Practices and Factors Affecting on-site Medical Equipment Maintenance at Wau Teaching Hospital, South Sudan

Abstract

Abstract Background of the study With advances in the clinical field, medical devices in hospitals are also becoming more sophisticated and need to function under ideal conditions. In this context, it is important for hospitals to focus on the effective and fast repair of life-saving equipment. The objective of this research was to determine the practices and influential factors that affect on-site medical equipment maintenance. Method:This was a quantitative research design. First, data related to maintenance practices, factors affecting medical equipment, and the root causes of equipment failure were collected using questionnaires. Questionnaires were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23. A desk review and observation checklist was used. Results:In this study, the maintenance practices documented were corrective maintenance and outsourcing to third-party logistics when medical devices broke down. There was a lack of inspection, prevention, predictive, and proactive maintenance practices. Conclusions:The findings showed that corrective maintenance and outsourcing were the main maintenance practices observed. Factors affecting medical equipment repair processes were linked to insufficient resources, a lack of biomedical personnel, inadequate information about devices, a lack of periodical inspection and preventive design and implementation, and the inappropriateness of medical equipment.