Report: Clinical Engineering DivisionFollowing the 1997 World Congress in Nice the Clinical Engineering Division of the IFMBE has embarked on a new journey to strengthen Clinical Engineering globally. This is reflected by the new board of the Clinical Engineering Division which now includes at least one member from each continent. As part of the advocacy initiative, the Clinical Engineering Division, through its members, supported a number of regional and national Clinical Engineering workshops and conferences. The Clinical Engineering conference in Cyprus (June 1998), the CORAL meeting in Mazatlan, Mexico (November 1998) and the Caribbean conference on Clinical Engineering in Havana, Cuba in April 1999 bear testimony to this increased emphasis on regional activities. It is planned to include a Clinical Engineering track in the three major IFMBE-sponsored conferences in 1999, viz. NBC’99 (Tallinn, Estonia in June), APCMBE’99 (Seoul, South Korea in September) and EMBEC’99 (Vienna, Austria in November). Further collaboration with regional organisations closely linked to Clinical Engineering such as the AFTH (African Federation for Technology in Health Care) and the ACCE (American College of Clinical Engineering) has resulted in the hosting of two workshops focused at the advancement of skills for clinical engineers. In Mazatlan more than 20 clinical engineers participated in a very successful workshop. This meeting was followed by a second workshop in the People's Republic of China at the beginning of 1999. Further workshops are planned, in collaboration with the ACCE, for Moscow in June 1999 and Cape Town, South Africa in November 1999. Increased cooperation with multinational and bilateral organisations over the last few years has also increased the visibility of the Clinical Engineering profession. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) have in particular promoted and supported the objectives of the Clinical Engineering Division. The active participation by members of the Clinical Engineering Division at meetings organised by the WHO has also significantly contributed in highlighting CED objectives and the plight of many of its members. At a regional level, Clinical Engineering aspects have been incorporated in the draft framework for health technology policy development. This framework will guide governments in the African and Mediterranean region in preparing national health technology policy. The Division was also involved in the finalisation of a number of guidelines and documents in the field of healthcare technology management. Finalisation of the donation guidelines for medical equipment and the framework for health technology policy development are two major contributions to this field. The Division also had to address a number of very important internal and administrative issues. The sustainability and continuity of the Division has been severely tested during the last two years. Financial constraints, informal relationships to member societies and individuals and the lack of incentives and benefits for members have raised a number of questions. The intensification and support of external activities by the Division therefore clearly need to be evaluated and addressed. It is therefore obvious that the Division will not be in a position to support and promote global Clinical Engineering activities at such an intensified and sustainable pace. The Division therefore is not opposed to the establishment of regional Clinical Engineering Divisions within the framework of the IFMBE-CED. The proposed establishment of the European and Caribbean chapters for Clinical Engineering and existing organisations such as the African Federation for Technology in Healthcare, CORAL (for Latin America) and a number of Clinical Engineering associations in North America with regional membership will therefore contribute to the global promotion of the field of Clinical Engineering. It is thus opportune that with the Chicago 2000 World Congress the Clinical Engineering Division will have the opportunity to bring together all of the regional chapters and to ensure that international cooperation and cross-regional Clinical Engineering activities are promoted. Peter Heimann, PhD | ||