The majority of medical equipment in a healthcare facility requires annual electrical safety checks. These checks are important for the safety of both patients and caregivers. In a fast-moving healthcare environment, it is equally important to ensure patients get from one location to another quickly. In this rush, caregivers often forget to unplug or secure the power cords and communication cables before moving the beds and stretchers. Due to this constant moving, hospital beds receive a great deal of damage. Electrical safety checks reduce the risk of patient harm from damaged electrical cables. 

Side rails are an important safety feature of hospitals beds and stretchers and one of the most commonly damaged components. Patients often use side rails to support their weight when entering and exiting hospital beds.  Additionally, side rails contain the communication features that allow the patient to request their nurse.  A defective side rail can loosen over time and may collapse under pressure leading to patient injury or fall.  Also, side rails that cannot be tucked properly are often damaged during transportation from running into door jams, walls and other equipment. To prevent damage, side rails require lubrication and adjustment overtime to keep them functioning properly. 

Scales are an important diagnostic tool for caregivers and their patients. For example, scales are used to monitor the overall health and recovery of patients as well as helps caregivers choose the appropriate medication dosage or care plan. Since the accuracy of patient scales can drift overtime requiring occasional calibration., scheduled maintenance is needed to check the proper operation and the accuracy of scales built into hospital bed and stretchers. 

Additionally, patients who suffer from vertigo or other symptoms are more susceptible to falls. To combat this problem, OEM have built-in bed exit systems that help to monitor patient movement. Defective or inaccurate scales can cause these systems to fail giving caregivers a false sense of security and increasing the chance of patient injury.

Repeatedly changing hospital bed linens creates an accumulation of linen dust that can be damaging to equipment. For example, as this dust builds up in filtration system  or directly on the electronic components, it can cause sensors to malfunction and components to overheat. To prevent damage from linen dust,  it is important to vacuum the internal compartments of the bed and filters on a regular basis. 

Patients rely on nurse calls systems as an important line of communication between themselves and their healthcare providers. For example, when a nurse call system malfunctions it can put unnecessary distress on the patient and drastically reduce patient satisfaction ratings. To reduce nurse call related equipment failures, preventive maintenance helps healthcare facilities spot trends in the repair needs. Additionally, user training goes a long way to ensuring proper bed functionality.

Hospital beds are becoming more sophisticated every year. Some of the latest options provide added comfort and communication to the patient while others are improvements to basic life saving features such as the CPR release. Defects to this feature can go unnoticed until the moment it is needed. Ensuring your equipment is part of an annual preventive maintenance program ensures these feature work properly when they are most needed.