EBME Forums Forums Management Medical Equipment Management CQC and devices in mental health

Hi All,
Please accept my lack of understanding but recently inherited job of sorting out in our mental health trust our existing provision.
I understand the CQC has the 50 standards some of which apply to medical devices but they are for Acute trusts and PCT's does this mean mental health trusts are excluded? - following a seminar 2nd Dec in Westminster I fed this back some of my concerns only to be told Mental Health are not included is this correct?

Any help appresiated!

Graham

Mental health uses relatively few equipment but they DO need looking after! The most obvious is the equipment used in the ECT suite, such as the ECT machine ( which is quite easy to check when you understand that they deliver so many rectangular waves to regulate the delivered electrical energy ) ECT suites do use general aneasthetic and so their aneasthetic machines needs support, ECG machines may well be used, also EEG machines be used. Suction machines are also on standby there. Apart from that they may well have AED defibs, sphygmos and alcohol breath testers ( used in the alcohol dependency ward )They are the sort of gear I support in the local mental health unit.

Therefore the same standard reasonably should apply!

Welcome to the forum, Graham.

Yes, Jonathan is right:- regardless of whichever "rules and regulations" are currently in vogue, of course the kit has to be checked (PM'd, inspected, maintained ... whatever).

Or am I misunderstanding what you are asking here?

For what it's worth, in my experience (overseas as well as in the UK), equipment in Mental Health environments tends to be somewhat neglected (rather like some of the patients I have encountered there, sadly to say). I believe it is an area that needs more emphasis (resources) rather than less.

Many thanks for your guidance!
I guess the ECT and basic life support equipment we have through out our trust is well maintained (thank god)because there is no issue regards it's importance, but what I am struggling with are the more basic bits of kit such as scales, sphyg's, opthalmoscopes and aura scopes and the like. Our local ebme service is under recoursed and the policy / system for maintainance and repair falls t the clinical staff to raise service dates etc which to me is a recipe for disaster!

Back in My Day (that is, the Good Old Days) we would have went into the unit (that is, any unit ... clinic, whatever) and checked every bit of kit we encountered. Often (better make that "invariably") the old ways are the best!

BS (and I don't mean British Standards). The old ways are not invariably the best, if it were so we would still be riding about on horses and carts

However, current and local standards do need to be considered. If the standards that you work to require that all of these devices should be tested then your management need to find a way for it to be done. But, the matter should be put to the "risk test" if that is allowed. See various other posts on the matter on this very forum.

But, and forgive me if I have got this wrong, this is a matter for your management to sort out, apply the necessary resources to support the facilities they are paid to support. Yes these devices, under basic rules, should be tested and documented, they are after all involved directly in the therapy of humans. Again however, if allowed, apply risk management to the frequency.

No, not BS!

We used to just get on and do what needed to be done. That is, what we (in our informed - trained, experienced - wisdom) knew needed to be done.

We didn't need to have "guidelines", "risk assessments" and all the rest to tell us what to do. As I say, we just got on with it. And (to make it worth while travelling to the clinic etc.) basically did "everything". How long does it take to cast your eye over an ophthalmoscope, after all?

Yes, sometimes the old ways are indeed the best.

Or am I really taking about the difference between Old School Biomeds and the Young 'Uns here?

No, you are just talking about when "Britannia Ruled the Waves" and "one third of the world map was red".

Times have changed.........

good night from down under (a place I am glad to be )

Yes, times have indeed changed. We used to have a strong navy (for instance), and we even manufactured things, then sold them to the World, you know.

We used to be populated by people who were (in the main) dogged, decent and loyal.

If things are so wonderful these days, can someone please point out to me where we are supposed to be headed. In other words, what is the Plan? I would hate to be left behind.

Here's a thought:- who was more use to Mankind, would you say, Dave ... Cecil Rhodes or our dear brother Robert Mugabe?

And (steering back in the direction of the topic) ... we even used to look after those of our people afflicted with mental illness. Instead, that is, of simply bunging them out onto the streets (oh, sorry - I meant the "caring community") and hope that they keep taking their "medication" (mind-altering drugs, if you want the plain truth).

Interesting question, Rhodes or Mugabe?

Let me see now, both are/were ruthless dictators/adventurers who exploit/ed the local population for their own ends, cause/d wholesale destruction of the local way of life/society and made themselves hugely rich on the back of the people they were/are supposed to be "enriching".

Think we may have a dead heat here

Now, before we get in trouble with Huw, perhaps this thread should return to the matter at hand