EBME Forums Forums Free discussion Free discussion Staffing Levels for EBME deptments.

I have been in this line of work for 10 years and in that relativly short time have seen the amount of equipment used increase dramaticaly, but I don't think staffing levels have.

Wow! I missed out on this thread, just caught up. We have more than 42,000 pieces of kit and about 50 guys. We are in the process of employing another 5-6 at different grades, 2 senior, 2 basic grade and 2 assistants. I don't think that the staffing calculation can be a easy as staff per no. of equipment. After all we may have a few thousand flowmeters but a handful of CVVH machines, you can't give these devices the same weighting can you? After all a flowmeter might take 10mins once a year but the CVVH may take 4-5 hours twice a year (4 times if Geoff was in charge). You really need to take the time to go through your inventory and try to tot up the man-hours for PPM's (to give it it's correct name!) and add a significant factor for repairs, admin etc.
Whatever happened to 6% of asset value? We used that until the finance director got a new computer thingy.

Yes, how can a PM (to use one of its other equally correct names) interval for a CVVH unit of anything beyond 90 days be justified or supported?

Your kit per tech ratio sounds like it's in the right ball-park. But that's what we would expect from a big outfit like yours. You have to start somewhere with all this "rule of thumb" stuff. Never mind 6% of asset value. Where does that come from (why not 7.5% ... or even 10)? And (more importantly), where does it lead us to?

All of the points you mention (and much more) are covered at the links given here, Bill.

You're just going to have to wade through them all, I'm afraid. After all, what else were you going to do this weekend? And it has just started to rain!

And (if you get time), even the perennial "flowmeter question" gets a hearing under this one!

Flow meters are not on our data base. We would have a lot more equipment on it if they were.

How many wards ... ten?

That's ten records on the Asset Register, then.

"All flowmeters in Ward 3" ... etc.

Our database is primaraly a service record. We don't service the flow meters as there is too many so they are not put on.

Flowmeters need to be checked occasionally (just like everything else). You will find that they sometimes need to be serviced, or removed and exchanged.

The same goes for medical gas regulators, Entonox demand valves, and all the rest.

And unless maintenance is recorded, it "didn't happen".

You do it your way, and I'll continue to do it mine.

I would agree gas regulators require checking/servicing, but flowmeters? Obviously if a broken one is reported service/replace it, as for routine servicing???

I still can't believe that you've (apparently) led such a sheltered life, Billy.

Imagine what would happen if they didn't report "broken" kit (could that ever be the case?) ... and then, one day, despite a frantic search of all the cupboards and drawers, they discover they're down to their last working flowmeter ... in the whole hospital!

Check and Test. Check and Test. Check and Test ... yes, "boring" I know, but it's the way things need to be.

Can I assume that you never served in HM Forces?

Why not get out and walk around the wards occasionally? You might be amazed by what you find there!

And, to return to Webbie's opening post, yes ... all this effort takes many man-hours (not to mention shoe leather), and that means lots of techs. Our work (just like that of police officers) cannot be done hiding behind computer screens, but involves "getting out there", at the coal-face, as it were. The bulk of the work may well seem mind-numbing, repetitive, in nature. But that's just how it is. You can't check (count, examine, test ... whichever word you're happy with) flowmeters et al remotely, on-line (yet), as far as I'm aware!

More on flowmeters et al.