Explore some effective maintenance strategies that leading healthcare providers use for their medical equipment and their benefits.
Tech advancements are happening swiftly in every industry, and the medical industry is no exception. Hundreds and thousands of medical devices are launched every year and have become a critical tool for healthcare professionals. These devices are critical to monitoring patients’ health and assist doctors in making better medical decisions. Medical devices are operation-critical, and their optimal running is vital to healthcare providers. For this reason, preventive maintenance is essential for medical devices. Preventive maintenance includes optimizing healthcare systems and inspecting the medical equipment to ensure streamlined performance. So, with this article, we are sharing more about the preventive maintenance of medical devices for healthcare providers.
Preventive Maintenance Strategies for Medical Equipment
Preventive maintenance techniques range from predetermined to schedule-based and predictive maintenance. The strategy used could vary depending on specific devices. Regardless of the strategy used, preventive maintenance can significantly improve device performance and reliability in general.
1. Predetermined Maintenance
Predetermined maintenance is the most basic type of preventive maintenance as it revolves around inspections and routine replacement of the devices and parts, depending on the usage and time intervals. This maintenance strategy largely follows the device manufacturer’s recommendations. Similarly, it’s also the easiest to follow since all you need to do is set a schedule and the technical team handles everything else.
2. Condition Monitoring
There are times when parts need replacement more often than required, or there are instances when the parts wear down long before the scheduled replacement. In such cases, condition monitoring works best, and it is done through regular equipment inspection to analyze sensor-based data. With the help of a centralized monitoring system, the data helps maintenance teams plan the maintenance accordingly and make the functionality more efficient.
3. Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance is based on condition monitoring but adds a predictive element. A specialized predictive maintenance software tracks the condition of components or equipment and utilizes the data to predict when the equipment will likely break down. It helps ensure accurate and on-time replacement while cutting down the labor hours.
Benefits Of Preventive Maintenance in Healthcare
When it comes to preventive maintenance, the prime function is preventing equipment failure, and it’s essential in healthcare since professionals depend on medical equipment for day-to-day tasks. Similarly, a minor failure can result in chaotic outcomes, and that’s where preventive maintenance comes in. It’s simply a form of prevention to ensure the equipment keeps operating as promised. Some other benefits include;
1. Reliable Equipment
The medical devices must operate smoothly and reliably. With regular component replacement, the maintenance team will prevent the chances of failure. Consequently, the medical equipment will deliver consistent results, improving the quality of healthcare.
2. Efficient Operations
To illustrate, when a piece of equipment breaks down, there is always a time window for repair. Medical devices have a low tolerance for downtime because people’s lives depend on them. It takes longer to diagnose and repair broken equipment than to conduct preventive maintenance. A good preventive maintenance strategy optimizes healthcare operations.
3. Reduction In Liability
Sure, there are operational issues with improperly maintained equipment, but you cannot get around liability. Healthcare providers have to comply with a plethora of specific rules and regulations to ensure the proper upkeep of their equipment. Not to forget, there are legal risks involved. So, when something goes wrong with medical devices, it can result in disastrous outcomes.
4. Improve Quality of Healthcare
On top of everything, proper preventive maintenance of the medical device helps ensure patients’ optimal health. Patients’ health and safety are paramount since it’s the primary job of a healthcare provider. Healthcare providers must focus on patients’ wellbeing, and preventive maintenance is a great way to achieve this goal by keeping every piece of equipment running optimally.
Conclusion
To summarize, preventive maintenance for medical equipment is crucial for healthcare providers since it can significantly improve equipment dependability and performance, which are essential to improving the overall quality of healthcare. At BriskForce, we provide asset management and CMMS solutions for the healthcare industry, which can help you automate and streamline preventive maintenance activities for medical equipment. Start a free trial today, or get in touch with us to learn more.