Medical engineering team wins award

The medical engineering team at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been presented with the “Clinical Engineering Team of the Year” award, in recognition of the dramatic financial savings achieved by the medical engineering department, through improved medical equipment management. The “Clinical Engineering Team of the Year” award was presented by Dr Derek Pearson, professional adviser to the Modernising Scientific Careers Programme, Department of Health, at the recent “Completing the Picture” symposium. The award was supported by Welch Allyn, which offered donations of £1,500 worth of equipment and a £1,000 training fund to the recipient of the award. The winning project focused on developing a full medical equipment management and support service for the Trust with the aim of meeting Controls Assurance/Standards for Health requirements relating to medical devices, and, more recently, Care Quality Commission (CQC) and NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) compliance.

 A further aim was to provide assurances to the Trust Board and senior managers that medical equipment was being maintained effectively and safely, while reducing equipment maintenance costs. As part of a five-year plan, the team initiated a review of the high number (and cost) of externally provided maintenance contracts and set out to establish a centralised contracts management service. In the past, contracts had been allowed to lapse – resulting in additional call out costs when equipment subsequently broke down without contract cover in place. The challenge was to improve equipment reliability and availability, while reducing down time, through better planned maintenance and inspection. Also key to the strategy was to develop an effective, robust capital equipment replacement strategy, as well as to improve the management of assets, by developing an equipment library service.

Service contract management