The second type of medical device maintenance is therapeutic or Breakdown maintenance. Breakdown maintenance is carried out after a technical problem or a malfunction occurs in the medical device and is done by changing or repairing the damaged parts of the device.
We repair and maintain all vital medical equipment. We have well-trained medical engineers, and we have a large stock of normal spare parts so that equipment downtime is kept to a minimum.
Maintenance organization:
Objectives and responsibility for medical equipment
In providing high-quality health services, medical equipment plays an essential role, because when the equipment is not used or properly maintained human damage can occur. In many situations, noncalibration, modification or repair of medical equipment by unqualified personnel can result in injury to the patient or loss of medical record.
Maintenance was long considered as a subordinate function, entailing an inevitable waste of money. There was a tendency to lump it together with troubleshooting and repairing machinery that was subject to wear and obsolescence. However, hospitals today are realizing that maintenance is not merely a ‘partner’ in medical services: it is an indispensable requirement for quality medical services. Its relation with equipment performance is a question of integrated strategy at senior management level. As such, the maintenance function becomes a management responsibility.
The structure that determines the goals and objectives of maintaining medical equipment is very important. If the goals and objectives are progressive, then the maintenance structure is recognized as a contributor to the hospital’s foundation line, and thus, variations can be used on some of the more conventional organizational structures.
Objectives of maintenance management: the more specific objectives of maintenance management are as follows:
- To optimize the reliability of equipment and infrastructure
- To ensure that equipment and infrastructure are always in good condition
- To carry out prompt emergency repair of equipment and infrastructure so as to secure the best possible availability for medical use
- To improve operational safety
- To train medical personnel in specific maintenance skills
- To advise on the acquisition, installation and operation of medical devices
- To ensure medical environmental protection
Within the clinical engineering department of any hospital, a crucial aspect of the activities is the activity of maintenance and preventive maintenance of the medical equipment, because it involves significant human and financial resources. Therefore, the optimization of the use of the resources available in the clinical engineering departments is done by evaluating the efficiency of the preventive maintenance programs of the medical equipment.
Forms of Maintenance:
Maintenance has three major forms:
- Design-out maintenance
- Preventive maintenance, which includes systematic (periodic) maintenance and condition-based maintenance
- Corrective maintenance
Maintenance can also be divided into planned and unplanned maintenance (or scheduled and unscheduled). The following chart highlights the relation to the previous chart.
