Most of us have at least one doctor. We can picture her or him and if we run into them in the grocery store, we know their names and frequently personal details of their lives. Often, we recognize the nurses who work in their offices in the same way, too. These are the people who are the front line of every person’s healthcare. If you stop and think about all those involved in the healthcare industry, you may extend your line of vision to include hospital case managers, emergency medical technicians or the janitorial staff who keeps the offices and facilities clean. Have you ever stopped to think about all the equipment in those offices and facilities, though? Where does it all come from? What does it all do?

I Can Hear Your Heartbeat

One of the most common pieces of medical equipment found seemingly everywhere these days is the defibrillator. While you may not know that Brendan Wetzel of Yardley, PA has a business that supplies these, he’s one of many people who make sure these life-saving instruments are widely available. Why, though? Why are defibrillators so important? It’s all about your heartbeat. An AED, or automated external defibrillator, is a portable device that can check to see if your heartbeat is normal and then provide an electric shock to regulate it if it’s not. These are life-saving in cases of cardiac arrest. Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators (ICDs) are placed inside your body through surgery and regulate your heartbeat on a continuous basis. The last type, a Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator (WCD) is worn outside the body but also monitors and assists your heartbeat regularly.

Pump It Up

Medical technology can’t get away from the variety of pumps it requires to help the human body function under certain circumstances. One major category of pumps, the infusion pump, has three different types to help patients. Each type has multiple examples of its uses in medicine. Mobility pumps are grouped by whether they move or not and are used on patients whose mobility needs require one type or the other. Bedridden patients don’t need the same type as a patient who requires physical therapy. The fluid volume each pump delivers is another category of definition. A small amount of medication doesn’t require a large pump. The last type of pump is classified by the patient’s need for the fluid delivered. A diabetic’s insulin pump is one example.

Mirror Image

Imaging is a massive category in medical technology. Basically, it refers to the process of looking inside the human body using radiology. X-rays are a prime example. These produce black and white pictures of the insides of your body depending on the density of what’s being x-rayed. Bones show up very well on x-rays. Another common type of image is the MRI or magnetic resonance image; this uses magnets and radio waves to look at your organs and other tissues. PET scans (positron emission tomography) are a test that uses radioactive tracer drugs to show how your organs and tissues are working. PET scans frequently pick up diseased tissues before other tests.

Your body is a wonderland and your doctors and nurses need a variety of medical equipment to help keep you healthy.