So, we’ve set up a Imaging News Twitter account that serves the same function as this site.

With twitter, you can either view our account directly at http://Twitter.com/Imaging_News, OR, if you like, you can set up your own Twitter account (it’s easy!) and you can set it up so our short news tweets will come directly to your cell phone!

Magnetic resonance imaging, one of the most important medical imaging advances in disease detection, relies on the injection of contrast material to highlight specific tissue or to distinguish between healthy and diseased tissue. The materials used in this medical imaging procedure tend to have the drawback of being either simply constructed and managed within the body but offering low contract or more complex in construction, offering sharper medical imaging contrast but with less stability when injected.

Historically, BMETs were on-the-job trained. However, as medical imaging equipment technology has advanced, so has the need for consistent, quality training. Today, most BMETs have earned an associate’s degree in medical imaging equipment technology, electronics or an engineering-related field. A recent study by the Advancement of Medical imaging found that 62% of all BMETs went on to become voluntarily certified by the International Commission on Accreditation. ICC Certification for Biomedical Equipment Technicians (BMETs) is a formal recognition by the International Certification Commission for Clinical Engineering and Biomedical Technology (ICC) that individuals have demonstrated excellence in theoretical as well as practical knowledge of the principles of biomedical equipment technology.

However, the BMET continues to evolve and as it does, the educational requirements for working on medical imaging equipment have begun to increase as well. The BMET profession has begun to follow the path of many other professions both within and outside of the medical field where more and more education is required to obtain a job and/or advance within a job category. BMETs report that employers are beginning to require bachelor’s degrees for advancement to a supervisory level or in some cases to become employed as a BMET within some institutions.  While this requirement may limit the job opportunities for some current BMETs, the good news is that with increased educational requirements comes the opportunity for higher salaries. Studies show that entrance salaries for BMETs range from $20,000-$30,000. However, senior and supervisory positions can command salaries as high as $80,000. The future appears bright for career growth in the area of medical imaging equipment maintenance and repair.

Biomedical equipment technicians or BMETs represent a growing class of technically trained personnel whose primary responsibility is the maintenance and repair of medical imaging equipment such as x-ray, CT scanners, ultrasound, MRI, laser technology and so on. The career path for BMETs appears to be changing as rapidly as medical imaging equipment is changing.

First and foremost, the demand for BMETs is growing. This growth is fueled both by the growth in new medical imaging equipment and technologies that require BMET expertise and by the need for revenue by institutions that own medical imaging equipment. As institutions such as hospitals recognize that downtime on an important piece of medical imaging equipment affects revenue generation, there is pressure to add BMETs to hospital staff to assure that all medical imaging equipment is maintained in good order and that expensive service contracts are used as minimally as possible. The U.S. Department of Labor and the Association for the Advancement of Medical imaging predict that the number of BMET jobs in the US will increase 24% to 31% through the year 2010.

Mammography, CT Scans and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) are some of the most common medical imaging methods readily available to patients nowadays. These methods are routinely used throughout hospitals and health laboratories to detect cancer, heart diseases and other internal body complications. More complicated and expensive methods are electron microscopy, fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine, photo acoustic imaging, positron emission tomography (PET), projection radiography, tomography and ultrasound.

Molecular magnetic resonance medical imaging brings the level of visualization and analysis to the cellular and molecular level. At this level, it is possible to track and evaluate cellular functions that can provide never-before-available insight into the nature of the disease process. For example, there has long been an established connection between inflammation and heart disease. However, the medical imaging tools to measure inflammation related to the heart have simply not been available at a fine enough level of measurement to fully explore the connection.

Was Frost & Sullivan just looking for a spot at the royal court or were these legitimate kudos? Probably the later. F&S conducted interviews with many market players along with their customers and suppliers, and reportedly did extensive research into the medical equipment technology field.

One of the five awards included the regent-like titles of “Medical Imaging Company of the Year”, “New Care Setting of the Year”, and “Medical Imaging Technology of the Year”. The other two were for Technology Leadership and Services Innovation Leadership.

The response of Jouko Karvinen, president and CEO of Philips Medical Systems, to the awards sounded like the equivalent of an industry coronation speech. He stated, “We proudly accept the Frost & Sullivan Awards as an independent validation of Philips business and technology leadership…. These five awards are further indicators that Philips continues to set the industry standard for developing innovative products that help treat patients and save lives.”

Royal Philips. Long live the King!

Marconi Medical Systems of Ohio, formerly Picker International, was already a big player in its own right among major global CT suppliers. With Marconi, Philips gained cutting-edge multi-slice CT technology along with cardiology, oncology and PET/CT imaging applications. These two acquisitions in one year landed Philips in the top three for the entire medical equipment industry along with giants Siemens and GE Medical – some say as number two.

In 2005, the growth continued as Philips bought Stentor, Inc. of California, provider best-in-class picture archiving and communications systems (PACS). This move allowed Philips to help its clients successfully manage the voluminous amounts of imaging data created by its medical scanners. Then, the following year, the growth continued as Philips adopted Witt Biomedical Corporation, the largest independent supplier of Cath Lab monitoring and reporting systems.

In its drive to become King of the Medical Equipment industry, Philips Healthcare Services has acquired six companies since its inception in 1998. Each of the six has expanded Philips’ offerings to include a total of ten medical imaging modalities, from CT to MRI to x-ray, along with defibrillation and cardiac monitoring equipment as well as image and information management solutions.

At the end of Philips Healthcare Services first year, Philips Electronics added digital ultrasound systems to PHS’s portfolio by acquiring ATL Ultrasound of Washington. Only two years later, in late 2000, Philips expanded into nuclear medicine by absorbing ADAC Laboratories of California. From this on, Philips Healthcare Services has been driven with its goal to become the king of the Medical Equipments.