In 1988, Bill Lowery found himself in a desperate situation: he had a wife and four young children to support but no job. His mother had gone back to school at a technical college in Texas and suggested he do the same. Hurriedly scanning through the programs in the college catalog, Lowery decided biomedical equipment technologywas the field for him. He loaded everything he could fit into a 6-by-12-foot trailer and headed for Waco, Texas. He has never regretted his choice.

Now the supervisor of the biomedical engineering department at in , Lowery is a proud member of an under-recognized yet critical profession in healthcare delivery. Lowery is a biomedical equipment technician or BMET for short.

Although BMETs do not personally care for patients, they play a vital role in patient care. They inspect, maintain, and repair the diagnostic, monitoring, therapeutic, and life-saving medical equipment – defibrillators, ventilators, monitors, medical imaging devices, clinical laboratory equipment, infusion devices, and more – that is found in every hospital and medical clinic. They also train doctors, nurses, and allied healthcare personnel in the proper usage of equipment; provide technical advice on the evaluation and purchase of new medical equipment; and are called upon to investigate incidents of patient injury caused by machines.

The BMET profession is relatively young, meaning that it's estimated 40,000 members in North America are still working to establish their identity. In the United States, BMETs are called either biomedical equipment technicians, biomedical engineering technicians, biomedical electronics technicians, or just biomedical technicians. They all possess a sound knowledge of electronics, human anatomy and physiology, and medical terminology; have excellent analytical and troubleshooting skills; and, of course, outstanding customer-relations skills.

BMETs in the United States require either a two-year Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in biomedical equipment technology, military training as a BMET or a two-year Associate's degree in electronics plus on-the-job training. The AAS consists of about 15 to 18 semester hours of academics and 50 to 60 hours of training in electronics, anatomy/physiology, medical terminology, shop, and operation and troubleshooting of various types of medical equipment. Most of these courses are hands-on, intensive, and laboratory-oriented.

In Canada, most BMETs are referred to as biomedical engineering technologists, although a few still refer to themselves as technicians. There are five colleges in Canada that offer BMET diplomas (equivalent to the American Associate's degree). The programs vary in length – in Alberta and British Columbia, they are two years, and in Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia, they are three years. There are also several universities that offer Bachelor's degrees in biomedical engineering.

BMETs who choose to further their education with a Bachelor's degree have several options. They can complete a Bachelor's in engineering or electronics technology, which usually entails completing more academic courses (such as English o