Employee Spotlight: Shivanni Prowell

Born and raised in New Jersey, one of our talented young technicians, Shivanni Prowell, shares her path in the healthcare industry. She paints us a picture depicting her journey from beginning with why she chose to become a biomedical technician up to what she’s learned over her almost four years at InterMed and everything in between.

What is your educational and professional background?

I went to a technical high school and became certified in electronics. After graduating, I went to Rowan College of Burlington County to earn my associate degree in electrical engineering. Professionally, I went straight into InterMed right as the pandemic hit first as an imaging repair technician, so I was in the MRI repair room. Then, around two years ago, I got an offer to be in Biomed.

What is your current role and responsibilities?

I am a Biomedical Technician here at Temple University Hospital, where we cover all our contracted equipment across their seven sites. In my role, I work on most of the lab equipment, anesthesia equipment, and respiratory equipment (like ventilators). I do a little of general biomed too, but most of our equipment here is critical equipment, so that's generally what I work on. When I say critical, I mean critical to the patient, so equipment like ventilators and anesthesia devices. I do all the repairs, all the preventative maintenance, and I schedule vendors if needed, to keep those pieces of equipment up and running.

Why did you choose to become a BMET?

My dad is an electrician by trade, so I've always been a little bit interested in that field growing up. He encouraged me to study electronics and when I did eventually get that chance in high school, I liked it. However, I always knew growing up that I also wanted to be in the healthcare field in some way, but I didn't know how I was going to apply my electrical knowledge. I ended up looking it up on Google - what combines electronics and healthcare into one, and then that's how I found Biomed.

Why did you want to pursue a career in the healthcare industry?

I watched my mom work in the healthcare field and I knew I wanted to do something impactful. Every job is impactful in its own way, but I liked patient care. However, I knew I didn't want to be a nurse; I knew I'd be a little bit too squeamish to do that. Being a biomedical technician is still a way to be patient-focused because, at the end of the day, what we do is for the patients – to help them. When you're working on the equipment, you know that that's the end goal.

What do you love about:

• Your role?

I like that it's not a monotonous role and that every day is different. For example, I might have an issue with a ventilator that I've never run into before or an issue with a piece of lab equipment that I've never seen before, so every day it’s like solving a puzzle, but you're solving different puzzles every day.

• Being in the healthcare industry?

I like that it's so broad, especially on the equipment that I work on. I could spend years and years learning about all new types of equipment, especially because healthcare tech is always advancing.

• Being positioned at our client, Temple University Health?

Temple is special in that there's a lot of opportunity for growth as a biomed, so I have been put in a unique position. Usually, biomeds aren't working on anesthesia or ventilation in their first year of being in that role, so I've had a huge learning curve, but it's been really rewarding.

Why did you choose InterMed?

The InterMed New Jersey office used to be a different company, Sigma. Sigma was known mostly for imaging equipment, like servicing and maintaining imaging equipment. They had a partnership with the college I attended, to try and recruit students. I applied while still in school, but they needed somebody full-time, so they told me to reapply when I graduated. By the time I had graduated, they had already switched over to InterMed, but I didn’t know that at the time, so when I applied to InterMed and they had the same address as Sigma, I was pleasantly surprised. Some of the people there remembered me which helped in getting my foot in the door. The entire time that I've been with InterMed so far, I've never been left alone; I've always been guided or taught in a way that I has helped me to be able to work independently. I also love that they give you so many opportunities to grow, including certificates. I was able to get my CBET because of InterMed. I love that they push for that, even the VPs are very personable with you, and they want to help and see you grow.

What is your favorite piece of equipment to work on?

Right now, my favorite piece to work on is the ventilators. I love how intricate they are and yet so simple. With the ventilators that I've been working on recently, they almost point you directly to what's wrong but it's interesting because, like I said, it's not always the same issue, so you have to problem solve and, at the same time, learning different causes and effects of ventilators.