Avoiding the Break-Fix Mentality
The old adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” may be catchy, but the old school thinking is far from an effective strategy when it comes to the fast-paced businesses of today. The days, hours, or even minutes of downtime caused by a broken-down piece of machinery can come at a real cost to the company. This is especially true for medical institutions in which a failed piece of machinery can cost patients their lives.
Preventative maintenance (PM) on medical equipment tends to be expensive, and it may be difficult to make the budgetary argument for performing annual preventative maintenance on working equipment when those funds could be used elsewhere.
Making sure your equipment is fully functional and operates safely and reliably doesn’t cost nearly as much as replacing a broken machine, however. And the failure of an essential piece of medical equipment comes with much more than financial cost. You risk the loss of trust in your institution, reputation, and even the loss of human life.
If your institution is stuck in the break-fix mentality when it comes to medical equipment, it may seem daunting to switch over to a preventative model. But breaking the cycle doesn’t have to be difficult!
Make A Plan
Whenever an institution makes a big purchase, a maintenance plan needs to be established to protect your investment. This could include a purchasing schedule for necessary replaceable parts such as filters, vials, syringes, chemicals, and more.
Included in that schedule should be periodic maintenance at the frequency recommended by the vendor. That maintenance can be executed by a technician from the vendor, an in-house
Biomedical Equipment Technician, or a Healthcare Technology Management program such as InterMed’s HTM.
Having an established schedule takes the stress off of operations management and ensures a facility’s technology is kept in good shape and up to standard. In addition, plotting out maintenance helps with forecasting a budget.
Include Your Shareholders
When working in medicine the safety of the patient should be the number one priority–but often policing the budget comes in as a close second. Keeping margins low may be a compelling argument for skipping some maintenance deemed “unnecessary,” but a reminder of the risks incurred when skimping on equipment maintenance should be enough to make extra space in the budget.
Keeping equipment well-polished and in top working condition adds to the value of the facility overall. No one wants to go to a hospital where the equipment is known to falter, fail or produce faulty results. Patients trust their doctors and medical practitioners to make the right diagnosis and carry out treatment correctly. If medical practitioners can’t trust their own equipment, the efficiency and reputation of the entire facility is compromised.
You can ensure that your facilities run smoothly with our Healthcare Technology Management services. We can help you set up a device management plan, offer full-service and preventative maintenance plans, service advice, and much more. Breakaway from the break-fix mentality and start your comprehensive maintenance today by visiting www.Intermed1.com.
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