I ponder back some times to my earlier days as a younger HTM professional and think about the tools and test equipment that we used each and every day. For the most part my tool kit consisted of the traditional items such as screwdrivers, wire cutters, wrenches, soldering iron, and a wide assortment of sockets, allen keys, etc. – you get the picture. The staple test equipment items consisted of an O-scope (oscilloscope for those not as familiar) and an analog and digital multimeter. Man, we were high tech and I could fix anything with this trusty assortment of technician tools.
With the ever evolving change of medical equipment technology the tool kit and test equipment carried by HTM professionals has seen some changes in its make-up as well. The addition of such pieces as laptops or tablets and maybe even more commonly these days the network pinging devices can be found residing in the tool bag. Troubleshooting software or access keys for many devices seem to be the necessity into that deep dive exploration when triaging the service problem or performing calibration and preventive maintenance tasks.
In today’s HTM service environment the vast assortment of consolidated test equipment’s designed to “speed up”, and derive the needed calibrations or troubleshooting process is mind blowing. I mean there is practically a test device available today for almost every troubleshooting or calibrating need. Many of these “test device tools” have combined capabilities and compressed into a plastic case measuring in size no bigger than a bread box – now there’s a through back of vernacular for you. Many of these “new” packaged test devices are now fitting into the tool kit that is being shouldered around on daily basis by today’s HTM field professional.
With all of these advanced testing tool devices the one constant in which will always remain – a tool is only as good as it is used. The knowledge of how and why the test device may assist and lead you to executing the service task is defining. Regardless of technology advances and new-fangled gadgets the basics and their underlying principles will always need to be understood. As I mentioned earlier in this blog rant – my old tool kit of yesterday with its analog Simpson or Fluke DVM and trusty o-scope (which I can still trigger manually – Thank you very much!) are cornerstone pieces that have blazed the path of today’s technologically advanced test equipment tools.