The clinical engineer: a ghost hunter or manager of EMI

The management of EMI and risk control in the clinical environment presents the clinical engineer with new challenges and responsibilities. The keys to successfully meeting these challenges and responsibilities are education, cooperation, and the ability to be creative in the quest for solutions to problems of ever-increasing complexity. Experience in detecting and analyzing test results, which is gained over time, enhances the skills that clinical engineering professionals bring to this challenge. Attention to EMI risks has been influenced by a number of factors, including a spirit of cooperation between manufacturers and users, concerns over patient care and perceived product efficacy, and an increasing number of regulations by European and U.S. regulatory agencies. As a result, device emissions are being reduced and device immunity to EMI is improving. Further improvements in device immunity are still needed. The radio spectrum with regard to intentional radiators is in a continual state of flux. As industry attempts to improve labor efficiency through the use of radio communications, new and higher-powered sources of RF--both internal and external to the physical plant--appear each day in the clinical environment. Since the distance between intentional radiators and potentially susceptible devices is usually beyond the control of an institution, industry must continue to reduce device susceptibility. There should be a stronger dialogue between institutions (even if they do not have proactive EMI reduction programs) and manufacturers to identify ways to improve device immunity to EMI and to increase product designers' and users' awareness of potential problems.