ABSTRACT
As medical technology continues to evolve, so does its impact on patient outcome, hospital operations, and nancial eciency. e ability to optimally guide and integrated this evolution and its subsequent implications has become a major challenge in most decisions-making processes within healthcare delivery organizations and their related industries. erefore, there is a need to adequately plan for and apply those management tools that optimize the deployment of medical technology and the facilities that house it and the integration with legacy systems. Successful management of the technology and facilities will ensure a good match between the needs and the capabilities of sta and technology, respectively. Although dierent types and sizes of hospitals will consider various strategies of action plans, they all share the need to eciently manage utilization of their limited resources and their ability to integrate systems. Systems integration and systems performance assurance programs will be critical for successful and compliant hospital regardless of their size. Technology is one of these resources, and although it is frequently cited as the culprit behind cost increases, the well-managed technology program contributes to a signicant containment of the cost of providing consistent quality patient care. e clinical engineer’s skills and expertise are needed to facilitate the adoption of an objective methodology for implantation of an integrated program that will match the hospital’s needs, operational conditions, and expected clinical outcomes. Whereas both the knowledge and practice patterns of management in general are well organized in today’s literature, the management of the healthcare delivery systems and that of integrated
Dening Terms ..........................................................................................51-14 References ...................................................................................................51-16
medical technology in the clinical environment have not yet reached that same high level. Recent standards [1] and publications [2] highlighted the unique conditions that connected healthcare technology present, especially, with regard to the risk assessment and controlling of risks in networking and interconnecting of technology in the clinical environment. However, as we begin to understand the relationship between the methods and information that guide the decision-making processes regarding the management of medical technology that is being deployed in this highly complex environment, the role of the qualied clinical engineer becomes more valuable as a member of the team that manages systems. is is achieved by reformulating the technology management process, which starts with team approach to the strategic planning process, continues with the technology assessment process, leads to the equipment planning and procurement processes, and nally ends with the life cycle management of assets performance assurance program that combined together under the administration of comprehensive clinical engineering management. Denitions of terms used in this chapter are provided at the end of the chapter.
Recent rethinking of how the U.S. healthcare system should be structured brought about signicant changes. Healthcare reform was enacted nationally through two bills: the Patient Protection and Aordable Care Act that became law on March 23, 2010 [3] and was shortly amended thereaer by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 (H.R. 4872). is response to societal demands on the healthcare delivery system revolve around extending coverage to the uninsured population, containment of nancial burden, prediction for expected outcomes, and facilitate more consistent quality. In each of these parts, the technology plays a signicant role. To respond eectively, the delivery system must identify its goals, select and dene its priorities, and then wisely allocate its limited resources.
