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Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession?

By Y. David1, S. Calil2, N. Pallikarakis3, M. Poluta4, S.Bergamasco5, D. Clark6, T. Judd7, J. Wear8, K. Fukuta9,  S. Mullaly10, W. Morse11   

1  Global Clinical Engineering Summit Chairman, USA
2  Clinical Engineering Professor, Brazil
3  Chairman of the Institute of Biomedical Technology, Greece
4  Clinical Engineer, South Africa
5  Italian Clinical Engineers Association (AIIC), Italy
6  Clinical Engineering, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, UK
7  IFMBE/Clinical Engineering Division Chairman, USA
8  Clinical Engineering Consultant, USA
9  Clinical engineer lecturer at Osaka University, Japan
10 Biomedical Engineer at Consultant, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
11 Founding member of ACCE and President in Bellegrove Medical, USA

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we examine the practice level of engineers and discuss whether Clinical Engineering is a profession or an occupation. Many 
think that occupation and profession are synonyms, but are they? One must explore the difference, if it exists, between these terms, and to 
accomplish that, clarification of these terms is being offered and established first. We conducted a review of the terms and proceeded to 
identify if the tenants that are expected to be associated with professional standing are included in applying clinical engineering practices 
and to what level if it is. Engineering is a profession that improves the quality of living and for the common good. The professional education 
of engineers requires the education to contain a body of specialized knowledge, problem-solving skills, ethical behavior, and good analytical 
judgment in the service of all people. The engineering education domains aim to form individuals who are intellectually trained, practically 
adept, and ethically accountable for their work. Especially within the healthcare delivery system, engineering work engages problem-solving 
dependent upon sufficient body of knowledge to deal with practical problems by understanding the why, knowing how and identifying the 
when. There are various levels of the expected body of knowledge within the clinical engineering field ranging from engineers with formal 
academic training at undergraduate and graduate levels to clinical engineering technologists and technicians having graduated from between 
1-4 years of academic training. Engineers may further select to publicly proclaim their adequate preparation and mastering of knowledge 
to conduct their work through a credentialing process that can confer the term professional, registered, or certified engineer if successfully 
achieved. Once the differences of working characteristics and obligations between occupation and profession are understood, it is clear that 
clinical engineers must continuously commit to pursue and fulfill these obligations. Therefore, every professional engineer is called on to 
achieve a certain degree of intellectual and technical mastery and acquire practical wisdom that brings together the knowledge and skills that 
best serve a particular purpose for the good of humanity. Clinical engineers and technologists are critical for sustaining the availability of safe, 
effective, and appropriate technology for patient care. It is as important for their associations to collaborate on compliance with professional 
obligations that their jobs require.  

Keywords – Profession, Occupation, Vocation, Engineering, Clinical Engineering, credentialing, certification, Healthcare 
job, Qualification, Alliance, Engineer.

Copyright © 2021. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY): Creative Commons - Attribu-
tion 4.0 International - CC BY 4.0. The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) 
are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is 
permitted which does not comply with these terms.

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27 J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021

David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

INTRODUCTION
To answer the question is Clinical Engineering an oc-

cupation or profession, one must explore the difference, if 
it exists, between these terms. An excellent point to begin 
is with a practical understanding of the task at hand, i.e., 
terminology. When humans spend time trying to achieve 
something, especially when this involves using some ef-
fort, it is called work.1 There are many different types of 
work. Occupation2 is one of many types of work which 
one occupies oneself with; usually refers to productive 
activity, task, service, trade, or craft for which one is paid. 
It is of a long term, perhaps as long as a lifetime, and is a 
path one embarks upon to fulfill goals, passions, and or 
ambitions. Such a path is a career that requires a certain 
level of education or training preparation to achieve the 
goals and ambitions successfully. The benefits of pursu-
ing a career are often associated with monetary, work 
satisfaction, personal pride, economic independence, 
become part of the community, and self-worth, to name 
a few of them. Throughout a person's career, they will 
probably hold several jobs3 or tasks identified as work 
performed to earn money to support basic needs and also 
help create relationships or develop a working network 
to advance one's career. 

Many think that occupation and profession are synonyms, 
but the fact is that they are different. An Occupation is a 
work activity undertaken by a person to earn a living. It 
can be business, profession, or employment that a person 
undertakes to increase their wealth. Occupation refers 
to the kind of economic activity endeavored by a person 
regularly for earning money. When someone engages or 
occupies themselves in any economic activity, that activ-
ity is known as their occupation. An occupation does not 
necessarily require specialized schooling in a particular 
area and applies to any category of work that is consis-
tently performed. An occupation includes jobs involving 
both physical work and mental effort. An occupation is 
a job that may include a profession which leads to most 
official forms using the term occupation when asking for 
an applicant's job or profession.

Examples of occupations include jobs such as vehicle 
drivers, shopkeepers, civil servants, clerks, bookkeepers. 
Occupations can be further divided into subcategories like:

• Business: A person engaged in any trade, commerce, 
or manufacturing activities, is assumed to be doing 
business.

• Employment: A type of occupation in which a person 
works for others, is being supervised, and gets a fixed 
and regular income.

• Profession: The type of occupation in which a person 
renders services to others and holds themselves out 
as an expert by applying his specific knowledge and 
skills is a profession.

The line of demarcation between occupation and pro-
fession exists but is blurred when given insufficient atten-
tion to the attributes that clarify the difference between 
these terms. For example, when a professional is paid for 
his skill or talent, it is known as an occupation. However, 
this represents more specific and different types of oc-
cupation when independent creative thinking, based on 
long and specific training, and compliance with achieving 
professional credentialing show the public achievement 
of practice competency we call a profession. Therefore, a 
profession is an occupation for which a person undergoes 
specialized training or internship to get a higher degree 
of education and expertise in the concerned area. 

Profession4 is an activity that requires specialized 
training, knowledge, qualification, and skills. It implies 
membership in a professional body, credentialing, and 
certificate of practice. The individuals who undertake a 
profession of rendering personalized services are called 
professionals, guided by a specific professional body code 
of conduct. A profession refers to specific categories of 
occupations that typically require advanced education 
or training and acquisition of the previous knowledge5 

pertains to the research and practice of the field of study. 
The main objective of the profession is to render 

services to those who need them. A professional body 
or statute governs the profession. To be called a profes-
sional, a person has to pursue higher studies and qualify 
for an exam conducted by the governing body. Typically, 
a professional is said to be an expert in the field. In ad-
dition, the professional body develops ethical codes that 
the professionals must follow to ensure uniformity in 
their work.



David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021  28

The primary feature of any profession is the special 
relationship between the profession and the society and the 
commitment to serve responsibly, selflessly, and wisely. At 
times, this can create tension between the two elements of 
professional responsibility: the duty to serve the interests 
of one's immediate client and the obligation one has to 
society. Examples for profession include jobs like medical 
doctors, architects, lawyers, chartered accountant, clergy, 
nursing, and engineers, "At present, few would dispute 
the claim that physicians, lawyers, architects, accountants, 
engineers, and clergy are professionals."6 

It is helpful at this juncture to point to what are the 
major differences between occupation and profession. 
1. Unlike an occupation, a profession has an expected 

code of conduct.
2. An occupation does not require lengthy training in a 

particular field, but a profession requires specialized 
training in a specific area.

3. In general, the practice in a profession is regulated 
by a particular or professional body statute while an 
occupation is not.

4. A person with an occupation is paid for what he pro-
duces. Whereas in a profession, one gets paid according 
to his knowledge and expertise.

5. The profession is also an occupation when the person 
is paid for utilizing his skills and expertise.

6. A professional is independent, and any external force 
does not influence their work. However, conversely, 
there is a lack of independence in an occupation because 
the person performing it has to follow the commands 
of his supervisors.

7. Some conduct responsibilities are associated with the 
practice of a profession. However, an occupation does 
not have such responsibilities.

8. The basic pay in a profession usually is higher than 
in an occupation.

9. Professionals are usually respected more by people 
and have a higher status in society than those in an 
occupation.

EVOLUTION OF OTHER PROFESSIONS 
Few practice fields are accepted as professions.7  Some 

more than others. These include, for example, medicine, 
law, and nursing. The nursing field went through a de-
velopmental evolution of its profession following the 
challenge such as described in an article published by the 
New York Medical Journal stating that nursing is not a pro-
fession since "… it is not primarily designed to contribute 
to the sum of human knowledge or the advancement of 
science."8 The response from the nursing field was clear: 
"With all due respect to the New York Medical Journal, 
nursing today does require, not only skill and intelligence 
but education. It is true that there are many mechanical 
duties in a nurse's life which require only skill but to be 
an efficient nurse demands also special knowledge and 
attainments. We have only to look backward a little over 
a century to notice how education, special knowledge and 
attainments in nursing affairs have changed the whole 
system of nursing."8 The medical profession today is also 
facing a challenge with the extent of the regulatory nature 
of the profession, which is critical to the consideration of 
its professional standing.9 In medicine, the regulation is 
practiced at several levels: medical schools must adhere to 
a standard, licensure as a process at the state level. At the 
same time, certification is administered through national 
organizations adopting a minimal level of professional 
practice requirements and standards. "Most doctors will 
find a way round this new regime, but short-term petty-
minded bosses are beginning to view doctors as factory 
workers. Their limited vision considers doctors to be 
dangerously independent, malfunctioning cogs in their 
wobbly healthcare machine, a species to be controlled 
and beaten into the shape of the appropriate widget."10 

The medical profession: "A vocation characterized 
by a specialized body of knowledge of medicine that its 
members must teach and expand, by a code of ethics and 
a duty of service that put patient care above self-interest, 
and by the privilege of self-regulation granted by society."11 
This establishes a career in medicine as one of the oldest 
and most respected professions; it affords the potential 
to impact human life genuinely and is usually associated 
with a high level of job satisfaction.



29 J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021

David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

ENGINEERING AND ENGINEERS 
Like medicine, in engineering, public health, safety, 

and welfare tasks are expected to be protected from 
unintended consequences. As shown in a public survey 
following the fatality caused by an UBER autonomous car 
accident, public distrust follows public harm. The survey 
showed that trust in such vehicles dropped by 27%12 fol-
lowing increased perception of insufficient harm control. 
Other disasters show a similar trust impact, for example, 
following the space shuttle explosion after lift-off.13

Under the practice of engineering's obligation to public 
health, safety, and welfare, it is critical to understand what 
engineering is. Engineering is defined as the "application 
of science and mathematics to solve problems useful to 
people."14 The practice of engineering is defined as "any 
service or creative work requiring engineering education, 
training, and experience in the application of engineering 
principles and the interpretation of engineering data to 
engineering activities that potentially impact the health, 
safety, and welfare of the public."15 Engineers are prac-
titioners of material products of human making just as 
physicians are practitioners of medicine.16 An engineer 
is defined as "an individual who is qualified to practice 
engineering by reason of engineering education, train-
ing, and experience in the application of engineering 
principles and the interpretation of engineering data."17 

And Professional Engineer means "an individual who 
has been duly licensed as a professional engineer by the 
board. The board may designate a professional engineer, 
on the basis of education, experience, and examination, 
as being licensed in a specific discipline or branch of en-
gineering signifying the area in which the engineer has 
demonstrated competence."17

Professions lay claim to a theoretical knowledge base 
such as a body of research, conceptions, and experience 
thresholds for its services. Whether that knowledge base 
is a body of biomedical or clinical research and theory, a 
collection of published manuscripts, or a body of laws, 
regulations, and legal decisions, professions rest much of 
their authority on the knowledge accumulated during the 
practice of the profession. This is one of the challenges 
clinical engineering faces—a lack of sufficient academic 
preparation programs and uniformity of public expecta-
tions from practicing engineers. 

One of the fundamental pillars on which a profession 
stands is the mastery of a domain of practice. The tech-
nical skills of analysis and presentation of a solution or 
treatment, the practice of diagnosis, action, and interac-
tion are all features of any profession. A profession is 
identifiable by the very practices in which its members 
engage. Professions rest much of their authority on the 
knowledge that their domain develops together with 
the profession's practice and higher education academic 
programs. During professional education and through the 
engineer's career, the practicing professional is expected 
to remain current with the growth and changes in that 
knowledge base and establish a threshold for demonstra-
tion of competent practice.18 

Professional practice can be routine at times. However, 
challenges during professional practice are the need to 
make complex judgments and decisions leading to skilled 
actions, sometimes under uncertain conditions. This means 
that professional practice is frequently pursued at or 
beyond the margins of previously learned performances. 
Therefore, professionals must be appropriately trained to 
operate at the uncertain limits of their previous experi-
ence and must also be prepared to learn from the conse-
quences of their actions to develop new understandings 
and better routines. Hand in hand, professional engineers 
must engage in exchanging those understandings with 
other professionals so the entire professional commu-
nity benefits from their insight. Such an engagement is 
another deficiency in clinical engineering practitioners 
lacking the motivation and the available opportunities to 
publish their lessons learned. This is one of the profes-
sion's characteristics of learning from one's experience 
to improve future outcomes and create better-skilled 
practitioners. The conditions of professional practice and 
professional learning demand the establishment of and 
cross-functioning between professional communities. In 
addition to knowledge, the engineering profession should 
also teach their practitioners how to be a member of a 
professional community, with obligation for establishing 
and renewing thresholds for both practice and professional 
education, for critically reviewing new ideas, methods, and 
techniques, and disseminating it within the community 
of practice, for overseeing the quality of performances at 
all stages of engineer's career, and for contributing back 
to the community where they live.



David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021  30

CLINICAL ENGINEERING PRACTICE 
Engineering is, at its core, problem-solving. Being an 

engineer means being a problem solver, capable of diag-
nosing, analyzing a situation, and finding a solution within 
a set of constraints even if it is not optimal. Similarly, one 
of the most required skills to be a clinical engineer is to 
solve problems quickly.19 Also needed is the capacity to 
formulate the problem in technical and non-technical 
ways and partition the problem into subparts to achieve 
a satisfactory and safe resolution., Clinical engineers are 
uniquely prepared to accomplish this task20 and determine 
the requirements and constraints while applying varied 
knowledge and experience to reach a timely, optimal 
resolution. Such an approach depends on knowledge and 
analysis of the state of specific phases in the technology 
lifecycle, non-compliance issues, risk tolerance manage-
ment, user's competence, system integration impact, or 
financial analysis, all in a short duration. Perhaps faster 
than in the other professions we discussed earlier, the 
knowledge that a clinical engineer draws from is continu-
ally expanding and evolving because of the technological 
evolution and clinical practice itself. As outlined in the 
article The Professional Clinical Engineer,21 there are 
common characteristic considered stewardship of all 
professions: a commitment to serve in the interests of 
specific clients and the general welfare of humankind; a 
body of knowledge and principles; a required specialized 
set of skills, practices, and performances unique to the 

profession; the capacity to render judgments ethically and 
with integrity under uncertain conditions; a commitment 
to engage in continuing education and learning attitude 
to absorb new knowledge from the contexts of practice; 
and the development of a professional community respon-
sible for the oversight and monitoring of quality in both 
practice and professional education. Clinical engineers 
are mostly reflective, alert, and methodical as they carry 
out their clinical engineering projects, hopefully making 
their wider professional community better practitioners 
at the end of the project. A recent international survey22 

about the body of knowledge (BoK) and body of practice 
(BoP) practiced by clinical engineering practitioners 
demonstrate international variability in the definition 
of the practice domain with new knowledge subjects 
added during the last 25 years, such as technology assess-
ment and forensic analysis. The majority of the clinical 
engineers who responded to the survey were employed 
within the healthcare delivery system. This population 
demonstrated that common domain elements across the 
world exist both in the BoK required to practice and in 
the BoP performed. Having identifiable domain boundar-
ies is an essential characteristic of a profession, and this 
survey and others23 support compliance of the clinical 
engineering field with this requirement. 

Goodman argued that clinical engineering is a profes-
sion embarking on an identified path of: "The progress 
of an occupation toward professionalization involves: the 

TABLE 1. Comparison between job characteristics.

Basis for Comparison Occupation Profession Clinical Engineering

Meaning
Occupation refers to the 

regular activity performed by 
a person to earn a living

A profession is an occupation or vocation 
which requires academic preparation for 

knowledge and expertise in the specific field

Requires a degree of 
knowledge and expertise in 

the specific field
Code of Conduct No Yes Partial

Training Not necessary Compulsory Necessary
Regulated by Statute No Mostly yes Country Dependent

Basis of pay Produce Skill and Knowledge Skill and Knowledge
Higher Education Not compulsory Yes Not compulsory

Degree of Independence Usually there is no 
independence A profession is completely independent Some degree of independence

Responsibilities Very limited Yes Yes
Respect and status Low Very high Partially



31 J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021

David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

appearance of training schools; establishment of univer-
sity educational programs; licensure or certification; a 
formal code of ethics; and establishment of one or more 
national professional associations."24 He further supports 
his argument by showing a BoK, a structured educational 
system, and professional organization representing them 
in the healthcare field. 

DISCUSSION
The U.S. Department of Labor describes engineering as 

applying "the theory and principles of science and math-
ematics to research and develop economical solutions to 
technical programs. [This work] is the link between per-
ceived social needs and commercial applications."25 This 
site continues to identify that "Engineering fields can be 
practiced at the associate degree level include electrical 
and electronics drafters, civil engineering technicians, and 
aerospace operations technicians. However, a bachelor's 
degree is needed for civil, electrical, and mechanical en-
gineering, as well as the less commonly known engineer-
ing fields in aerospace, biochemical, energy, industrial, 
robotics, marine engineering, and naval architecture." 
In furthering narrowing the career's focus this source 
reports on bioengineers and biomedical engineers jobs 
(there is no category to be found for clinical engineers) 
as required to "Apply knowledge of engineering, biology, 
chemistry, computer science, and biomechanical principles 
to the design, development, and evaluation of biological, 
agricultural, and health systems and products, such as 
artificial organs, prostheses, instrumentation, medical 
information systems, and health management and care 
delivery systems."26 Having typical job duties that are, 
in most part, similar to yet not the same as clinical en-
gineer's job.

• Conduct research, along with life scientists, chemists, 
and medical scientists on the engineering aspects of 
the biological systems of humans and animals.

• Adapt or design computer hardware or software for 
medical science use.

• Evaluate the safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of 
biomedical equipment.

• Develop models or computer simulations of human 
biobehavioral systems to obtain data for measuring 
or controlling life processes.

• Research new materials to be used for products, such 
as implanted artificial organs.

• Write documents describing protocols, policies, 
standards for use, maintenance, and repair of medi-
cal equipment.

• Conduct training or in-services to educate clinicians 
and other personnel on the proper use of equipment.

• Analyze new medical procedures to forecast likely 
outcomes.

• Advise hospital administrators on the planning, 
acquisition, and use of medical equipment.

Table 2 below, articulate few of the shared as well as 
the different duties between Biomedical Engineer and 
Clinical Engineer professions.

On the other hand, in addressing the question "What 
is engineering practice?" in a less detailed and more 
generalized picture of the work, we also need to consider 
whose point of view is expressed in the answer. One group 
is individuals and organizations engaged in engineering 
work based on, for example, surveys and interviews of 
practicing engineers. Alternatively, there is the view of-
fered by researchers observing the work of engineers, then 
synthesize these observations into patterns and a more 
generalized understanding of the nature of engineering 
practice. Alternatively, yet still, there is the view that may 
be offered by those engaged in engineering education, 
namely engineering faculty and students. These view 
angles will produce the following answers: engineering is 
problem-solving, considering the systematic processes that 
engineers use to define and resolve problems; engineering 
is knowledge, considering the specialized knowledge that 
enables or fuels the process; engineering is the integration 
of process and knowledge. All are acceptable descriptions 
for the practice of engineering. 

Critical differentiators between an occupation and a 
profession are whether or not members of the field, in 
our case clinical engineers, having attributes such as: 

(1) a BoK with high degree of systematic continuous 
training, 
(2) mastery of their domain, 
(3) commitment to selflessly and ethically serve, 
(4) ability to render professional judgement, and 



David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021  32

(5) Self-governance by monitoring the quality-of-service 
members provide through a credentialing program. Accord-
ing to the US National Society of Professional Engineers 
(NSPE),27 the practice of engineering is a professional 
service regulated by each of the States' governments that 
in the USA is governed by the first engineering licensure 
law28 enacted in 1907 "to ensure public safety by granting 
only Professional Engineers (PEs) the authority to sign 
and seal engineering plans and offer their services to 

the public." This is an example of one of the profession's 
attributes, self-governance of service quality through a 
credentialing program. Following licensure as a profes-
sional engineer, individuals may voluntarily have their 
expertise in a specified field of engineering recognized 
through an appropriate specialty certification program. 
Such certification does not imply that other licensed 
professional engineers are less qualified for practice in 
their particular field of specialty. 

TABLE 2. Comparison of job duties between Biomadical and Clinical Engineer.

Biomedical Engineer Clinical Engineer

Conduct research, along with life scientists, chemists, and other 
medical scientists, on the engineering aspects of the biological 

systems of humans and animals
-

Evaluate the safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of biomedical 
equipment

Evaluate the safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of biomedical 
equipment

Research new materials to be deployed in products, such as 
implanted artificial organs -

Conduct training or in-services to educate clinicians and other 
personnel on proper use of equipment

Conduct training or in-services to educate clinicians and other 
personnel on proper use of equipment.

Advise hospital administrators on the planning, acquisition, and 
use of medical equipment

      Advise hospital administrators on the planning, acquisition, 
and use of medical equipment.

Adapt or design computer hardware or software for application in 
medical science uses

Adapt or design computer hardware or software for application in 
medical science uses

Develop models or computer simulations of human 
biobehavioural systems to obtain data for measuring or controlling 

life processes
-

Create guidelines, documents describing protocols, policies, 
standards for use, maintenance, testing and repair of medical 

equipment

Create guidelines, documents describing protocols, policies, 
standards for use, maintenance, testing and repair of medical 

equipment
Analyse new technology-based medical procedures to forecast 

likely outcomes
Analyse new technology-based medical procedures to forecast 

likely outcomes

- Manage Medical devices performance assurance program (i.e. 
Maintenance)

- Design, Implement, monitor, and manage healthcare technology 
Safety Program

- Design, Implement, and monitor a Service Contract Management 
System

Most job duties performed in research laboratories Most job duties are performed at the point of care

- Apply Forensic Engineering, Health Technology Assessment, 
Disaster Preparedness, and Human Factor Engineering principles

- Operate at the point of care complex healthcare systems in selected 
countries



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David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

Professional engineering licensure, in several coun-
tries, is the only qualification for engineering practice. 
A less successful example but yet crucial for the clinical 
engineering profession debate was documented by the 
World Health Organization (WHO) summarizing the work 
of a task force on Manpower Development for a Health 
Care Technical Service29 where the minimum qualifica-
tions for a Clinical Engineer I states "Must be willing to 
work towards becoming a Certified Clinical Engineer." 
Moreover, Clinical Engineer II states, "Clinical Engineering 
certification and/or professional engineering registration 
are required." So far, these recommendations have not 
shown significant impact on the concept of adopting self-
governance for clinical engineering practitioners. More 
substantial adoption will lead to more robust compliance 
with professional characteristics. It may now be better 
to initiate a new internationally coordinated effort to 
achieve broad adoption of this crucial professional trait. 
While credentialing is a program administered by a third 
party and is proof of an individual's qualification in a 
given subject, a certification program30 is a process that 
recognizes and validates an individual's qualification that 
is usually administered by the profession itself. Clinical 
engineering as a professional field will gain recognition 
through a better definition for practicing clinical engi-
neers' minimum academic preparation requirements, 
increase compliance with a public declaration of practice 
proficiency (certification), commitment to continuing 
education, and adoption of expected ethical behavior. All 
of these cannons are already integral parts of the present 
Clinical Engineers' practice. It will gain further recognition 
when an international uniformity is adopted. 

CONCLUSION
Following the above discussion, it can be said that the 

occupation is a broader term, and it includes profession. 
All work deserves respect, and while occupation includes 
ordinary jobs and hence does not receive high recogni-
tion from society, professionals are mainly known by the 
knowledge base required to provide their service and 
professional judgment as part of their jobs. They were 
perhaps suggesting that such contribution to society 
draws a higher level of respect and recognition. 

A profession is usually a higher-order occupation or 
a calling, especially involving a high level of education, 

career long continuous training, formal credentialing, 
mastered knowledge domain, adoption of rules for ethical 
behavior, and self-governance monitoring program of its 
members. In general, we found that engineering education 
programs attempt to prepare graduates for professional 
engineering practice. The programs include elements that 
illustrate and teach engineering problem-solving skills, 
provide engineering graduates with competent technical 
and managerial skills, and provide cultural education in the 
humanities and social sciences. Societies of Professional 
engineers support the notion that engineering curricula 
must incorporate instruction designed to instill in engi-
neering students the concepts of professionalism and the 
ethical practice of engineering. Engineering education is 
and should be a lifelong learning experience. The depth 
of engineering knowledge continues to expand rapidly, 
and practicing engineers must renew their knowledge 
to remain effective and competent. The portion of the 
lifelong learning experience that follows formal engineer-
ing education is referred to as continuing professional 
development and is one factor that establishes that one's 
occupation is a profession. However, to fully meet such 
a mandate, clinical engineers need to demonstrate more 
comprehensive global compliance. Academic institutions 
can support this by offering clinical engineering curricula 
and continuing education training opportunities for their 
graduates. At all of the engineering branches, the US NSPE 
supports the premise that, "the public interest is best 
served by the licensure of all qualified individuals within 
the engineering profession." Credentialing has many forms, 
and clinical engineering should be no exception.

Clinical engineers also need to recognize, like other 
professions that when establishing defined requirements 
to enter the professional practice, there needs to be con-
sensus about and adopting clinical engineering practice 
criteria. This includes domain boundaries, establishing 
a minimum qualifications criterion for entering clinical 
engineering practice in healthcare, a commitment for 
compliance with life-long continuing education, adher-
ence to ethical behavior, service stewardship to their 
communities, and rules for self-governing. Adoption of 
these cannons will gain wider recognition and elevate the 
professional standing they desire. We recommend that 
the Global Clinical Engineering alliance will best serve 
as a leader for collaboration between stakeholders such 



David, Calil et all: Is Clinical Engineering an occupation or profession? 

J Global Clinical Engineering Vol.4 Issue 2: 2021  34

as academia, industry, healthcare providers, and govern-
ment agencies. Working together to facilitate that clinical 
engineering practitioners deserve - be the engineering 
and technology professionals within the healthcare team. 

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