STATE OF ‘MISERY’

Fewer than half of the equipment in the country’s hospitals is fully functional, because of poor maintenance, which Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton admits affects the level of efficiency in the public health sector.

He made the revelation on Tuesday during the signing ceremony between the ministry and the island’s four regional health authorities to implement a Medical Equipment Maintenance Management Policy.

The policy is intended to be a guideline document for all public health facilities for the effective maintenance of medical equipment used for the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of patients.

According to Tufton, of the 1,853 pieces of equipment assessed in the four regional health authorities, only 47 per cent were fully functional. Another 39 per cent were deemed fairly functional, and a further 15 per cent of the equipment were classified as non-functional.

“If you have half of your equipment not working, or 40 per cent, or even less, it is going to impact the quality of service to those you serve and the impression that people form,” said the health minister.

Lamenting that there is too much downtime in the sector from non-functioning equipment, he said that this cultivates a “misery” factor among staff, who are unable to do their jobs, and patients, who are not able to access desired service.

The lack of functional equipment in hospitals has been a consistent area of concern, with both hospital management and patients expressing their irritation. Last year, South East Regional Health Authority (SERHA) Regional Director Errol Greene noted that the high number of outdated medical equipment was the main issue facing the Kingston Public Hospital.

Concerns have also been raised about the lack of functioning diagnosis equipment at the Cornwall Regional and Spanish Town hospitals.

The regional health authorities were primarily responsible for the maintenance of hospital equipment but, describing the previous approach as “ ad hoc”, Tufton said.

“One hospital or region does it one way, another does it another way. Some have service contracts, some don’t. This kind of equipment represents this kind of technology to solve this problem; that same problem is solved by another piece of equipment represented by another technology. And it creates a lack of uniformity in terms of the approach, thereby making the task that much more difficult to solve,” he said.

STANDARDISING APPROACH

Tufton noted that the policy will standardise the protocol and approach for repairs.

“And what the expectations are is that we will be trained for competence in that approach, and it will have implications both for what we purchase, but also how we maintain what we purchase,” he added.

He outlined that a key element to the policy will be ensuring that internal technical teams receive the latest training, arguing that “unless we have constant upgrades for those who remain, then we become outdated ourselves in our ability to respond and to maintain and to keep these equipment running”.

Of importance, too, Tufton noted, is the negotiation of appropriate servicing contractors from suppliers.

To support the policy, each region will receive $500 million to undertake infrastructure improvements and equipment replacement for two facilities.

Tufton had previously stated that the Government was also exploring utilising lease agreements for the core infrastructural equipment in the main hospitals.

This arrangement, he said, would address challenges with servicing diagnostic equipment.

Meanwhile, Tufton said the medical equipment maintenance policy is the first of four that the ministry will be implementing over time. Others will guide the maintenance of air conditioners and autoclaves; civil works such as buildings, roofs, ceilings, windows and doors; and vehicles.

sashana.small@gleanerjm.com