Preventive Maintenance Defined:
How Your Costs are Impacted
by Andrea L. Bordenca, DESCO CEO

Among the many facilities and many vendors out there, the terms “Preventive Maintenance (PM) and “Operational Check” are sometimes used interchangeably. This will impact your bottom line.

Understanding what your vendor is doing to your equipment is not a trivial conversation and could translate into thousands of dollars in needless expenditures for healthcare facilities of all kinds.

Upon contract initiation, ask your vendor candidates to lay out and define the distinctions noted at the end of this month’s DESCO Industry Update.  It is common to use these terms interchangeably, but that is not accurate.  “Preventive Maintenance” is just that: Preventing maintenance, preventing failure, preventing return service calls.

If you are curious why different vendors charge differently for the same thing, it may be because one vendor is offering to do what is defined in the side bar as “Operational Check”, whereas another vendor may be quoting a true “Preventive Maintenance”.  Both may call it “Preventive Maintenance”.

Quoting and performing an “Operational Check” for certain pieces does make sense.  However, if your repair costs begin to increase on equipment under an “Operational Check” contract, it is time to consider moving up to “Preventive Maintenance”, when applicable for that equipment.  If not, inquire about a higher level of coverage so you don’t have to take on a high amount of risk and costs for aging equipment. Your vendor can easily capture this data and make recommendations based on the needs at your facility.

The best way to maximize resources is to determine the best inspection frequency for your equipment.  I do not endorse following ONLY manufacturer specifications as there is no valid need to do so.  Your utilization needs are most likely different from the manufacturer’s utilization recommendations. An industry publication article refers to this process of understanding your equipment’s utilization needs, to that of a patient.  Your qualified vendor knows what makes sense for each type of equipment.  Things that are taken into consideration are the severity of the failure and the probability of failure, just as a doctor would ask specific questions when treating a patient to consider when formulating a treatment.

Units such as sterilizers require higher frequency of Preventive Maintenance due to their high failure rate in facilities where there is high utilization.  It is best to schedule frequent “Preventive Maintenance” on high failure items.  Money can be saved when your equipment receives the proper inspection at the proper intervals.  Ask your trusted vendor to make recommendations and monitor the effectiveness of the frequency.  This can be a part of their service process as they become more acquainted with your facility.