As is increasingly the case in the field of OEM medical manufacturing, clinical practice must necessarily follow in the wake of new technologies; not the other way around.
More and more, the traditional, distinct specializations that have underscored the organization of hospitals and clinics throughout most of the past century are getting cross-pollinated; the designation between doctor and specialist is growing ever more “blurry.”
While a few purists here and there may cry “foul,” this is, in fact, a very welcome trend, and not just in terms of additional advanced manufacturing opportunities. How many readers of this blog have ever waited hours on end in the waiting room of a medical specialist?
Now that advanced medical devices are able to let regular clinicians perform the roles of specialists, there are more and more opportunities for patients to receive the quality care they need at the speed at which they deserve it: presto and stat. Meanwhile, once-harried medical specialists are given the needed time to focus on resolving difficult cases. After all, it’s what they were originally trained to do. The total workload of a given hospital – never a light one – is thereby made less burdensome.
Recently, Ardel Engineering did some advanced manufacturing for a high-profile client in the medical electronics industry that illustrates this trend nicely. Helping our customer make key components to a new cranial blood-flow monitoring device allows for technology to lift the burden off of the shoulders of weary, overworked sonographers.
Now, regular physicians can perform a function that was once confined to the specialty doctors. Not only does this new device perform continuous monitoring of cranial blood-flow in a patient (as opposed to performing “sample” measurements from time-to-time as would a traditional cranial blood-flow monitoring instrument), but it allows for sonographers to be wherever they are needed most.
By sounding an alarm that automatically alerts sonographers to any blood-flow abnormalities, the device keeps patients safer, and doctors healthier. In short, it’s a win-win for both patient and industry. For further information how Ardel Engineering can provide for your metal and thermoplastic machining needs in the medical industry, contact us by phone or by email today.