Who is the equipment manager?
The Commanding Officer appoints the Equipment Manager, who is in charge of overseeing all aspects of medical equipment administration inside a treatment center. Planned procurement and receiving are only a few of the aspects of comprehensive management that are included. All equipment purchases will be preceded by thorough planning.
What are the equipment manager’s responsibilities?
A few of the tasks include organizing inventory processes, overseeing them, and coordinating them to guarantee completeness and accuracy.
Managers of equipment handle the transfer of equipment custody from one department to another and keep records to prove it. The equipment manager’s property records should indicate the item’s present location and who has possession of it. The Equipment Program Review Committee relies on the Equipment Manager to perform a critical role (EPRC).
What is the role of the Equipment Program Review Committee (EPRC)?
This group oversees limited equipment resources in the most efficient manner feasible. The approach provides for resource-saving while yet facilitating the delivery of high-quality health care. The group should meet at least twice a year to discuss and prioritize equipment needs, as well as set investment objectives.
What is the equipment budget call?
Minor equipment requirements for the following fiscal year will be requested by the Equipment Manager, who will act on the instruction of the EPRC. Each fiscal year, the EPRC will consolidate all submitted requirements and prioritize the acquisition of each within the local funding levels.
What does the acquisition of equipment mean?
Equipment should not be acquired before checking other medical/dental operations for accessible sharable or idle equipment.
Equipment surplus and availability listings are handled by the Shared Procurement Program and may be acquired from NAVMEDLOGCOM (Naval Medical Logistics Command).
Before purchasing a piece of equipment, you’ll need to get specific permission. The EPRC examines all requests and assigns a priority to the ones that should be purchased first. Before submitting anything to the EPRC, make sure you have all the necessary approvals.
- Special permission is required for the following pieces of equipment:
- Equipment for filing and preserving records
- Computers, telephone systems, and other life cycle-managed equipment are examples of telecommunications equipment (frequency allocation).
- Simulation manikins
Additional references for getting special clearances can be found in NAVMED P-5132.
Finance will make sure funds are accessible when a purchase request is prepared. Purchasing a product is as simple as submitting a buy request and waiting for funds to become available.
What is the funding for minor equipment and investment equipment?
The O&M appropriation provides funds for small-ticket goods like office supplies. When the cost of equipment falls below the investment equipment level of $200,000, O&M money is applied.
What does it mean by least equipment?
Leasing makes sense if it benefits the government and/or is utilized as a temporary solution when the following two conditions are met:
- To fulfill program or system objectives, the equipment must be used immediately.
- Purchasing the equipment is not now possible due to the existing situation. If leasing makes sense, most of the time it’s best to go with a lease with a buyout option.
What is the Safe Medical Devices Act (SMDA) of 1990?
According to the SMDA of 1990, any events that imply medical/dental equipment has caused or contributed to the death of a patient, significant damage, or serious sickness must be reported by treatment institutions. Equipment managers, the Head of Biomedical Engineering, a reporting process must be created to notify them of any incidents so that they may guarantee that the equipment is taken out of service and properly examined. Each time an item is reported as unsatisfactory, the Defense Personnel Support Center (DPSC) receives an SF-380, the Reporting and Processing Medical Materiel Complaints/Quality Improvement Report.
How to report unsatisfactory equipment
Reports are required for defective or hazardous medical equipment that is received, used, and found. These reports must be filled out when these events occur. Complaints are classified into three categories as follows:
- When a product is classified as Type I, it has been shown to be hazardous, faulty, or dangerous to the point that it has caused significant disease or death.
- Other than equipment, materials suspected of being hazardous, degraded, or otherwise inappropriate for use are classified as Type II materials.
- In this case, the Type III equipment is deemed unsatisfactory due to malfunction, design flaws, flaws in craftsmanship or performance, or all of the above. In the event that equipment poses a direct risk (such as electrical shock, sharp edges, etc. ), it can be utilized.
Type I complaints should be filed as soon as possible. Type II and III complaints need to be reported as\ssoon as feasible but no later than 10 days from\sthe date of the event.
The Defense Personnel Support Center (DPSC) is the single point of contact for medical and dental equipment concerns within the Department of Defense (DOD). Here is a list of equipment problems that need a report to be written and sent to DPSC.
Inventories and inspections conducted in the Navy
Two types of inventories are completed by BUMED activities. A yearly Master Equipment Inventory and a three-year Triennial Equipment Inventory are required. When performing physical inventories, the Equipment Manager establishes processes to be followed.
NAVMED P-5132 outlines the data that must be documented for each item during an inventory, as well as the timeframes for which the data must be submitted. In order to keep the DMLSS inventory up-to-date, we’ll use the information gathered during the physical inventory.
What is the Biomedical Equipment Maintenance Division
(BIOMED)
When you have questions or need maintenance, you may turn to the BIOMED division. It is manned by Bio-Medical Equipment Technicians with specialized training (BMET). To be effective in everyday clinical procedures, the HM must be conversant with the treatment facility’s equipment.
There are a couple of basic expectations:
Recognize the primary components in each piece of gear (Level I Maintenance)
Always read the manufacturer’s instructions before operating or conducting any user maintenance on equipment. The LPO/office LCPO’s or BIOMED should have copies of this literature.
The Equipment Management Program includes preventive maintenance for all medical and dental equipment. To help the BMET locate department-owned equipment, HMs may be sent to assist.
Make sure you keep proper maintenance levels
When equipment operators take proper care of it and operate it properly, regular maintenance helps to keep it reliable and extend its life. Preventive maintenance on all medical and dental equipment is the responsibility of BIOMED, which performs or coordinates the work and keeps track of it. All medical and dental equipment will be subject to preventive maintenance as part of a risk-based management approach. As the program’s technical manager, NAVMEDLOGCOM offers training and advice. Before leaving the equipment management division, all newly purchased equipment will be safety verified by a BMET.
Maintenance may be divided into three categories: routine, preventative, and reactive.
Level I (Performance Testing)
Before, during, and after using the equipment, the equipment operator is responsible for performing Level I preventative maintenance. In order to maintain equipment running on a daily basis, basic maintenance is necessary. These tasks are carried out by employees who make use of the department’s equipment.
Level II (Preventive Maintenance)
Technical inspections are part of intermediate maintenance and include scheduled periodic (planned) technical inspections and lubrication that require disassembly. They also include replacing any worn or deteriorating components, cleaning within the machine, and calibrating the machine. BMET or a contracted provider must carry out Level II maintenance.
Level III
Maintains the equipment by completely overhauling it and is regarded depot-level or equipment manufacturer service center level upkeep. Level III performance is authorized at the command’s discretion. Service life may often be extended by doing Level III maintenance, which should be recorded in the system’s history.
Only authorized individuals may coordinate Level II and III maintenance with the contractor assigned if the contractor is responsible for Level II or III maintenance.
Unauthorized personnel may arrange services that lead to an invalid warranty, void contract, or an unauthorized commitment.
