Total quality management (TQM) in maintenance management of medical equipment of combined military hospital (CMH)

Abstract

A maintenance strategy includes procedures for inspection, preventive maintenance and corrective maintenance to ensure that the medical equipment is working properly and safely for which it is designed. The Knowledge of TQM can be applied to achieve a better maintenance management system to ensure patient safety, proper equipment functionality and with optimum cost for the medical devices of Dhaka CMH. Therefore, it is important to have a well-managed maintenance system that will increase equipment utilization and decrease their downtime with optimum maintenance cost. The proposed research will recommend an effective and efficient maintenance management system for the medical equipment of Dhaka CMH using the 5S and quality circle techniques of TQM.

ERC is responsible to provide the maintenance management for the biomedical equipment of Dhaka CMH. All the repair and maintenance of medical equipment is routed through ERC. The maintenance management system of EME Repair Cell of Dhaka CMH has been selected for this research. The causes of failure, time required to repair, method of repair and expenses of repair have been studied in depth. Repair by the in -house workshop of Repair cell, on site Repair data by in house BMETs of repair cell have also been studied. Absence of automated maintenance management software. contributes to the delay in the repair in many ways. The major problems and the reasons contributing to the problems in repair system were studied with the help of fish bone analysis.

To reduce the delay in repair, a maintenance management software need to be introduced, with an access to ERC, AFMSD, DGMS and user departments. Any fault should be sent digitally by the user departments to ERC with a copy to medical store, DGMS, AFMSD along with a digital log book. This will help ERC to achieve a systematic and standardized maintenance support system for all the departments within the limited resources and manpower allotted to them. Some fast- moving spares should be procured with the main equipment to reduce delay and cost of repair.