in the fall.
And then the funny part is, inthe spring, I teach a we call it
a software for techniciansclass, which is not geared just
(32:05):
for BioMecs, it's also gearedfor electronic students, where I
also teach C programming.
It's basic C programming but Iteach the C program class and
again, that is also all online.
So I'm able to do that while Istill work at the hospital.
And actually we actually justgot approval from the board at
(32:29):
the community college to expandthe BioMec program and we're
actually going to be introducingthree new classes in the fall
of 2024, I believe, where wewill have a medical laser class,
(32:50):
an extension to the biomedicalinstrumentation class and then a
separate class for hospitalsafety, if I remember those
three classes correctly.
And so starting next week iswhen I'll be working with the
(33:13):
director and one other professorthat they hired on to make up
well, not really make up, butget those courses situated, get
textbooks that are needed, getthe materials we need so that we
can move forward with startingthose classes in 2024.
Speaker 1 (33:31):
Wow, that's amazing.
I mean you have to be a one ofone.
I've never met someone who'sgotten their bachelor's degree,
master's degree and then wentback and got an associate degree
.
Most people would just taketheir bachelor and master and
use that and get into theindustry.
But the fact you went back andgot your associate degree, then
(33:52):
when you finished getting anassociate degree you started
teaching, that's got to be a oneof one too.
I don't know anybody thatgraduates with an associate and
turn them on, begin teachingunless you had the other product
credentials.
I mean that's amazing.
You're not only making a,bringing awareness to it, but
you're doing it by literallyteaching it.
(34:13):
Are there any other ways inwhich you are bringing awareness
to the HTM industry you couldspeak on?
Speaker 2 (34:21):
Well, when I can, I did complete one presentation
with the students at Durham Techso that they actually know what
life is like in a hospital, andI'm currently trying to
schedule them to come to thehospital so that they can see it
(34:43):
firsthand.
A lot of these students knowabout the program but don't
quite understand what it entailsand what life is like.
So I'm trying to help thatbridge again, bridge that gap
between okay, this is a coolcareer, but what do you actually
do?
So I have attended a careerfair at LNU School to speak to
(35:09):
the kids about what it is to bein the HTM field, to be a bio
med, and they seem prettyinterested to hand out some
brochures that I got from Amy.
So I'm trying to go there andjust try to speak and let people
know and, more so, advocate forthe field, because we have a
(35:33):
lot of people retiring, a lot ofpeople leaving, and we want to
make sure that we can refillthat gap.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
I'm just sitting here thinking about you talking, and
every time you talk you throwanother layer on top.
So let me see if I can shufflethis deck.
You teach at a communitycollege intro into the BioMed
program.
You've spoken to high schoolstudents.
You've went to career fairs forelementary children.
(36:03):
Do you realize?
Here you are hitting everyaspect of humans to bring
awareness to this industry.
And that's awesome, man, that'sto be committed, and I know
that takes a lot of your time todo all those things.
So I appreciate your efforts inthat, because that's amazing.
(36:25):
You should take a bow, becausenot many people are doing what
you're doing.
So I appreciate your effortsand I'm going to show whoever's
listening to this podcastappreciate your efforts also.
But you mentioned so many greatstories and accomplishments.
Can you share one of your mostmemorable success stories that
(36:47):
you are particularly proud of?
Speaker 2 (36:50):
I have to say I'm proud of every, every time I'm
able to fix something,regardless of how small it is,
because I know that by me fixingit, it is helping the surgeons
and the nurses do their job.
Speaker 1 (37:09):
What type of I guess I want to say not advice, but
what kind of motivation youcould share with the industry,
something you think that can weall can take from your knowledge
, or just give us some type ofencouragement or motivation.
What could you share with theindustry?
Speaker 2 (37:31):
This funny guy actually asks today what is it
that I love about my job?
And the first thing that cameto my mind is are the people,
Not just the hospital staff Iwork with.
Yes, being in the OR is astressful situation and their
stress is sometimes not workingbecause they're getting it from
(37:53):
the surgeon.
The surgeon wants everything towork perfectly because they
don't want anything to happen totheir patient, but ultimately,
it's what we all do to make surethat that patient on that table
is okay and gets the care thatthey need, and we just all just
(38:14):
need to realize that our biggerpicture is that person.
We seem to sometimes forgetthat we come into the hospital
to fix a D-Fib or to fix a vitalscience machine or an allerious
pump, but we have to realizewhat's happening once we fix
that allerious pump.
(38:35):
What's happening once we fixthat vital science machine is
going to go on to a patient andto make sure that they're okay,
and that is our job A lot ofpeople we forget.
We just forget that we forgetthe human side of what we do and
, even though we might not getthanked by the patient or even
(38:59):
by the surgeon, we're thatperson that's behind the curtain
getting things done, but we arealso there to help and we also
care for those people.
Speaker 1 (39:13):
Right, well said, allison.
I appreciate you, and anytimeyou want to come back on here,
you always welcome.
Keep doing what you're doing.
You're doing a great job.
Allison and the HTM field is abetter place because you're a
part of it.
Thank you very much for comingon.
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