Labor and training
With healthcare organizations facing widespread labor shortages for the past several years, hospital human resources teams are focused on recruiting and retaining clinical staff that have a direct impact on patient care. Biomedical service professionals, however, require different recruiting strategies than that of direct care givers.
Equipment utilization and technology advancements
As hospital budgets become tighter, obtaining additional funding for capital equipment becomes more challenging. One of the key functions of the HTM team is to properly maintain and service the medical devices to optimize longevity and maintain safety standards of the equipment. Creating a strategic capital plan allows capital budgets to be allocated towards additional equipment if needed and newer technologies.
Regulatory
Medical device regulations are evolving. Examples such as hand-held ultrasound are disrupting the use-cases, safety considerations, hospital policies, and service strategies. Continuous evolution of standards and regulations such as JCO inclusion of cybersecurity requirements, changes in FDA oversight of medical device cybersecurity, and the Right to Repair movement all require HTM teams to keep a continuous pulse on industry standards.
Original Equipment Manufacturers
OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) often include clinical software upgrades as part of their service contracts for imaging and high-end biomedical equipment, which are not provided for free. Some of these upgrades are crucial for maintaining optimal functionality and ensuring compatibility with evolving clinical practices, but others are unnecessary. With the right tools in place to discern what upgrades are needed when, HTM teams can avoid additional costs to the hospital system.
The Healthcare Technology Management (HTM) landscape is changing rapidly, requiring HTM teams to be agile and adaptable. Additionally, the scope of managing medical devices today has expanded significantly, requiring skills and expertise in data analytics, networking, device integration, cybersecurity, strategic planning and risk management. Modern HTM also requires staff to have more professional services skills beyond their highly technical backgrounds.