North Coast Connections: Medical Tech

It's safe to say that with minor exceptions, every field of endeavor has been deeply changed by technology. This is especially true in the medical field. This is not a blog posting about the good or evil of biotechnology, DNA mapping or Frankenfoods ... look for future coverage of these fascinating topics down the road. This is about day-to-day, routine medical services in regular practice in hospitals, medical clinics and with first responders.

First, let's put in perspective why Med Tech is so important to our lives locally, aside from the obvious life saving aspects. It is a relatively new phenomenon (in the past 5 years or less) that healthcare has surpassed timber as the largest single private sector employment industry in Humboldt County.

Speaking strictly from an economic development standpoint, the recent financial troubles at local hospitals is increasing the possibility that government, out of necessity, may eventually take over this private sector industry. I only mention this because currently, government combined (federal, state and local) still constitutes the largest single employment base in Humboldt County. All things being equal, a robust private sector economy is better than a public sector economy, but sometimes all things are not necessarily equal.

On the Med Tech issue, some things are standard operating procedure. First, take the patient's vital signs: blood pressure, temperature, pulse, and check to see that they are breathing. But how these things are done has changed dramatically.

BLOOD PRESSURE
Taking someone's blood pressure meant using a "manual" machine called a "sphygmomanometer." Today, this contraption is an automated cuff, inflation and measuring device that can even be left on a patient who is unattended, and staff is only notified when the readings exceed a pre-set standard.

TEMPERATURE
Mercury oral thermometers? Forget about it! Anal thermometers? Are you kidding? Now we have digital reading devices that can use the mouth, ear or armpit to monitor body temperature. Not good enough? How about adhesive tape strips applied to the forehead that show the temperature according to colors (green, yellow and red).

PULSE AND BREATHING
OK, digital pulse regulators have been out for a long time, but monitoring someone's breathing simply by looking at their chest or putting mirror under their nose doesn't tell you how much oxygen they're getting. A simple finger clamp now shines a light to measure the blood color and gives an amazingly accurate reading of the blood oxygen count, which is the pre-determinant factor in deciding whether or not to administer oxygen.

SURGERY AND TREATMENT
On the "getting you started" side, heart defibrillators are literally improving by the day. So much so that they are now placed in major public gathering places as commonplace as fire extinguishers. On the surgical and treatment side, the array of technological medical advances is mind boggling. X-rays are still useful, but they are augmented with ultrasound, CAT scan, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, and other means of looking into your body before "exploratory surgery" is needed. Prostheses; heart monitoring and stimuli; cancer treatment; orthopaedic surgical devices; and even cosmetic surgery have made huge advances ... so much so that past practitioners would have to be practicing regularly to keep up with the changes.

Of course, the surgeon is still the top of the medical food chain. But increasingly, medical technicians, healthcare professionals and IT staff are VITAL players in the healthcare industry, and just as necessary as a competent doctor to keep a patient alive and well.

Coming from a medical family (and being a major klutz as a child and adult), I deeply appreciate our doctors, first responders, nurses and healthcare professionals. It's not just mastering the tech, it's a deep and abiding culture of helping others, sustaining life and "doing no harm," that elevates the cause above the technology.

If you should suffer the misfortune of an accident or contract a congenital disease, your chances of (literally) getting out alive are far better today than they were only a few short years ago. The caring and dedication of our doctors, first responders, nurses and health care professionals is only matched by the current and developing advancements of the tools they have available to use.

We all owe them a heartfelt debt of gratitude.

Chris Crawford
www.justiceserved.com

North Coast Connections

Thoughts and analysis on technology and life on the North Coast.

Medical Tech

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