Introduction to Clinical Engineering focuses on the engineering practice where applied within the healthcare delivery system, often defined as clinical engineering. Readers will explore the fundamental concepts integral to the support of healthcare technology to advance patient care. Clinical engineers have as their primary mission the availability of appropriate medical devices, utilized by trained clinicians, to promote safe and effective medical care. This unique and interdisciplinary field is part of the healthcare team and serves as the connection between engineering and medicine.
This book is aimed at practitioners, managers, students, and educators to serve as a resource that offers a broad perspective of the applications of engineering principles, such as lifecycle planning, systems thinking, risk analysis, and human factors, in healthcare. This book will be an invaluable tool for the healthcare technology management workforce who are involved in the field of medicine and seek to support safe and effective patient care. The book can serve as a guide to the profession, exploring the discipline in depth.
- Offers readers an in-depth look into the support and implementation of existing medical technology used for patient care in a clinical setting
- Provides basic insights into the clinical engineering profession, focusing on engineering principles as applied to the US healthcare system
- Explores healthcare technology basics, hospital and systems safety, information technology and interoperability with medical devices, clinical facilities management, as well as human resource management in an HTM team
Industry Reviews
"What you will find as you read through this book, is that one of the truly great things about being a clinical engineer is that it is impossible to become bored. A clinical engineer serves to a large extent as a bridge between technology and medicine. In this capacity, there are myriad opportunities in the ever-changing world of health care. Whether the problem to solve is urgent or strategic, or covers direct patient care, equipment integration, human factors, cybersecurity, or financial improvement, there is always a long list to improve the performance of the health system or related organization...What you can expect in this profession today is still only limited by your imagination." --From the Foreword by Lawrence (Larry) W. Hertzler, CCE, AAMI Fellow
"Overall, I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a refresher, transitioning into management, or trying to enter the HTM field. Breaking into the health technology industry can be difficult, but Introduction to Clinical Engineering makes the process less daunting and more approachable." --Lynch, N. Reading Room. Biomed Instrum Technol (2020) 54 (6): 450.
"The book accomplishes its purpose of providing readers with a clear introduction to the body of knowledge that all novices to the field of clinical engineering must understand. It delivers the reader an appreciation for the vast knowledge one should be competent in and the benefit from realizing how to prepare for their next step in their career." --Yadin, D. Book Review. Global Clinical Engineering Journal, 4(1), 4-7.
"As written, this text will serve many interested in the field of clinical engineering with a useful over- view of the field and some of its history in the United States. As is evident from the text, further reading and experience is needed for one to be able to contribute to this valuable field of endeavor." --IEEE
