HTM leaders are building new programs and pipelines to sustain teams amid mounting workforce shortages.
By Alyx Arnett
Workforce data show growing pressures across healthcare technology management (HTM), with demand for skilled professionals outpacing supply. “People is the number one issue in HTM,” says Danielle McGeary, vice president of HTM at AAMI.
The shortage isn’t new, but several trends are converging, making it harder to keep departments staffed. In the past five years, at least 30 biomedical equipment technician (BMET) programs have closed, leaving 23 states without a single BMET-specific academic pathway, according to McGeary. At the same time, a 2021 AAMI demographic survey found that 47% of HTM professionals were over age 50, suggesting a significant wave of retirements is approaching.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Labor projects 18% job growth through 2033, adding about 7,300 openings a year1—but with only about 400 graduates from formal programs annually, there simply aren’t enough new professionals to meet demand.
The result: a widening gap that’s forcing HTM leaders to rethink how they recruit, train, and retain staff.
Building Academic Programs Locally
In response to shrinking academic programs, some HTM leaders are working to stand up new ones. In California’s Bay Area, Stanford Health Care’s Renato Castro, CBET, CHTM, and Robert Morales are in the process of creating an associate degree track to restore an in-person option after DeVry University closed its BMET programs, some of which historically supplied a stream of entry-level biomeds to the area.
That talent gap can be felt at Stanford Health Care, even with the institution’s prestigious reputation. “The amount of qualified applicants is still pretty low,” says Castro, assistant biomed manager, who handles hiring for the organization’s biomedical engineering department. “We are still either running into people requesting to relocate from outside the area or finding it rare to find people with more than two years of experience and some education related to the field.”
Castro and Morales, IT clinical applications manager of biomedical engineering, have begun scoping out community colleges to partner with. The next step is to develop the curriculum and submit it for approval.
Though the program is still in the early stages, the pair—both DeVry graduates—hopes it will help build the workforce back up. “We want to help sustain a pipeline of proper talent for all the hospitals that deserve qualifying talent,” says Morales, who’s also president of the California Medical Instrumentation Association Silicon Valley chapter.
Scaling Apprenticeships and Training at the National Level
At the national level, AAMI is working to rebuild the workforce pipeline through its two-year BMET apprenticeship program. Launched in 2021 and registered with the US Department of Labor, the 4,000-hour model blends full-time employment with about 144 hours of related instruction. Apprentices earn AAMI’s entry-level CABT certification, Tech+ (formerly CompTIA’s ITF+), and attempt the CBET exam.
Fourteen apprentices have completed the program, and all are employed in the field. Another 60 are currently enrolled, but—notably—interest far exceeds capacity. AAMI has over 3,000 individuals on the interest list but not enough employers to pair them with. “These are people who want to do this job,” says McGeary. “People say they can’t find people, and we have people.”
McGeary is encouraging more healthcare organizations to partner with AAMI to host apprentices. There’s no cost to participate beyond paying the apprentice’s salary and covering related instruction, which totals less than $3,000 over two years, according to McGeary.
Tapping Nontraditional and Military Talent
Third-party service organization TRIMEDX has developed tailored training pathways to attract talent from outside traditional BMET programs, drawing candidates from fields like electronics, IT, HVAC, and avionics.
“Anyone who gets excited about IKEA instructions is probably a safe, strong talent in the biomed industry,” says vice president of organizational learning and workforce strategy Courtney Kinkade. “We’re capitalizing on the skills they already have, creating a shorter runway—but a very intentional runway—so that they can add value and start to materialize in their career a lot faster.”
TRIMEDX has also partnered with the Department of Defense’s SkillBridge program to provide transitioning service members 90 to 120 days of hands-on experience to explore whether HTM is the right fit. “We’re serving as a really good steward for telling the HTM story to a large population of people who wouldn’t necessarily have heard of it otherwise and then getting them excited about a career in HTM,” she says.
Sheldon Arora, CEO of StaffDNA, a digital marketplace that enables healthcare professionals to find jobs, recommends HTM leaders collaborate with STEM programs, partner with technical schools, and participate in industry conferences to connect with potential candidates. “Traditional recruitment efforts often miss identifying candidates for HTM roles,” he says.
Supporting Current Teams
While building the pipeline remains critical, HTM leaders emphasize retaining existing staff. And when it comes down to it, money talks. AAMI released a retention guide in 2023, informed by survey data analyzed across various demographics, including gender, age, generation, job title, and race. The survey revealed that, across all combinations, the primary factor influencing whether individuals stayed or left their jobs was compensation and benefits.
The guide recommends that leaders partner with human resources to ensure equitable salaries, leveraging tools like the annual 24×7 salary survey to inform regional pay benchmarks. McGeary acknowledges the financial constraints many healthcare organizations face but emphasizes that employers “need to figure it out.” If budgets hinder raises, she says other avenues—such as training and ensuring staff can take paid time off—can make a difference.
Other factors, such as flexible work environments and professional development opportunities, impact employees’ decisions to stay, according to the survey. AAMI’s retention guide suggests leaders should discuss employees’ individual needs and desires, seeking compromises that align with business needs. Supporting staff in utilizing educational benefits like tuition reimbursement also demonstrates investment in employees’ long-term growth, according to the guide.
“People will stay where they feel management is loyal and cares about them,” McGeary says.
Employers are finding that these strategies can pay off in practice. At SonderCare, a provider of home hospital beds and medical equipment, CEO Kyle Sobko says upskilling and multi-role development have delivered results. “Technicians trained in both technical repairs and client-facing roles tend to stay longer,” he says.
The company also partners with educational institutions for internships and runs continuous training and certification programs to create growth paths—efforts Sobko says strengthen retention and widen the pipeline simultaneously.
Manufacturers are also investing in workforce development. Hologic, for example, runs a six-month pathway program that transitions field maintenance engineers into field service engineer roles, blending classroom instruction with hands-on experience to build the next generation of imaging specialists.
Technology as a Force Multiplier
Staffing relief doesn’t always mean headcount. Many organizations are investing in tools designed to reduce wasted time, automate routine steps, and free technicians for higher-value work:
- Real-time location systems. TRIMEDX’s GeoSense has shown “up to a 50% reduction in device search times” based on internal data—a productivity lift and a burnout reducer when locating mobile assets is a daily frustration, says Kinkade.
- Patient simulation and test automation. “We can automate some patient sim testing and create prescriptive outputs without significant manual intervention,” enabling techs to spend more time on tool-in-device work, Kinkade says.
- Artificial intelligence-enabled productivity. Agentic tools can streamline data cleanup, PM variance analysis, invoicing checks, and contract language review, says Kinkade, areas where manual work often drags on HTM capacity.
- Predictive analytics and remote support. In imaging, Hologic’s Unifi Analytics uses AI-based models to predict tube life and alert users to preempt replacements, while remote fix capabilities resolve a growing share of issues without on-site dispatch. “We’re working to further improve remote fix rates to reduce downtime, improve efficiency, and reduce burden on facility staff,” says Mark Horvath, president of breast and skeletal health solutions at Hologic.
- Robotics. Automation outside HTM can also unlock HTM bandwidth. Robots handling hospital logistics—meals, linens, pharmacy totes, sterile instruments, even blood samples—can eliminate backlogs that ripple into clinical operations, for example. “Human tasks should be more sophisticated, more intelligent,” says Ting Ming Ling, CEO of OTSAW, a Singapore-based autonomous robotics company.
Still, Kinkade emphasizes that technology is meant to support, not supplant. The real goal, she says, is using tools like AI to reduce drudgery, make biomed work more fulfilling, and strengthen patient care—critical steps if the field is to keep and grow the thousands of professionals it will need in the decade ahead.
Standards-Based Staffing—and Realistic Workloads
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many HTM teams pushed themselves to the limit to keep equipment running and patient care uninterrupted, but that pace isn’t sustainable, says James Linton, professor and program coordinator for biomedical engineering at St. Clair College in Canada and co-chair of the AAMI Standards Committee. “You can only run at that rate for so long. That’s like training for a marathon. ‘I sprinted the first mile, so I must be fine. I’ll just keep sprinting.’ No, you can’t,” he says.
Many HTM professionals continue to face heavy workloads, according to 24×7’s 2024 compensation and job satisfaction survey, which found that 46% of respondents described their workload as “heavy,” while 10% labeled it “excessive.”
To address these pressures, Linton assisted in the development of AAMI’s EQ56:2024 standard, which specifies minimum requirements for medical equipment management programs. The standard provides guidance on staffing levels, competencies, service continuity, and resource planning, tools leaders can use to balance growing demands with limited resources.
Determining the right staffing levels starts with understanding how teams are being used. Linton recommends managers work to identify under- or over-utilization. When Linton was in management, he tracked staff efficiency by requiring them to document at least 80% of their time in the CMMS. If staff logged significantly more or less time than expected, he could look at why. “I was able to eliminate roles, and I was able to add roles in other places,” he says. For understaffed departments, such data can also prove valuable in hiring talks with C-suite leaders.
Beyond headcount, the standard stresses competency-based staffing. It emphasizes that staff must possess the right technical skills, regulatory knowledge, and ongoing education to keep pace with evolving technologies. Linton highlights a common pitfall: hiring based solely on impressive degrees that might not align with practical HTM needs. “On paper, you could have eight PhDs who’ve never touched equipment,” he explains. “Brilliant people, but not in repairing devices.”
EQ56 also calls for service continuity planning to account for inevitable disruptions such as turnover, retirements, and emergencies. AAMI also offers an HTM succession planning guide, which helps leaders prepare for staffing changes by evaluating promotion readiness, identifying skill gaps, and establishing advancement pathways.
Advocacy and Awareness: Everyone’s Job
The field’s lack of visibility remains a barrier to a strong workforce. “People don’t believe they can be what they can’t see,” says McGeary. AAMI champions this cause, offering resources like the free “HTM in a Box,” a plug-and-play presentation designed for audiences from elementary school through college. This initiative, alongside career brochures and partnerships with organizations like HOSA for an HTM track kicking off this fall as a pilot program, aims to broaden awareness and steer aspiring professionals toward the field.
McGeary emphasizes that if every HTM professional committed to one annual presentation, the collective reach would be immense.
Linton’s biomedical engineering program at St. Clair College exemplifies this approach. His program consistently boasts high application numbers (120 to 140 annually, with around 60 intakes) and a waitlist. Linton attributes this success to relentless advocacy. His team engages in year-round outreach, from staffing college open houses and hosting robotics department talks, to local high school and elementary school visits. Linton encourages his own students to become advocates, offering bonus points for presenting AAMI’s HTM in a Box material to local groups.
Stanford University’s Morales underscores the power of one visit. As a high schooler, a DeVry presentation set his career in motion. “Someone who took the time of their day to just stop by my high school and give that one-hour presentation just kind of changed my whole life,” he says.
The Road Ahead
As HTM leaders work to stabilize their teams, Arora stresses the importance of preparing for constant change. “Every few months, there’s an influx of new devices and AI-driven tools to advance work systems, clinical delivery, and patient care coordination,” he says. “The rapid evolution of technology makes hiring difficult. What you hire for today may not be what you need in the long term.”
Over the next decade, Linton foresees HTM staffing models evolving beyond traditional BMET tiers into more specialized branches, including cybersecurity biomed, clinical engineering, dialysis, and imaging.
As technology and industry demands continue to shift, TRIMEDX’s Kinkade emphasizes the need to plan today for tomorrow’s workforce. “All of us have a really interesting obligation to make sure we’re tracking where the industry is leading and then start work early on upskilling, building capability, enhancing capability to really chart our path to make ourselves relevant and stay relevant in the industry,” she says.
Reference
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Medical equipment repairers. Occupational Outlook Handbook. US Department of Labor. Updated April 18, 2025. Available at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/installation-maintenance-and-repair/medical-equipment-repairers.htm
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