Bensalem’s Carmelo Perez discusses highlights and challenges of clinical engineer role at St. Mary
By Samantha Bambino
The Times
It’s not uncommon for Carmelo Perez to receive upward of 20 calls a day, with every person on the other line in need of his help. But he doesn’t mind in the slightest. In fact, it comes with the territory of his job.
Perez, a Bensalem resident and Pennsauken, New Jersey, native, is part of a small team of clinical engineers at St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne. His responsibility on a daily basis is one that’s not often thought of in the medical field. It’s something patients take for granted because when they come in for treatment, everything just seems to work.
In his role, Perez repairs hospital equipment when it breaks down. Since arriving in 2014, Perez has built a strong rapport with clinical staff, who know they can count on his skill and service whenever they need an issue resolved. All they have to do is call the clinical engineering department. In some instances, they can even call or text Perez directly on his cell phone. He’s always willing to help.
On a recent Thursday morning, The Times caught up with Perez at his desk located in the lower level of the hospital to spotlight the man working tirelessly behind-the-scenes, ultimately ensuring the smooth operations of the ever-bustling hospital.
So what exactly sparked Perez’s interest in this niche field? His mother. Though he had a certification in networking under his belt, he knew his passions lay elsewhere. Perez’s mother was a technician at University of Pennsylvania Hospital and helped him land an entry-level position in biomed.
Starting out as an administrative assistant, he took calls, gave purchase orders and worked with the vendors. But in addition to his assigned duties, Perez was gaining knowledge on his own time.
“I sort of went into the shop, kept talking to the guys and they showed me a little troubleshooting here and there and it took off from there,” he said.
Perez earned his associate’s degree in electronics from ITT Technical Institute, something usually required to become a clinical engineer, and worked at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital for approximately eight years before heading to Lockheed Martin in Newtown. After that company transitioned to Denver, Colorado, Perez was hired at St. Mary in 2014 and hasn’t looked back since.
Each day, Perez and the clinical engineering department receive calls regarding all types of electronic hospital equipment.
“It ranges from bedside monitors to EKG machines. We go into the OR, we work on OR tables, lights, stretchers, beds. Pretty much anything that plugs into the wall,” he said.
Though some members of his team specialize in certain areas (Perez is an expert on anesthesia machines), each has the ability to fix all types. Perez, along with two colleagues, rotate being on call 24/7 each week. Even if a repair request comes through at 3 a.m., they’ll happily oblige.
For Perez, a huge part of the job is not only keeping himself calm under pressure, but also the doctors and nurses. He reflected on one unforgettable instance when he was called to the operating room to fix a malfunctioning table. As always, Perez reported as quickly as possible to diagnose the problem, but the scene he arrived to was far from typical.
Upon arrival, Perez was asked to don a scrub gown over his signature dress pants and button down shirt. A surgery was already underway, and the table the unconscious patient was lying on was stuck at an angle. It would not move, and the surgery couldn’t be completed until the table was flat.
“It wouldn’t work with the controls, so I went up, found out it was a bad batch of batteries that we received. In the middle of the procedure, I had to swap the batteries just to get it going so they could get the patient back level,” Perez said. “That was pretty intense. I had the doctors over me even before I looked at the table.”
Once Perez figured out what was wrong, his work took a mere 15 minutes and the surgery was underway once again. Despite the intense situation, he handled it with professionalism and efficiency, which is something he constantly strives to achieve.
“I like going around and pretty much satisfying everybody’s needs as far as their equipment,” Perez said, adding how customer service is one of his favorite parts of the job. “I think it’s important that we’re here to pretty much keep the staff calm because, of course, nurses and doctors have a lot going on. It’s good for them to just place a call and say, ‘My equipment is down,’ hang up and not have to worry about it instead of trying to troubleshoot.” ••
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
