Cardiotechnicians maintain an overview in the operating room, control the heart-lung machine and are a link between medicine and technology. This makes them an important part of the treatment team — and yet there are only two training centers for the profession in Germany so far. But the need is growing as the number of heart operations continues to increase. That’s why the Center for Ergonomics and Medical Technology at the Department of Physical Engineering at Münster University of Applied Sciences wants to remedy the situation and is launching the certificate course “Clinical Perfusion / Cardiotechnology” in the winter semester of 2021/22. Registrations have been open since June.
“Two years ago, Jörg Optenhöfel suggested that we plan the certificate course.”
- Maximilian Kehmann of the Center for Ergonomics and Medical Technology
Optenhöfel teaches cardiotechnology in the master’s program at the Department of Physical Engineering and is chief cardiotechnician at Hannover Medical School (MHH). Until now, comparable courses have only been offered in Berlin or Furtwangen — Münster UAS can thus close a gap in NRW. Following certification by the European Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion, nothing now stands in the way of starting the course. Participants will be taught about cardiac surgery, anesthesiology, pharmacology, vascular surgery and microbiology, among other topics. The seminars are led by physicians and specialists from the Heart and Diabetes Center NRW in Bad Oeynhausen, Münster University Hospital and Hannover Medical School.
The certificate course comprises four semesters, which include both practical training in a clinic and theory at the university. Three semesters of this are taught in block seminars, while the fourth semester includes a revision course and a final examination. “At the end, participants must also be able to show 100 procedures they have performed on a heart-lung machine,” Kehmann explains.
