by
John R. Fischer, Senior Reporter | August 15, 2022
From the August 2022 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
The GE Healthcare Institute, the company's 250,000 square-foot facility in Wisconsin, provides training on both GE and non-GE devices, teaches customers and field engineers in the same classes. It trains them in person, remotely and through a hybrid approach that incorporates both on-site and online classes.
"Training is especially important as staffing challenges are felt across the industry,” said Goryl. “It may require different types of training, more cost-effective ways to train and also more effective ways to train individuals, while considering those that are potentially from a younger generation, so these students learn in a way they are most comfortable with.”
Preventing problems ahead of time
Predicting issues in advance allows providers to intervene early and prevent them from occurring in the first place. Associated cost savings and reduced downtime have driven this demand, creating the need for servicers to invest in remote monitoring and predictive technology.
In addition to reducing unnecessary downtime, many ISOs use remote monitoring technologies to help providers prepare for an on-site visit from a field service engineer (FSE). In some cases, issues can be resolved entirely remotely, without requiring a technician to be deployed, said Shelby Lemler, executive vice president of operations at MXR Imaging, which resolves 20% of all issues that way.
“By embracing these technologies, it allows the customer to get their issues resolved quicker and results in less of an impact on their facility,” said Lemler. “We have also found these interactions to be beneficial even if we are not able to remotely resolve the issue and an FSE needs to be dispatched to the site.”
As the number of network-connected medical devices grows exponentially, so does the risk for cyberattacks. Legacy devices, which are still common among hospitals, are especially at risk. As a result, clinical engineers who specialize in this area will be needed to help hospital IT prevent attacks.
ISOs can help by providing cybersecurity expertise, like TRIMEDX’s Dynamic Risk Score, which provides real-time assessments of medical device vulnerabilities. “This allows health systems to adjust their priorities in real time to address the most pressing needs across the entire device inventory, and monitor the improvement in medical devices month-over-month,” said Hester.
Service is changing
In the last few years, mergers and acquisitions have turned small third-party providers into larger organizations with capabilities that resemble the OEMs. Block Imaging’s Crawford expects to see more of this, and said ISOs will continue to gain more of the service market in the U.S. because hospitals will be better equipped to partner with them.
