Nearly one-third of cost of setting up a hospital goes into purchase of medical equipment. Medical equipment is expensive to own and maintain too. However, like any other equipment they may need to be disposed-off at some time. The right way for disposal of used medical equipment varies with reasons for doing so. There are three main reasons why a hospital needs to dispose-off their used medical equipment.
Medical Equipment Obsolescence
Medical technology today is advancing by leaps and bounds. The medical equipment industry has investment into R&D. It benefits from advances in electronics, IT, biotechnology, genomics, proteomics, molecular sciences, material sciences, radiology and many other fields. More and more tasks in medical equipment are being automated and equipment now have ability to handle much more complexity, improved performance, efficiency and accuracy. There is constant endeavour towards making diagnostic and treatment modalities less or non-invasive as well as safer for patients. Therefore, advances in technology also mean faster obsolescence. Physicians and surgeons demand cutting-edge medical equipment and an upgrade every now and then, necessitating disposal of existing equipment which may still be working well.
Equipment still in working condition need not be dumped altogether. They could be sold to another end-user. Very often hospitals in smaller cities are looking for pre-owned medical equipment to save costs. The reason is in smaller centres patient volumes and paying capacities are low. Therefore they work with severe budgetary constraints. Such medical centres are not looking for cutting-edge or newest, feature-rich equipment either. What they need is well-established equipment that can carry-out most common procedures well without any problems.
In case of an upgrade of facility, chances are the seller will offer a buy-back scheme for the old equipment, again a very good option for the buyer.
Disposal of used medical equipment due to underutilisation
Very often equipment is purchased with plans to grow the hospital. However, there are a few reasons why they remain unutilised or under-utilised. This could be due to lack of patient volumes as expected. Sometimes patient demand is there, but required doctors and clinical staff are not available
In such a case also, sale of the under-utilised equipment to another user who needs it may be better.
Condemnation of medical equipment beyond repair
Most common reason for equipment disposal is that it is no longer in good working condition. This could mean:
- Spare parts are no longer available
- The machine is worn-out and breaking down too often, interrupting patient care.
- The machine is not serviceable
- It is serviceable, but the cost of servicing is too high and financially unviable.
- Does not meet regulations – In some cases, such as radiology equipment, the equipment may be in working condition, but no longer adheres to radiation safety norms/ regulations. In such cases the equipment may not be usable as operating licence will not be available.
In the above case the medical equipment needs to be disposed-off as scrap. Useful spares may be harvested, metal components could be re-cycled. As many medical equipment have electronic components and chips, CRT and other elements of toxic nature, they need to be disposed-off after following proper condemnation policy and procedures. Approval of appropriate authorities must be obtained. Since it is important how the scrap is handled, disposal of used medical equipment must be done through certified waste handlers.
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PrimedeQ is an e-Marketplace for buying, selling, renting, servicing and spares of medical equipment. We offer all types of used / refurbished medical equipment , including dental chair, ultrasound, ECG machine and other diagnostic equipment, endoscopes, OT equipment, Laparoscopic Equipment, Lab equipment, X-Ray, TMT, anesthesia machine, ultrasound machines etc. We offer repair services for all types of medical equipment including Lab equipment, microdebrider, laparoscope , rigid and flexible endoscopes as well as EUS (Endoscopic Ultrasound Units) and ultrasound probe etc. We also assist in proper dismantling and disposal of used medical equipment.
Contact us for any medical equipment requirements 7019759765.