The TRIMEDX clinical engineering department at Sentara Princess Anne Hospital in Virginia was recognized as TechNation’s February department of the month. TechNation highlighted the team’s efforts as good ambassadors for HTM profession and positive outcomes amid competing projects. The full article, as it was published on Feb. 1, 2025, is below.
Virginia Beach is one of the better-known resort cities along the east coast, drawing tourists every summer from further north and from other eastern states. Visitors will often hear the loud F/A-18 Super Hornets flying in and out of Naval Air Station Oceana. Not far from the naval air station, in the opposite direction from the tourist beaches, is Sentara Princess Anne Hospital.
The clinical engineering team at Princess Anne are known for taking on interns and junior volunteers and acting as good ambassadors for the HTM profession. The TRIMEDX department is comprised of four techs, an imaging tech, an assistant manager and site manager. Members include Senior Site Manager Sandy Mason, CHTM; Assistant Manager Tai Steede Sailor; Senior Technician Corinne Davis, CBET; Christina Taylor, CBET, BMET III; Chris Johnson, BMET II; Michelle Wiggs, BMET I; and Cassie Redburn, Imaging Tech I.
“Here at Sentara Princess Anne Hospital, the clinical engineering department is a six-member shop, comprised of five BMETS and one imaging technician. We utilize our shop to better the HTM field for our fellow technicians by providing a space for internship and skill bridge candidates, as well as sponsor high school volunteers, building recognition of our field with the youth,” Mason says.
“We also provide leadership training for current TRIMEDX technicians. All of this allows for us to support the system that is 12 hospitals (2,800-beds) and supporting imaging centers, senior care centers, outpatient clinics, primary care physician offices, outpatient therapy centers and homecare, all throughout Virginia and North Carolina,” she adds.
The department supports Princess Anne Hospital, a 176-bed acute care facility, and the surrounding campus that includes a plastic surgery center, advanced imaging center, pain management center, comprehensive breast center, four outpatient therapy centers, two urgent care centers and a variety of specialty clinics and physician practices.
“Service contracts are obtained by both TRIMEDX and Sentara; but all are managed by TRIMEDX. The customer will reach out to us for support. We follow up and ensure the maintenance is completed during its allotted schedule,” Mason says.
She says that the team’s CMMS tracks the PM schedule and opens work orders proactively when the PMs are due along with all other contracted services provided.
The department also coordinates with IT to harden the threat surface and network devices.
“We are actively involved in the CE/IT arena. The devices are monitored, threats assessed, and software patches applied and/or any approved remediation activity completed. We also work closely with IT for integration into the patient record and/or any device safety and/or drug library monitoring systems,” Mason says.
Data collection is done throughout the life cycle of all devices.
“Originally at incoming inspection, we collect all appropriate information to include (but not limited to) make, model, SN, MAC address, operating system, applications software revision and photos. This information is validated and if necessary updated whenever we touch the unit – annually at a minimum,” Mason adds.
Infusion Confusion
The department has even achieved positive results when confronted with competing projects.
“We recently opened a new wing, which allowed us to move the stroke/med surg department closer to ICU and stepdown to create better flow for our patients. Also added was a new wound care clinic that features two hyperbaric chambers. This was occurring at the same time as our department was moved to a different part of the hospital,” Mason says.
She says that the CE team was able to validate and reallocate many devices to cover the needs of the new unit assisting with reducing unnecessary capital expenditure, standardizing like units and doing their part to allow clinical staff to ensure patient safety.
“We actively worked with the PACs department, IT and clinicians to move towards a new PACs system. We coordinated and performed all changes with minimal interruption to patient flow or uptime. By being flexible and working with the various impacted departments we were able to complete an average of 45 modalities per week for a four-week period. The system went live with no issues,” Mason says.
In addition to tackling multiple projects simultaneously, the team has put its collective minds together to problem-solve.
“One of the issues that is prevalent and frustrating to our healthcare system is the movement of infusion devices when patients are transferred to a different level of care. This results in many smaller facilities struggling to have the appropriate number of devices to ensure appropriate patient care. We identified that one [of the] most common drivers of the devices leaving those facilities was that the patient transportation organization, that the health system partnered with, was transferring the devices with the patients. The reasons for this were not that they had devices that used different disposables but that their devices were not able to utilize that drug library approved by the system,” Mason says.
She says that by coordinating with the pharmacy and the transportation company, the CE team was able to offer a solution to where the devices could be updated by CE on a periodic basis – as new library changes are approved and pushed – so that the patient could be placed on the devices owned by the transportation staff therefore keeping the number of devices leaving the facility to a minimum.
“We have recently enacted this drug library solution and are already seeing a week over week reduction in devices leaving the facilities therefore helping to ensure safe, timely and appropriate patient care and a reduction of clinical staff time obtaining the proper device,” Mason says.
Aways from work, the team is actively involved with the Virgina Biomedical Society (including a board member) and AAMI.
As Navy jets fly overhead, patients and clinicians at Sentara Princess Anne are assured that the country is protected and the medical devices they depend on are professionally managed.