Keeping OR equipment in optimal shape
For Melissa Betzner, being a service technician at Getinge in France means starting each day with the customer’s best interests at heart – and her passion for ensuring that the customers’ operating room (OR) equipment is in optimal shape helps her keep this dedication throughout the working day.
“It is the fantastic surgeons, anesthetists and nurses that save lives, but I feel that I play a role in contributing to the well-being of the patient. Being proactive as well as reactive and resourceful is necessary to build trust in our ability to keep the OR equipment ready for the next surgery,” Melissa Betzner says.
After beginning her education with a degree in commerce, Melissa reoriented her career focus to engineering and maintenance. After an internship in Canada, the role at Getinge is the first professional experience for her.
Melissa mainly works with OR tables, lights and pendants.
“These products are key elements of the OR. They are designed to be reliable, safe and easy to use for the surgical team. From a patient’s point of view, having state of the art equipment in the room offers a reassuring side in a stressful situation,” she says.
The continuous interaction with customers and colleagues in the sales or application teams means that every working day brings new challenges.
“There is no such thing as a typical day,” Melissa says. “This job is so more than just providing technical support. Working at the front line, our skills and knowledge in the field must mirror what Getinge stands for.”
Once, Melissa had to do an urgent job in an OR to help enable a difficult delivery.
“In that moment, our ‘Passion for Life’ took on its full meaning. I felt useful and happy to participate in a way to the collective effort of bringing a new life to the world.”