EBME Forums Forums Maintenance Technical Assistance 4-channel infusion pump tester

We have an Fluke IDA 4 nice system, but i think we will be moving to a weighing scales. The scales are faster and just as accurate when completing pm's on voluemetric's in various locations.

Scales are fine for measuring the average flow of a pump, which is what people worry about most of the time especially with IV pumps, but they do not show up any short time scale problems.
When working with drugs with short half lives and fast operating times, such as inotropes, short term accuracy is necessary.
At a previous job we had complains that patients' BPs were varying when on inotropes, and sure enough you could see a cyclic sinusoidal change in BP. On investigation we found the lead screw of several pumps was slightly bent causing the delivery rate to vary. This was picked up with a pump tester but would not have been seen with scales.
It is horses for courses, use what you want to measure what you want.

Robert

PS I thought the other two optional ports in the IDA-4 were for watercooling of the electronics.

Good point, i am guessing that if this device had a lead screw that it was a syringe pump you may not have seen this with a volumetric pump due to the method of delivery ?

The other thing that the ida is good for is doing the occlusion pressures, PCA cycles and keeping an electronic copy of the system under test.

Moving to a scale and water seems like a step back and if you already have the IDA 4 why would you go back.



Theres always time. Its a nurses saying when they say 'They dont have time'.

While the electronic copy is good is does not tie in with any other system we have - we record the result directly to a pdf form one form for all tests - Visual, delivery, occulsion and electrical safety.

We have two systems running, in the form of the electronic copy and the good old hard copy printed out and filed with the job card and electrical safety test. Covers both bases if one gets lost.

We are going towards an integrated system that all our work sheets and test results as well as our database of equipment is held electronically within the server (well thats the theory anyway). The paperless environment were the staff on the wards send us an email which will automatically issue a job and then we do our stuff. Will keep you informed if it ever works (I wont hold my breath).

We also use the scales method for the renal equipment as we are removing a weight and like to keep copies, that its doing what it says on the screen. Good set of scales attached to the computer that gives us a weight loss over time.

billy