Centralised equipment project on

The Delhi government’s Health Department has invited expression of interest (EOI) for centralised maintenance of biomedical equipment for improving the functioning of essential equipment in state-run hospitals and clinics.

The Central Procurement Agency (CPA) under the Directorate of Health Services (DHS) will shortlist the companies that can efficiently handle maintenance of the equipment and also create a database for all existing equipment.

Every time funds are spent on maintaining an equipment, there will be some entry in the centralised database. Monitoring the machines will also be done at a later stage.   

“Each hospital was individually responsible for outsourcing maintenance of all biomedical equipment till now. For the first time, the Health Department has decided to centralise the process. This will help us improve maintenance. Till now, efficient maintenance of equipment was missing in a significant number of hospitals,” a senior DHS official said.

However, some hospitals are sceptical on how the existing equipment would be maintained till the time the new procedure is in place.

“We have sought guidelines from the Health Department on how the essential equipment will be maintained till tenders are awarded. There is much equipment which needs immediate repairing. A process needs to be worked out for the interim period,” said a medical superintendent of a tertiary care government hospital.

Several hospitals have recently reported breakdown of essential equipment due to which basic procedures cannot be conducted on patients. When doctors across government hospitals went on strike recently, they had demanded better maintenance as doctors come under attack from patients’ families if basic services are unavailable.

The maintenance programme includes inspection of equipment regularly, confirming if the equipment meet the required standards, and repairing in case the machine breaks down. 
  
According to sources, it will take around six months for the new players to come in. “The hospitals also need a clear idea of when the process will be complete,” said a senior administrative official of a state-run hospital.

“Inviting EOI is the first step to assess how sound are the companies. Following this, the tenders will be floated. The contract may be awarded to more than one company,” said the DHS official.