Details for Medical Appliance Technicians
Description
Construct, fit, maintain, or repair medical supportive devices, such as braces, artificial limbs, joints, arch supports, and other surgical and medical appliances.
Tasks
- Fit appliances onto patients and make any necessary adjustments.
- Make orthotic or prosthetic devices, using materials such as thermoplastic and thermosetting materials, metal alloys and leather, and hand or power tools.
- Read prescriptions or specifications to determine the type of product or device to be fabricated and the materials and tools that will be required.
- Repair, modify, or maintain medical supportive devices, such as artificial limbs, braces, or surgical supports, according to specifications.
- Instruct patients in use of prosthetic or orthotic devices.
- Take patients' body or limb measurements for use in device construction.
- Construct or receive casts or impressions of patients' torsos or limbs for use as cutting and fabrication patterns.
- Bend, form, and shape fabric or material to conform to prescribed contours of structural components.
- Drill and tap holes for rivets and glue, weld, bolt, or rivet parts together to form prosthetic or orthotic devices.
- Lay out and mark dimensions of parts, using templates and precision measuring instruments.
- Test medical supportive devices for proper alignment, movement, or biomechanical stability, using meters and alignment fixtures.
- Cover or pad metal or plastic structures or devices, using coverings such as rubber, leather, felt, plastic, or fiberglass.
- Polish artificial limbs, braces, or supports, using grinding and buffing wheels.
- Service or repair machinery used in the fabrication of appliances.
- Mix pigments to match patients' skin coloring, according to formulas, and apply mixtures to orthotic or prosthetic devices.
Interests
- Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
- Investigative - Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
- Social - Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Education, training, experience
- Education - Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
- Training - Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
- Experience - Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Knowledge
- Computers and Electronics -Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Chemistry -Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Building and Construction -Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Mathematics -Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Clerical -Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
- Administration and Management -Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Engineering and Technology -Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Physics -Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub- atomic structures and processes.
- Education and Training -Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Design -Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Mechanical -Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- English Language -Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Customer and Personal Service -Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Production and Processing -Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Skills
None found.
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