By Alyx Arnett

In most dental clinics, when a compressor fails or an autoclave malfunctions, there’s no technician stationed just down the hall. Instead, dentists often face long waits for overbooked repair technicians.

With more than 200,000 practicing dentists in the United States and only about 3,200 dental equipment repair technicians,¹ the math doesn’t add up, says Darrine Miller, vice president of operations at UptimeServices, a provider of tools and training for healthcare facilities. “You can have all the dentists you want, but if their equipment doesn’t work, patients go unseen,” Miller says. “And that is the conundrum this country is in right now, without anyone really knowing it.”

Even when a technician is available, Miller says, formal training is often lacking—because it hasn’t existed. Military programs once filled that gap, but most have been phased out. In the absence of standardized education, technicians typically learn on the job, making it harder to ensure consistency and harder still to attract new talent to the field.

That’s now changing. UptimeServices and the College of Biomedical Equipment Technology (CBET) have launched the country’s first accredited dental equipment repair technician program. The goal: to formalize training, grow the technician pipeline, and better integrate dental technology into the healthcare technology management (HTM) fold.

A Hidden Crisis in Dental Equipment Servicing

Despite overlaps in equipment between dental and medical fields, the two have long operated in separate silos. Dental devices like sterilizers, imaging systems, and compressors fall squarely into the category of medical equipment—but in dental settings, they’ve often fallen outside the scope of HTM.

That divide extends to regulation. Hospitals are subject to oversight by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, with accrediting bodies like the Joint Commission and DNV enforcing strict protocols for equipment maintenance and safety. But about 80% of dentists practice in outpatient clinics and are not subject to those same requirements.² As a result, dental equipment is often serviced without the documentation, performance checks, or safety inspections that are standard in hospitals.

“The equipment that’s in those offices all needs to be maintained just like a traditional healthcare facility,” says Richard “Monty” Gonzales, president of CBET. 

But in practice, that often doesn’t happen. Instead of preventive maintenance, many clinics follow a fix-it-when-it-breaks model. “[A dentist] buys an autoclave. He puts it on the counter, and he uses it until it breaks,” says Matt Lau, senior manager of technician education at UptimeServices. “They’re doing spore tests, but nobody’s coming in to calibrate this thing ever.”

Even basic safety protocols can fall through the cracks. Lau says many dental offices don’t fully understand what an electrical safety check is or why it’s important. “It’s absolutely foreign to them,” says Lau, who helped develop the training curriculum for the new dental equipment repair technician program.

In some cases, even identifying broken equipment can be a challenge. “There’s a lot of confusion where [a technician will] get a call for a compressor, when it’s actually suction,” says Danielle McGeary, vice president of HTM at the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI). “They come in with parts and tools to fix one thing, when it’s the other.”

These kinds of operational blind spots all trace back to a common cause: the lack of standardized education and training in dental equipment servicing.

The Fix: A First-of-Its-Kind Training Program

To fill that gap, the dental equipment repair technician program offers a dedicated pathway tailored to the needs of dental practices.

The primary offering is a 24-credit-hour certificate program composed of eight online courses. Three are dental-specific—covering the dental environment, dental utilities and support systems, and dental delivery systems. The other five build core technical skills: electronics, measurement and testing, troubleshooting, professional development, and safety procedures.

A second, three-phase pathway, offered through CBET’s business training arm, focuses solely on the dental-specific courses. The first phase—the dental environment—is entirely online, while the latter two—dental utilities and support systems, and dental delivery systems—follow a hybrid format: six weeks of virtual instruction followed by one week of hands-on lab training at CBET’s San Antonio, Texas, facility.

During the hands-on portion, students train on equipment in mock dental clinic zones. The utility room features compressors, vacuum pumps, water filtration systems, and amalgam separators. The operatory includes dental chairs, delivery units, lights, and imaging devices, along with smaller tools such as handpieces, curing lights, and ultrasonic scalers. In the sterilization area, students learn to operate autoclaves, ultrasonic cleaners, and other devices essential to instrument reprocessing.

One highlight of the program, Miller says, is that it doesn’t just teach students how to fix equipment. It also teaches them how dental clinics actually work, walking students through the day-to-day operations of a clinic, introducing them to the roles of various dental specialists, the flow of patient care, and the interpersonal dynamics they’ll encounter on the job. “In the dental world, dentists have an intimate relationship with their equipment because they actually physically own it, and they physically use it on all their patients, which is drastically different from the medical side of the business,” she says.

Themes like safety, documentation, and compliance run throughout. “It’s really bringing that HTM thinking into this area and making sure folks are properly trained to maintain all the equipment and understand all the equipment,” says McGeary. 

She adds that some devices like X-ray systems carry serious risks if handled improperly. “You need to be properly shielded. You can get hurt if you open up an X-ray without properly powering it down,” she says. “So there are a lot of safety concerns, too. It is really essential to ensure that these folks are very well trained before working on this equipment.”

Who It’s For: New Entrants and Current Biomeds

The dental equipment repair technician program offers a structured path into the field for those just starting out, as well as a way for current HTM professionals to broaden their skill set.

For newcomers, “This might be the thing that they’ve always wanted to do, but they just didn’t know it because they didn’t know it existed,” says Miller. 

To help establish the field as a recognized and viable career path, the program’s organizers are collaborating with organizations such as the HOSA (formerly Health Occupations Students of America) and the American Healthcare Apprenticeships (AHA). HOSA, recognized by the US Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services, is introducing dental repair to its network of more than 300,000 health-focused students nationwide. At the same time, AHA has created a program to help educate students and workforce commissions that dental equipment repair is a profession. AHA is also establishing pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship pathways.

For those already working in HTM, the new program provides an opportunity to expand their skill set. As more hospitals and clinics incorporate dental services, HTM professionals are encountering equipment that falls outside their traditional training. “Some of the equipment that is in front of them now is dental, and they typically avoid it because they don’t have that experience,” Miller says. 

Formal training can not only expand a technician’s capabilities, but it can also open new revenue streams for HTM departments by filling scheduling gaps with dental service calls. And for some, it may offer the chance to branch out on their own. “I view it as an expansion of what biomed techs are doing now but with new product lines, different types of equipment, and different environments,” says Gonzales. 

Industry Backing: Manufacturers Step In

The program has garnered support from dental manufacturers like MGF Compressors, MARS Bio-Med, A-dec Dental Equipment, and DENTALEZ, which are contributing equipment and investing in technician education.

MGF Compressors, which manufactures compressed air systems for dental practices, donated compressors for students to use in CBET’s San Antonio lab. “The students can tear apart and put [the compressors] back together so they get comfortable with working on compressors,” says David Solomon, senior sales consultant for MGF Compressors.

Rouman Atanason, who runs MGF Compressors’ United States distribution warehouse, sees the program as an opportunity to ensure future technicians are better trained—especially amid a shrinking workforce. “In the last five, six years, we’ve seen a shortage where the old technicians were going, and the new ones coming in just didn’t have the knowledge on how to work on the equipment,” says Atanason. 

While original equipment manufacturer training remains valuable, Solomon says it’s more about “putting out the fire.” The national curriculum fills a broader gap. “My hope and aspiration would be that the school…teaches them about the full system so that they understand the differences between different compressors—how they should be sized, what needs need to be met—so that they could walk into any environment and understand what they’re looking at,” he says. 

MARS Bio-Med, a Canadian manufacturer specializing in mercury filtration and environmental safety, is supporting the program with both equipment donations and financial aid. The company has committed $25,000 in scholarship funding for 2025—which CBET has matched—and plans to double that amount in 2026 and 2027. The 2025 amount will fund 10 scholarships at $5,000 per student.

President Stu Sinukoff says a recognition of unmet need drives the company’s involvement. “There’s a big need for technicians to work on and fix the equipment that’s out there that really isn’t working,” he says. He also points to financial barriers that can keep aspiring students from participating. “There are people out there who don’t have a laptop, who can’t take the course,” he adds. “There are people in need everywhere, and that’s what MARS Bio-Med is about—helping people.”

The Road Ahead: Certification, Growth, and Industry Change

The dental equipment repair technician program, stakeholders say, could catalyze a broader shift toward professionalization, standardization, and recognition of dental service within the HTM field.

According to UptimeServices’ Lau, the program has the potential to elevate the status of dental technicians. “Us creating this accredited program where somebody can say they are certified on dental equipment…is going to bring a little more status to the dental industry,” he says.

Lau also sees opportunity for experienced HTM professionals to improve technical support in dental settings, where devices like blood pressure monitors are common but often go unserviced due to limited training. “The dentist is going to win because now we’re giving them a technician who actually knows what a physiological monitor is and knows how to repair it,” says Lau.

AAMI’s McGeary says the program supports broader efforts to bring dental equipment service into the HTM fold—including AAMI’s work with the American Dental Association to develop ST113, a standard focused on steam sterilization and sterility assurance in small dental clinics. While the existing American National Standards Institute/AAMI ST79 standard for steam sterilization in healthcare facilities is technically applicable to dental settings, much of its content is geared toward large, hospital-based facilities, says Amanda Benedict, AAMI’s vice president of sterilization. “We believe that this new standard will be an invaluable resource for professionals providing sterile processing at dental practices of all sizes and will support dental patient safety,” Benedict says.

As part of its efforts to support this sector, AAMI is also deepening its collaboration with UptimeHealth, the parent company of UptimeServices. In 2026, UptimeHealth’s Dental Fix Summit will be integrated into AAMI eXchange.

For Gonzales, the long-term vision is clear: Dental servicing should be treated as an essential part of HTM. “As we think about a dental office and dentists working on your mouth, that’s an important part of your overall healthcare,” he says. “So we should look at it the same way, through that same lens.”

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References: 

1. American Dental Association. US Dentist Demographics Dashboard. Available at: https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/us-dentist-demographics
2. Vujicic M. American Dental Association Health Policy Institute. The Evolving Dental Practice Model: Data Update for 2023 on Practice Size and DSO Affiliation. Chicago. American Dental Association; 2024. Available at: https://www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/files/resources/research/hpi/hpi_evolving_dental_practice_model_2023.pdf?rev=897fa6b028054de1970f70334a3c47aa&hash=8A609BED936215ADDF0762956FE063B4

A new Customer Experience Center designed to support healthcare technology management (HTM) professionals has opened at the PartsSource headquarters in Hudson, Ohio.

This new space provides HTM professionals with practical learning and demonstration experiences to enhance healthcare equipment management, improve operational efficiency, and provide solutions to the challenges faced by healthcare providers managing mission-critical assets. 

The new Customer Experience Center provides real-world insights to help healthcare leaders reduce costs, mitigate risks, and enhance the clinical availability of their equipment through integrated evidence-based supply chain solutions. It also offers industry-specific training and demonstration opportunities designed to build expertise, improve operational efficiency, and strengthen equipment management. 

The center features the College of Biomedical Equipment and Technology’s (CBET) new HTM Training Center of Excellence – North, an on-site classroom and biomed laboratory where healthcare professionals and technicians can receive hands-on training and practice repair procedures on portable medical devices. This new space aims to help address the growing demand for skilled technicians by combining training from CBET, Radiological Service Training Institute (RSTI), and NVRT Labs. 

Addressing Labor Shortages

In a 2024 survey, 63% of HTM leaders cited labor shortage as their most significant challenge. These training settings and tools aim to empower participants to better manage, diagnose, and repair healthcare equipment, minimizing downtime and improving clinical asset availability across healthcare facilities. 

“At PartsSource, we are committed to reducing the cost of healthcare while improving the reliability and readiness of mission-critical equipment. Our new Customer Experience Center is designed to provide our customers with real-world, actionable insights, to reduce operational costs, mitigate risk, and improve the clinical availability of their equipment,” says Phil Settimi MD, MSE, president and CEO of PartsSource, in a release. “This space will help healthcare leaders understand how to apply our integrated evidence-based solutions in parts, service, talent, and asset management to achieve tangible savings, increased productivity, and ultimately improve clinical capacity within their communities.”  

Real-World Experience with Critical Equipment and Care Environments

CBET’s new HTM Training Center of Excellence – North, designed in collaboration with PartsSource, hosted its first students for a three-day infusion pump training course starting May 13. Upcoming summer course offerings include medical equipment technician, infusion pumps, ventilators, and sterilizers. The new space features the latest equipment and technologies, allowing healthcare professionals to see firsthand how they can apply technology tools and solutions to streamline workflows, reduce equipment downtime, and improve patient care.  

“Partnering with PartsSource plays a vital role in helping us fulfill our mission to provide industry-specific education and training in HTM and information technology, aligned with the changing needs of the healthcare industry,” says Richard Gonzalez, president of CBET, in a release. “We’re proud to collaborate with PartsSource to introduce this Customer Experience Center and Training Center of Excellence, which will provide hands-on learning and demonstration opportunities designed to build expertise, boost operational efficiency, and strengthen healthcare equipment management.”  

The Customer Experience Center showcases critical areas of the hospital environment, including operating rooms, surgical suites, emergency care areas, and imaging and radiology practices. The goal is to cover the full spectrum of the critical care environment, from asset operations to facilities, enabling hospital executives and technicians to experience and understand how to maximize the value of PartsSource technology-enabled solutions for equipment management from the ground up.  

This new space, located in the PartsSource Hudson headquarters, is open to customers, healthcare professionals, and other members of the healthcare community. Visitors are encouraged to schedule a tour. 

Photo credit: PartsSource

Swiss Medtech, a trade association for medical technology companies in Switzerland, and AdvaMed, a US medtech association, are jointly calling for reciprocal “zero for zero” tariffs between the two countries.

Additionally, they advocate for Switzerland to become the first European market to facilitate the acceptance of medical devices approved or cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This call reflects the role that medtech plays in both the US and Swiss health care systems and economies, as well as the critical need to avoid disruptions in patient care that tariffs could cause in both countries.

In a joint statement, Swiss Medtech and AdvaMed highlight the unique, highly regulated nature of the medtech industry and its fixed reimbursement environment. These characteristics restrict the ability of medtech companies to shift manufacturing sites or for hospital customers to absorb higher prices resulting from tariffs.

“Recent trade tensions and the threat of tariffs are posing a serious threat to our respective health technology industries and to the health systems, health care professionals, and patients who depend on us to ensure timely access to treatment,” the joint statement reads.

The joint statement also calls on the US and Switzerland to continue developing a regulatory framework in which private bodies will review the relevant conditions under a simplified conformity assessment procedure, taking into account elements already performed by the FDA. According to the trade associations, such a system would broaden access to innovation for Swiss patients and help ensure that Switzerland remains a strong global partner to the US in advancing medical technology research and innovation.

This announcement follows a similar joint effort earlier this month between AdvaMed and the Association of British HealthTech Industries, which called for reciprocal “zero-for-zero” tariffs and deeper regulatory alignment between the US and UK.

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Further Reading for You:

Today, AdvaMed president and CEO Scott Whitaker testified before the US Senate Committee on Finance in its hearing focused on the impact of tariffs on US supply chains. AdvaMed was the only health care organization invited to discuss the medical technology supply chain. 

Below is Whitaker’s written testimony submitted to the committee: 

“Chairman Crapo and Ranking Member Wyden, thank you for inviting me to address the committee on this important topic.  

I am Scott Whitaker, president and CEO of AdvaMed, the MedTech Association. More than 600 medical technology companies are members of AdvaMed. These are the companies that invent, develop, distribute, and manufacture technologies and devices that fill every hospital, health clinic, and doctor’s office in America, and increasingly provide more products and technologies in home health care settings as well.   

“Medtech accounts for 3 million direct and indirect jobs in all 50 states across nearly 17,000 US manufacturing plants, with more than $600 billion in domestic economic output.  

“We are an American success story and the global superpower of medical innovation. Few people fully grasp the depth and breadth of our impact on the health care system. As we discuss trade and tariff policy, it is essential for policymakers to understand how this industry impacts health care, not only in the United States but around the world.   

“We are the industry that manufactures the laboratory equipment and diagnostic tests that detect virtually every form of disease. We are the companies that manufacture imaging equipment, from the X-ray machine to the CT scan and the MRI. We are the industry that manufactures the heart valves, pumps and cardiac monitors, the stents and pacemakers and defibrillators that help people stay alive.   

“We create the artificial hips, knees, and shoulders, and other implants that help patients stay healthy and mobile. We develop the surgical kits for the 77,000 procedures performed every day in America—and the surgical robots that deliver a more precise procedure that yields better outcomes for patients.  

“We manufacture insulin pumps and continuous glucose monitors that help millions of Type-1 diabetics manage their disease and live healthier lives. And now we are the industry developing the cutting-edge AI technology that is already diagnosing health problems early, saving our health care system money while saving lives. Just weeks ago, a groundbreaking study of breast cancer patients—the largest of its kind—found a 29% increase in breast cancer detection utilizing AI. And that’s only the beginning of medtech ushering in a new dimension of detection and prevention.   

“Simply put, we are the backbone of the health care system, the engine that makes hospitals run. Our industry is a critical component to keeping our health system functioning. Medtech products are not optional. They are, in many respects, mandatory. And because our technologies are often a matter of life or death, they are also highly regulated, as they should be. Even the facilities in which they are manufactured are FDA-regulated, as they should be.   

“Our industry has not historically faced tariffs. Because most countries have recognized the humanitarian nature of our work, they have collectively agreed to avoid placing tariffs on these lifesaving products. For example, prior to this year, the average tariff on medtech shipped to Europe was 1.3%, with Japan and Canada averaging around 1%.  

“To be clear, AdvaMed and our industry at large support the president’s goal to fix longstanding and unfair trade imbalances. We applaud the president for his efforts to bring more manufacturing across our economy back to the US, and many of our companies have done and are doing just that.  

“But the reality is that medtech is already a uniquely American success story. Upwards of 70% of the medtech that fills hospitals and clinics across the US is made in America. And that is growing: Just this year alone, more than a dozen medtech companies have announced expansions within the United States, and we expect that to continue.  

“The US is the largest medtech market in the world, accounting for 40% of global sales, and it is unquestionably the leader in innovation. If there is a breakthrough in medical technology that makes headlines, chances are it was developed right here in America.  

“Tariff policy, as proposed, puts this uniquely American success story at risk. And here is why:  

First, given that this is a highly regulated industry, shifting operations is a multi-year and incredibly expensive ordeal, bringing with it regulatory and safety concerns not seen in other industries. While the supply chains for smartphones or autos or toys are important to the economy, they simply do not have the same impact on lives.  

“Second, our companies operate in a mostly fixed-reimbursement environment: Medical technologies are purchased by hospitals through multi-year contracts, making cost spikes in the short term difficult to adjust to.   

“Third, and perhaps just as importantly, our biggest payors are funded by the federal taxpayer: Medicare, Medicaid, and the Veterans Health Administration. To the extent that tariffs on medtech products might generate federal revenue, much of those gains could be offset by the higher prices on these technologies. Any tariff policy that would force increased costs onto these federally funded programs would be counterproductive.  

“Our final concern is the impact these policies could have on the medical supply chain, which is highly complex. To illustrate, a diagnostic scanner and a medical infusion pump manufactured right here in the US can contain several hundred parts sourced from more than 20 countries across three continents. These are but two examples among hundreds of other technologies with similar makeups and needs.  

“Just recently, medtech supply chain leaders across the industry reported that procurement timelines have already slipped, especially for surgical kits, diagnostic components, and imaging devices.  

“For example, one company manufactures critical products for neonatal intensive care units, supplying 50% of the market for one product category and around 70% for another. If tariffs continue to be a threat, this will result in backorders, delays, and will ultimately impact NICU patient care. Currently, there are no competitors ready to immediately make up the capacity, and as a company executive told me, ‘We are talking about patients measured in ounces, not pounds.’ 

“Let me conclude by saying that we appreciate the president’s 90-day pause and are encouraged by the recent announcement with respect to China. Moving forward, we believe the best way for the medtech industry to continue delivering on its commitment to patients, both here at home and around the world, rests with maximum flexibility for our industry.    

“We ask this committee and the administration to treat medical products with a reciprocal ‘zero for zero’ model in these country-to-country negotiations. That means a mutual agreement in which countries eliminate tariffs on medical supplies and technologies between each other.   

“Given the unique lifesaving and humanitarian nature of our products and innovations, both the United States and its trading partners should respect that longstanding policy—a move that would prevent potential supply chain disruptions and cost increases that would negatively impact hospitals and patients around the world. There is precedent for this approach. In fact, during the first Trump Administration, many medtech products were exempt from the tariffs imposed.  

“We stand ready to work with this committee and the president on further strengthening industry’s already-vibrant and growing American presence. And we stand ready to work with him on alternative ways to restore fairness to trade policies that negatively impact the American medtech sector.   

“With that, thank you, and I look forward to your questions.”

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Related Read:

US-based AdvaMed, representing medtech innovators, and the Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI), a trade association for medical technology companies in the United Kingdom, are calling for reciprocal “zero-for-zero” tariffs between the two countries and greater regulatory convergence. They note the prominence of medtech in both the US and UK health care systems and economies and the need to avoid disruptions in patient care that tariffs could cause in both countries.

In a joint statement, AdvaMed and ABHI describe the unique, highly regulated nature of the medtech industry and its fixed reimbursement environment. They note that those characteristics restrict the ability of medtech companies to switch manufacturing sites or for hospital customers to adjust to higher prices resulting from tariffs.

“Recent trade tensions and the threat of tariffs are posing a serious threat to our respective health technology industries and to the health systems, health care professionals, and patients who depend on us to ensure timely access to treatment,” the joint statement reads. 

The joint statement also calls for the US and UK to continue developing a regulatory system in which the UK accepts regulatory approvals and clearance from the US Food and D ug Administration for medtech, a concept known as regulatory convergence. Such acceptance would expand access to innovation for UK patients and ensure the UK continues to be a strong global partner with the US in medical technology research and innovation. 

Tariff flexibility and regulatory convergence are the shared goals among the US and key trading partners to promote continued innovation and patient access to the medtech, according to a press release from AdvaMed. 

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By Alyx Arnett

When I saw US News & World Report rank “medical equipment repairer” among the top 15 “Best Jobs You’ve Never Heard Of,” it felt like validation for a career path that’s long gone underrecognized: healthcare technology management (HTM). As someone who covers this field daily, the ranking isn’t surprising, but it’s a reminder of just how much work remains to raise public awareness of this essential profession.

Even as HTM professionals play a critical role in advancing healthcare, their work remains largely unknown outside the industry. From my perspective, that lack of recognition is one of the biggest hurdles to growth. If we want to strengthen this profession’s future, we need a more unified, intentional effort to raise its profile.

Starting With Better Branding

For years, the HTM field has faced a branding challenge, so it was no surprise to Roger Bowles, CBET, EdD, that it showed up (again) on a list of jobs people have never heard of. (Similar rankings go back at least a decade.) “I still think that the variety of names assigned to this job is probably one of the reasons,” says Bowles, who teaches in the department of biomedical equipment technology at Texas State Technical College and serves on 24×7’s advisory board. “Medical equipment repair, biomedical equipment technician, healthcare technology management, plus several others, can describe very similar job functions.”

Federal job classifications don’t help either. As Stephen Grimes, principal consultant at Strategic Healthcare Technology Associates LLC and a 24×7 advisory board member, points out, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks job growth for “medical equipment repairers”—a category projected to grow 18.4% from 2023 to 2033—but doesn’t separately recognize titles like biomedical equipment technician or clinical engineer. Clinical engineering is instead lumped under broader roles like bioengineering. That lack of precision makes it harder to measure the profession’s full impact—and harder to advocate for it.

This fragmentation can also make it harder for students to discover the field, harder for school counselors to advise toward it, and harder for employers to classify and promote it consistently. The result? A profession in high demand that remains, for many, hidden in plain sight. That’s why a clearer, more consistent approach to branding—starting with standardized terminology—isn’t just helpful; it’s necessary.

Why Advocacy Must Scale Up

Grimes believes that real change will require coordinated advocacy—not just by individuals but by the professional organizations that represent them.

“While the contributions of individual HTM professionals are important in raising the visibility of HTM, the truth is that HTM professional organizations are going to be better equipped to have a greater impact in raising an awareness of and demand for HTM involvement in the healthcare delivery process,” says Grimes.

That means going beyond internal conversations and engaging directly with both regulators and influential players in healthcare delivery. On the regulatory side, Grimes points to agencies like the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the US Food and Drug Administration, state health departments, and accrediting bodies such as The Joint Commission and the Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality. On the stakeholder side, he emphasizes the value of forging ties with healthcare associations representing hospital executives, clinicians, finance leaders, risk managers, and engineers.

“This organization-to-organization level engagement is going to be the most effective way to reach out to those critical stakeholders who are ultimately in the best position to retain and make effective use of HTM professionals in healthcare delivery,” Grimes says.

These efforts can take many forms: publishing HTM-related content in stakeholder journals, hosting joint sessions at conferences, or inviting regulators and administrators to speak at HTM events. Real visibility won’t come from behind-the-scenes work alone; it requires showing up in the right rooms, with the right message.

A Model for Collaboration

HTM organizations have made attempts to collaborate in the past, but sustaining those efforts has proven difficult. As Grimes notes, “AAMI, ACCE, and HIMSS have established a collaborative community in 2008 and a healthcare technology alliance in 2017. But both efforts eventually lost focus, and the collaboration unfortunately petered out.”¹

Rather than serving as a critique, this history should be seen as a call to action. As healthcare technology becomes more complex and interconnected, so too does the need for coordinated advocacy. Without a unified voice, HTM risks remaining underrecognized.

Grimes suggests the HTM community may benefit from looking beyond its own borders for inspiration. He points to the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) as a potential model for lasting, cross-sector collaboration. AIMBE unites four distinct but interconnected groups: leaders in biomedical engineering, academic institutions, professional societies, and industry stakeholders. By aligning education, workforce development, and advocacy across these sectors, the organization offers a possible blueprint for HTM. 

“Theoretically, it should be easy to bring these shared interest groups together to ensure relevant education, advocacy, and work roles. Perhaps an arrangement like this could be used as a starting point,” Grimes says. That kind of integrated model could also strengthen the pipeline of future professionals by connecting HTM organizations and academia in a way that helps students discover and prepare for the field.

For HTM, a sustainable alliance could be the missing link between recognition and progress.

A Critical Need, A Shared Responsibility

Despite ongoing challenges, Bowles says he’s seeing signs of progress. “I do think that we have made great strides in getting it more recognized,” he says. “At least now it is probably more heard of than it used to be.”

One positive trend: younger students are entering the field. “I’ve noticed that over the past 10 years or so, the average age of our students has decreased, and we are getting more people straight out of high school enrolling in our program,” says Bowles.

Still, widespread awareness remains elusive. HTM isn’t just about fixing equipment, as the title “medical equipment repairer” suggests; it’s about managing the entire lifecycle of increasingly complex medical technology. When the profession is reduced to a repair function, it reinforces a perception gap that can hinder recruitment and obscure its broader impact.

Grimes puts it plainly: “It can be argued that there is a critical need for HTM services in healthcare delivery if we are to realize the potential of emerging technologies that will enhance the quality and accessibility of healthcare both domestically and globally.”

But that future depends on action now. Awareness doesn’t grow on its own. It takes sustained effort—from professional societies, educators, industry leaders, and current HTM professionals themselves—to tell this story clearly, consistently, and often.

“I believe it will continue to be a rewarding career path for decades to come,” Bowles says. But for too many, it’s still the best job they’ve never heard of. 

Let’s change that.

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Reference

1. Grimes S. Commentary: How can a fractured healthcare technology support industry hope to be effective? Biomed Instrum Technol. 2019;53(4):286-8.

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has launched a new Make It American certification program to help the market identify products and manufacturing facilities that have implemented processes to meet Build America, Buy America Act domestic content requirements.

Make It American certification enables companies to demonstrate that their processes and supply chain management systems have undergone rigorous, third-party expert audits, providing greater certainty and confidence to manufacturers, government agencies, and procurement officials looking to source materials with enhanced levels of US-manufactured content.

Companies can certify their facilities to NEMA’s Make It American Process Standard, and additional product specifications which are currently available for low-voltage power distribution equipment  and wire and cable, with more specifications coming for other product lines in the coming months. Companies that successfully complete the certification audit are granted marks to showcase their rigorous supply chain processes, commitment to transparency, and enhanced domestic manufacturing footprint.

“The US electroindustry is the backbone of our nation’s energy system, investing over $185 billion in domestic electrical component manufacturing since 2018,” says Debra Phillips, president and CEO of NEMA, in a release. “NEMA’s Make It American program allows our nation’s manufacturers to showcase their commitment to US manufacturing, creating even more jobs, and strengthening the American manufacturing sector.”

NEMA Member Companies Gain Certification

Eaton, Schneider Electric, Siemens, Southwire, and TESCO Metering are the first NEMA member companies to achieve the NEMA Make It American Process Certification. In addition, Siemens, Southwire, and TESCO earned product certifications.

“Siemens is proud to support the Make It American program, which provides a robust framework for companies to document compliance with Buy America Preference requirements, ensuring transparency and accountability in the manufacturing process,” says Barry Powell, regional CEO of Siemens Electrical Products North America, in a release. “Siemens’ US manufacturing facilities are equipped to produce components and products that comply with the Buy America Preference requirements, reflecting our unwavering commitment to supporting American manufacturing and infrastructure while underscoring our commitment to manufacturing excellence.”

NEMA’s Make It American Program includes precedent-setting standards, certifications, and resources to help electrical manufacturers navigate domestic content requirements. Through these tools, NEMA aims to empower manufacturers to make informed decisions, strengthen critical supply chains, and support US infrastructure and economic growth.

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In recognition of a growing field, Florida Atlantic University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science (COECS) has created a Department of Biomedical Engineering. The newly established department will focus on three key areas: biomaterials and tissue engineering; smart health systems; and bio-robotics. 

The COECS faculty are already performing state-of-the-art research and development around health and medicine funded by government funding agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, the Florida Department of Health, and other philanthropic entities. Sponsored research topics include advanced biomedical devices for point-of-care testing, tissue engineering, hybrid bio-robotics for assistive technologies, opto-electronics and bio-photonics, and processing and analyzing of bio-signals for detection of pathology.

The existing research in Florida Atlantic University’s engineering has created fertile ground for the formation of a new department dedicated to biomedical engineering and further boosts the COECS’s burgeoning research program, according to a release from the univeristy. Moreover, the interdisciplinary nature of biomedical engineering also will magnify research excellence university-wide through collaborations with the Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Schmidt College of Medicine, and Charles E. Schmidt College of Science.

“The impetus to create our new Department of Biomedical Engineering was spurred by the significant projected growth of job opportunities related to this field nationally, statewide, and, in particular, in Southeast Florida,” says Stella Batalama, PhD, dean of Florida Atlantic University’s COECS, in a release. “We have invested in a brand-new clean room that will help our students learn micro- and nano-manufacturing techniques for medical devices and sensors as well as a new biomedical laboratory fully loaded with state-of-the-art instrumentation. These substantive investments together with the innovative educational curricula will collectively provide a hands-on educational experience in biomedical engineering, designing and manufacturing of devices and other technologies to improve health, while also preparing students for medical school or advanced studies.”

AI-Integration and Advanced Degrees

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates a projected growth of 5% from 2022 to 2032 for employment of bioengineers and biomedical engineers, faster than the average for all other occupations (3%). As of May 2023, the median annual wage for bioengineers and biomedical engineers was $99,550.

“We are excited to launch our Department of Biomedical Engineering to provide students interested in both engineering and the medical fields with innovative curricula that focuses on technical knowledge, advanced research methods and instrumentation, integration of computer science knowledge, and internship opportunities. Florida Atlantic University’s four-year biomedical engineering program will be one of the first programs in the nation to offer the opportunity for studying and integrating artificial intelligence into a 4+1 BS/MS program. In this program, the students will receive a bachelor’s in biomedical engineering and a master’s in AI,” says Javad Hashemi, PhD, inaugural chair and professor of Florida Atlantic University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, who currently serves as associate dean for research and a professor in the COECS, in a release. “From cancer to neurological disorders to cardiovascular disease, our biomedical engineers will be the masterminds behind innovative AI-powered technologies and therapies that are changing the landscape of medicine and health care as we know it.” 

In terms of more advanced degrees in the biomedical field, a flexible PhD program is being designed to accommodate formal joint student advising with faculty from Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Schmidt College of Medicine, and Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. An MD/PhD pathway also will be available for a select group of high-achieving students. All tracks within these programs require a research course, an internship with a medical institution or industry and will offer an opportunity for an international experience.

Enrollment Open Now

Florida Atlantic University expects to enroll approximately 25 students by the end of year one and about 200 students by year four. The new Department of Biomedical Engineering is located on the Boca Raton campus with courses and laboratory work also available on the John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter.

“The Department of Biomedical Engineering is an exciting addition to our programs within the College of Engineering and Computer Science and builds on our existing strengths and resources, our stellar faculty, and the outstanding collaborations we have across the university,” says Batalama in a release. “Biomedical engineering students will learn from faculty across many engineering departments and will be part of cross-disciplinary collaborations on campus and throughout the community.” 

According to the American Society for Engineering Education, in 2021, 8,165 bachelor’s degrees were awarded nationally for biomedical engineering, ranking in the top 10 degrees awarded in engineering disciplines, just slightly below computer engineering (8,244).

Applications are being accepted for admission this year. For more information or to apply, contact Javad Hashemi, PhD, at 561-297-3438 or jhashemi@fau.edu.  

Photo caption: The Department of Biomedical Engineering will focus on biomaterials and tissue engineering, smart health systems, and bio-robotics. 

Photo credit: Alex Dolce

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By Alyx Arnett

The Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed) has released its first artificial intelligence (AI) policy roadmap, offering lawmakers and regulators a framework for advancing the safe and effective use of AI-enabled medical devices. 

Developed by AdvaMed’s Digital Health Tech division, the roadmap outlines five key policy areas: privacy and data access, FDA AI regulatory framework, reimbursement and coverage, AI assurance labs, and generative AI.

“[A]ll of us in industry and medical devices are going after AI, and there’s such commonality that we could either play defense and wait for regulations, or we could partner with the FDA, legislators, CMS and help them understand the journey of something that sometimes is not very understandable,” says Robert Cohen, Digital Health Tech board member and president of digital, robotics, and enabling technology at Stryker, during a press call. 

AdvaMed’s roadmap, which draws input from a board that includes representatives from companies such as Siemens, Medtronics, Philips, Microsoft, Google, and Apple, arrives at a time when more than 1,000 AI-enabled medical devices have already received FDA authorization, and many more are in development. The organization hopes this roadmap will guide policymakers in ensuring that regulation, reimbursement, and infrastructure evolve alongside innovation.

“We wanted to cut through some of the noise and be able to put something in front of policymakers to get a better sense where medtech and big tech are coming together [and] where those primary issues are,” says Shaye Mandle, executive director of the Digital Health Tech division, during the press call.

1. Privacy and Data Access

AI-enabled medical devices rely on access to large, high-quality datasets to deliver accurate, personalized insights in diagnostics and treatment planning. However, fragmented data systems, inconsistent privacy standards, and siloed aggregation processes pose major barriers to innovation.

AdvaMed’s roadmap highlights the tension between protecting patient privacy and enabling developers to train robust, bias-mitigated algorithms. Current HIPAA regulations, while essential for safeguarding health information, were not designed for the scale and complexity of AI development. These limitations can make it difficult for companies to gather the longitudinal, demographically diverse data needed to meet FDA expectations and conduct meaningful bias analyses.

To address these challenges, AdvaMed calls for a modernized approach that supports responsible data use without weakening privacy protections.

Policy recommendations:

• Ensure data protection without stifling innovation.
• Evaluate the need to update HIPAA for the AI era and create clear guidelines specifically for data use in AI development.
• Develop appropriate guidelines around patient notice and authorization for the data used to develop AI. 

2. FDA AI Regulatory Framework

AdvaMed’s roadmap positions the FDA as the lead regulator for AI-enabled medical devices. The organization states that FDA’s risk-based framework—used to assess safety, effectiveness, and post-market performance—is already equipped to handle the unique challenges of AI in medical technology.

Rather than creating new oversight structures, AdvaMed recommends that FDA maintain its central role while continuing to adapt existing tools such as the Predetermined Change Control Plan (PCCP), which allows pre-approved software updates without requiring a full resubmission. The roadmap also calls for greater consistency in implementation and international alignment to avoid regulatory fragmentation.

Cohen notes during the call that “as long as we stick to some guiding principles and processes, I think we can work with the FDA to keep us moving at a pace that keeps us competitive, not just in the United States, but in the world.”

Board members also emphasized the need for global alignment on AI regulatory standards, warning that varying rules across countries—such as the US, EU, and Japan—could slow innovation and increase time to market. AdvaMed supports harmonized criteria for data validation, privacy, and bias mitigation to ensure consistent oversight without duplicative requirements.

“We could have a five-year regulatory process in Europe, an [eight]-year process in the United States, and a six-month [process] in Australia…It creates complexity with software, and we don’t have consistency,” Cohen says during the press call. 

Policy recommendations:

• FDA should remain the lead regulator responsible for overseeing the safety and effectiveness of AI-enabled medical devices.
• FDA should implement the existing PCCP authority to ensure it achieves its intended purpose of ensuring patients have timely access to positive product updates.
• FDA should issue timely and current AI guidance documents related to AI-enabled devices and to prioritize the development and recognition of voluntary international consensus.
• FDA should establish a globally harmonized approach to regulatory oversight of AI-enabled devices.

3. Reimbursement and Coverage

AdvaMed’s roadmap identifies reimbursement as a critical factor in determining whether patients can access the benefits of AI-enabled medical devices. Although FDA clearance establishes safety and effectiveness, many technologies face delays in adoption due to unclear or nonexistent payment pathways—especially within Medicare, which influences broader reimbursement policy across private insurers and Medicaid programs.

The roadmap states that CMS has the regulatory authority to expand access, but its current framework lacks the specificity needed to consistently support AI technologies and software-driven tools. AdvaMed urges legislative and regulatory action to ensure payment models evolve alongside innovation, particularly for emerging categories such as algorithm-based health care services (ABHS) and digital therapeutics.

Policy recommendations:

• Consider legislative solutions to address the impact of budget neutrality constraints on the coverage and adoption of AI technologies.
• CMS should develop a formalized payment pathway for algorithm-based health care services (ABHS) to ensure future innovation and to protect access to this subset of AI technologies for Medicare beneficiaries.
• To ensure future innovation and to protect access to ABHS for Medicare beneficiaries, we urge CMS to develop a formalized payment pathway for ABHS.
• Facilitate the adoption and reimbursement of digital therapeutics through legislation and regulation.
• CMS should leverage its model authority to test the ability of AI technologies to improve patient care and/or lower costs.

4. AI Assurance Labs

As AI-enabled medical devices evolve, some stakeholders have proposed the use of third-party quality assurance labs to manage ongoing performance evaluation. However, AdvaMed’s roadmap raises concerns about this approach, questioning whether these labs would add value beyond existing FDA oversight.

The organization warns that introducing external labs could create redundant regulatory layers, increase costs, and introduce new risks related to data security and intellectual property. The roadmap also notes that third-party evaluators may lack the clinical context or device-specific understanding needed for accurate performance assessments, which could affect reliability and transparency.

Instead of relying on third-party labs, AdvaMed recommends building on FDA’s existing risk-based framework and encouraging alignment around accredited, consensus-based standards.

Policy recommendation:

• Policymakers should encourage FDA to participate in the development of and timely recognition of accredited and consensus-based standards for quality assurance processes rather than rely on third-party assurance labs.

5. Generative AI

AdvaMed’s roadmap addresses the growing interest in generative AI (GenAI) and its potential role in medical technology. While no GenAI-enabled devices have yet been authorized by the FDA, early use cases—such as generating synthetic medical images for training or producing preliminary radiology reports—point to future clinical applications. Cohen says that generative AI may be best suited for improving efficiency in hospital operations, such as operating room scheduling or planning perioperative staffing—applications he describes as having a lower entry bar while the technology continues to evolve

Given the evolving nature of this technology, AdvaMed urges regulators to avoid premature or overly rigid frameworks. Instead, the organization recommends applying the FDA’s existing risk-based approach, which evaluates devices based on intended use, risk profile, and performance, rather than focusing solely on the underlying AI method.

The roadmap also stresses the importance of continued communication between the FDA and stakeholders to ensure thoughtful, transparent policy development as GenAI applications emerge.

Policy recommendations:

• Ensure FDA reviews and considers GenAI-enabled devices using the existing risk-based frameworks.
• Encourage FDA to maintain ongoing dialogue with stakeholders in the health care sector and regular information-sharing on generative AI applications in medical devices.

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ISPOR—The Professional Society for Health Economics and Outcomes Research published the insights from its first Global Health Technology Assessment (HTA) Roundtable in an article in the March/April issue of Value & Outcomes Spotlight.

The society has a history of convening experts for regional HTA Roundtables across the globe. This was ISPOR’s first globally focused HTA Roundtable. The virtual ISPOR Global HTA Roundtable convened 100 HTA professionals from 53 countries worldwide in Q4 2024 to connect, share best practices, and build consensus on global HTA standards. 

The roundtable participants focused on three key topics: 

• gene therapies and other advanced therapy medicinal products, 
• improving access to therapies while navigating budget constraints, and 
• digital health with a focus on artificial intelligence (AI).

The participants’ consensus was that there is a strong need for greater international collaboration, transparency, and information sharing to address the common challenges HTA bodies face. The discussions also underscored the importance of adapting HTA methodologies to assess emerging technologies/advanced therapy medicinal products; digital health (including AI); and access to treatments. 

ISPOR will be holding its next Global HTA Roundtable in 2026 in response to the experts’ strong agreement that more cross-regional collaboration and information sharing are greatly needed.

“ISPOR is committed to supporting events like the Global HTA Roundtable to foster collaboration, consensus, and the evolution of HTA methodologies,” says ISPOR CEO and executive director Rob Abbott in a release. “ISPOR’s Global HTA Roundtable ties directly to two objectives in the society’s new Strategic Plan 2030, including proactively horizon scanning to establish high-leverage health policy opportunities that the Society can contribute toward. It also engages broadly with stakeholders to increase the visibility and influence of health economics and outcomes research, which is vital to HTA.”

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