The Cost of Maintaining Defibrillator Readiness

A 5-Hospital Survey

Abstract

Maintaining defibrillator readiness costs hospitals time and money, but how much? Four "readiness activities" were identified: the user defibrillator check, preventive maintenance checks, service and repair, and battery maintenance and replacement. A questionnaire was distributed to 5 hospitals, and information was gathered pertaining to the 4 readiness activities identified. The data gathered were used to calculate the annual time spent on readiness per defibrillator and the annual cost. It was concluded that, on average, a single defibrillator consumes approximately 76 hours of nursing and clinical engineering time annually. This translates into approximately $2,622 per defibrillator per year. The user defibrillator check accounts for the largest percentage of time and cost (97%). Newer defibrillators equipped with self-test capabilities that reduce the time spent on the user defibrillator check can be expected to reduce the overall cost of ownership.

In Brief

Maintaining defibrillator readiness costs hospitals time and money, but how much? Four "readiness activities" were identified: the user defibrillator check, preventive maintenance checks, service and repair, and battery maintenance and replacement. A questionnaire was distributed to 5 hospitals, and information was gathered pertaining to the 4 readiness activities identified. The data gathered were used to calculate the annual time spent on readiness per defibrillator and the annual cost. It was concluded that, on average, a single defibrillator consumes approximately 76 hours of nursing and clinical engineering time annually. This translates into approximately $2,622 per defibrillator per year. The user defibrillator check accounts for the largest percentage of time and cost (97%). Newer defibrillators equipped with self-test capabilities that reduce the time spent on the user defibrillator check can be expected to reduce the overall cost of ownership.