CAPITAL EQUIPMENT SELECTION
support service expansion, growth in the asset register, and thus the equipment age profile, can be better managed. However, all investment decisions surrounding replacement and transfer must be considered on a service and equipment- by-equipment basis, taking into account factors such as the age of the equipment, ability and ease to remove and transfer, costs of transfer, and potential service downtime.
The author says the days of considering equipment in isolation as a standalone item ‘have now almost gone’ – with design, procurement, and commissioning decisions being replaced with the requirement for digital and building interfaces and connected technology, ‘plus an ambition for data collection, transmission, and storage’.
management etc, and less storage space needed.
n Equipment maintenance already in place – ‘in-house’ team or contract maintenance cover in place.
n Associated consumables already managed and stocked. Replacement will be part of the existing Trust capital replacement plan.
Competing demands Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, like many other Trusts, has many competing demands for limited capital funding each year. Purchasing new equipment with a high total capital value in a single year
will place considerable pressure on the capital equipment replacement plan as the equipment reaches the end of its working life, or is declared ‘end of life’ by the original manufacturer. Although the working life of equipment is not standard for all medical equipment, a general rule of thumb may be 10-12 years at best. However, given the pace of technology evolution, the actual asset life could be much shorter, leading to a future multi- million-pound spike in demand for capital equipment replacement funding in a single year. By only purchasing new equipment to meet increases in the bed base or to
It is important to align any new hospital equipment procurement plans with the existing Trust equipment replacement / procurement plan, ensuring that an agreement is reached on standard models for best strategic fit. Similarly, there is an opportunity to ensure that any new equipment selection made by the Trust during the design and build period of new hospital developments fits with the digital, connectivity, sustainability, and operational strategy of the new hospital build. There are many lessons learned from
the recent pandemic. Many Estates teams will be only too aware of the challenges of oxygen distribution, flow rates, and storage capacity that were experienced. Leeds is planning its new hospitals to provide sufficient bedhead services to permit the space to be used flexibly to meet future challenges and evolutionary changes in the delivery of healthcare. Standardisation of rooms in the new healthcare facilities will help to make patient rooms more versatile and adaptable in the future, and thus more cost-efficient, with an increasing focus on truly 60-year life hospitals.
Equipment stakeholders When thinking about equipping clinical areas there are several stakeholders who should be consulted, and who will want to have input into equipment solutions. The most obvious of these stakeholder groups will be those staff who use the equipment and work in the area where the equipment is to be located. However, there are many staff who, with specialist skills and knowledge, must contribute to informing effective decision-making and, as already stated, a much broader range of personnel who may give input, including digital teams. Examples of key personnel and disciplines who may effectively input into equipment decision-making and solutions include: n Clinical users – nursing staff, consultants, Operating Department Practitioners, and support workers.
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust’s plans include creating a new home for Leeds Children’s Hospital (see inset, left), a new adults’ hospital, and one of the UK’s largest single site maternity centres, with the works overall seen as a catalyst for regeneration for Leeds city centre.
50 Health Estate Journal September 2024
n Medical Physics personnel – with specific regard to specialist measures and policies, including radiation protection, and MRI safety.
n Clinical engineering / Electrical and biomedical engineering teams – specifically to provide advice on internal maintenance / maintenance contracts, and routine calibration, as well as on
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