By K. Richard Douglas
Baylor University Medical Center is a part of the Baylor Scott & White Health System. It has 1,025 licensed beds and is a major health care provider in North Texas.
Many of the biomeds who manage medical equipment at the medical center went through formal biomed training curriculums to become biomeds.
But the biomed profession has feeder professions; similar professions that include overlapping skill sets.
Some biomeds take this route to an HTM career.
Donald Sims, biomedical equipment technician II in the Healthcare Technology Management Department at Baylor University Medical Center, is among those who took an indirect route into HTM.
“I went to ATI (ATI Tech Training Center) to learn electronics,” Sims says.
He graduated in 1995 with a 4.0 GPA, a major in electronics and a minor in computers.
“I started my studies of basic electronics, followed by an in-depth study of digital and analog, in late 1993. Although the school was difficult because of my dyslexia, I still graduated third in my class. The course also covered computer repair and basic networking, which I found to be the most fun. I still enjoy working with computers and networking when I get the chance,” Sims says.
He says that he switched from working with just nurse call and intercom systems to working on medical equipment because the company where he worked for 20 years went bankrupt.
“If it weren’t for that, most likely, I would still be working there. I was never the type of person who jumped from job to job. However, now, I see it as the best thing that ever happened to me. Because the manager of biomed at that time believed in me and wanted me to join his team. I have been learning and experiencing new things,” Sims says.
He says that he worked on nurse call, intercom and RTLS systems for 20 years, which provided him with a good understanding of computers and networking.
Valuable Specialist
At a major medical center, it is understandable that biomeds would be called upon to pitch in for major projects. One of the projects that Sims was involved in was helping to complete the PMs, battery replacement and a drug library upgrade on 2,800 IV pumps.
“This was incredibly challenging because of the size of our hospital and the time that we had. We had to touch the pumps three different times to accomplish this. Each time we thought we were completed, something else came up,” Sims says.
He says that each pump had to be found and returned three times to complete the PMs and projects in three months.
“I know it’s an old saying, but imagine digging through a pile of needles to find a needle three different times. We first had to find pumps with an outdated PM label and then pumps without a battery replacement sticker. After that, we started using tie straps to identify pumps with the updated drug library. If I did my math right, we were doing all of this in a hospital that has seven buildings and 57 floors,” Sims says.
When not working at the medical center, Sims enjoys outdoor pastimes.
“Doesn’t matter if I’m working or doing other things like hiking or camping. Well, when I was younger, I enjoyed hiking in the woods and camping out with my friends on their land. But now, because of limited personal time, I enjoy walking around the neighborhood with my wife and kids. I also work in the yard most weekends just to keep up with the yard work. I know that sounds like not much fun, but like I said, I enjoy being outside and working,” Sims says.
He is married and has two kids; a son and daughter.
Sims recalls the sequence of events that led to joining the HTM profession.
“I have been working on electronic equipment for the last 29 years. My first job was as a bench tech repairing PC monitors and refurbishing computers. After five years, I went to a company that sold and maintained nurse call, RTLS, intercom and other systems, until the company went bankrupt in 2019,” he says.
For a short time, he worked for the nurse call system manufacturer and became a certified systems integrator.
“In May 2020, I was offered a job and I started my career in HTM,” Sims says.
In his first year, his HTM peers voted him to be the employee of the month. He was awarded 1,500 points by the vice president.
Sim’s nominator said, “As Baylor University Medical Center’s nurse call specialist, Donald is often called upon to assist with nurse call replacement efforts. He is always happy to assist with regional facilities when they are having nurse call issues. He has even gone to other facilities like Plano to troubleshoot and fix the issues.”
In a short time, Sims has proven his value to his team and showed the value of his years working on electronic equipment.
BIOMETRICS
Favorite book:
“Lord of the Rings”
Favorite movie:
Marvel movies
Hidden talent:
I’ve been told I’m good at troubleshooting.
Favorite food:
Italian
Favorite part of being a biomed?
Working with new technology and my peers.
