Four Named to AAMI's Technology Management Council
One is a biomedical equipment technician and another is a nurse. A third is an educator and the fourth is a hospital executive.
Four AAMI members — with diverse backgrounds and expertise — have been appointed to serve on the Technology Management Council, a 22-member AAMI committee that represents the interests of professionals who service and maintain medical technology.
The newly installed members include Chris Abe, Donald Armstrong, Roger Bowles, and Laurence Tanner. They have each been appointed to a three-year term and will play important roles in developing benefits and services for biomedical equipment technicians, clinical engineers, and other medical technology professionals who are members of AAMI.
“AAMI’s strength is its ability to bring together diverse talents and viewpoints to develop standards, educational programs, publications, and other resources; and these appointments are a reflection of that great diversity,” says David Francoeur, CBET, member of the TMC’s Executive Committee.
The new TMC members succeed Rich Ogg and Lou Katchis, whose terms expired this month, and Fran Koch, who retired after a 40-year nursing career.
Chris Abe, senior director of safety and support services at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, has been involved in the planning of AAMI’s Annual Conference for the past several years. and brings a nursing background to the TMC. She is certified in pediatric nursing, infection control, and healthcare environmental management.
Donald Armstrong, CBET, is a biomed at Stanford Hospital & Clinics in California. He began his career doing contract work servicing ventilators for Stanford, and was eventually hired by the facility to work full-time. Twenty-two years later, he still works for Stanford, having established a reputation as a positive, energetic professional.
“I love the field, and I have long been interested in giving back to it,” says Armstrong. “I became a certified biomedical equipment technician as a way of giving back to the field, and joining the TMC gives me the opportunity to contribute even more.”
Roger Bowles, CBET, professor and chair of biomedical equipment technology at Texas State Technical College (TSTC), has worked at the school for 11 years. In addition to teaching tomorrow’s biomeds, Bowles manages the department and offers career guidance to students and new graduates.
Bowles says of joining the TMC, “I especially look forward to working on advocacy and recognition for the field, as well as career development opportunities for BMETs. I do a lot of recruiting, and it still surprises me how many people out there have never heard of our field. I’m also very excited about the TMC’s goal of establishing relationships with other professional healthcare associations.”
Laurence Tanner, a healthcare facility administrator since 1972, is a longtime AAMI member who brings a healthcare executive’s perspective to the TMC. He is currently president and chief executive officer of the Central Connecticut Health Alliance, an integrated health system with 3,500 employees that includes acute care, long-term care, home health care, and behavioral health services.
Source: AAMI News: June 2008, Vol. 43, No. 6