1. Maintenance of medical devices
Submitted by
Name: Anna Kah, Ebrima Nyassi
Affiliation: MRC Unit The Gambia Unit (MRCG)
National association: Association of Biomedical Engineering (The Gambia)
Location: MRC Unit The Gambia
address for contact:

2. Country Estimates in Brief
Population
1.9 million- according to the 2013 national census1
Population Growth Rate
3.2 percent1
Life Expectancy at Birth
60 years -men
63 years -women 2
Infant Mortality Rate
75/1000 live births2
Number of Health Centers in Country
4 main referral hospitals
~6 private clinics
~17 health centres
Total Expenditure on Health as % of GDP
6 %2
1 From the Gambia Beaureau of Statistics
2 From the WHO, country profile
Global CE / HTM Success Stories

3. Global CE / HTM Success Stories
MRC Unit The Gambia Health Technology Management Program - A model that attained a high level of quality services
Before September 2005
4 Junior Electronic Technicians
No specialized professional training
Maintenance performed by vendors in Europe
No centralized technology acquisition program
No technology management program
No proper workshop, no tools, and no equipment inventory
Results:
MRCG spends approx.£150,000 annually on Service Contracts
Service Contracts often not complied by the vendors
Frequent breakdown and prolonged downtimes of equipment
January 2016
Global CE / HTM Success Stories

4. Global CE / HTM Success Stories
MRC Unit The Gambia Health Technology Management Program - A model that attained a high level of quality services
Key Success Factors:
Support from top management and recruit of local talent
Established a Biomedical Equipment Capital Planning Committee to ensure effective unit-wide capital planning
organized factory service training for available technicians on key technologies, financed through the repatriation of service contract funds
reviewed all contracts in an attempt to repatriate many of the service agreements
assessed existing technologies, and estimated replacement cost to provide strategic funding to capital replacement planning
acquired proper workshop, proper tools and test equipment
Conducted an Unit-wide inventory of equipment
Procured an equipment management database
Established quality management systems with references to ISO Standards, GCLP, MHRA – ( SOPs on Procurement, Commissioning, Corrective & Preventive Maintenance, Decommissioning, SOPs on calibrations on temperature, timers, weighing machines, volumes)
January 2016
Global CE / HTM Success Stories

5. Conclusions and Action Plan
Outcomes
The team now has “in-house” capability to provide maintenance support to all Clinical and Diagnostic Equipment, including highly advance instruments such as Clinical Chemistry and Hematology Analyzers, Radiography equipment, Biological Safety Cabinets etc
Reduced downtime of equipment
The HTM and quality management program played central role the GCLP and ISO accreditation of Clinical Laboratories
The MRCG BME team also spearheaded the establishment of the Gambia Biomedical Engineering Association (ABE- the Gambia) in 2011.
Action Plan
MRCG BME Department working toward becoming accredited on ISO within 2 to 4 years - (Standard requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories)
MRCG BME poised to provide Mentorship support to BMETs at the Gambia Ministry of Health.
Action Plans for ABE, The Gambia include
Increase visibility of the association, by increasing the number of members
Apply for membership to international biomedical associations such as IFMBE, and AAMI
Encourage publications to international peer reviewed journals
March 2016
Global CE / HTM Success Stories