CMEPP rolls out new maintenance program

TORONTO – The Canadian Medical Equipment Protection Plan (CMEPP) is embarking on a new program that promises to have a dramatic impact on the way hospitals manage their equipment maintenance and repair. The program is called the Equipment Coordination Service, or ECS, and helps address a critical resource challenge for some healthcare organizations.

“After years of research and hearing from our hospital participant members, we knew they were in dire need of a program to help reduce their equipment maintenance burden,” said Nils Clausen (pictured), CMEPP’s CEO. “We soon realized we have the capability to do this.”

With ECS, hospitals have a single point of contact to address equipment downtime – a dedicated CMEPP resource is assigned to manage service events as they occur. The case is logged and CMEPP works with the equipment supplier to coordinate the repair and ensure equipment is up and running as soon as possible.

CMEPP has traditionally managed service reporting and coverage for hospitals, but ECS represents a gigantic leap since it’s using technology to ensure accurate and efficient tracking of service events.

Last fall, CMEPP rolled out ECS as a pilot program at Quinte Health, one of its Participant members. Tammy Robson, program manager, Diagnostic Imaging at Quinte Health, was positive about the program benefits from the beginning. “The management of service calls and follow-up is a lot to keep track of, especially if multiple pieces of equipment go down at the same time,” said Robson. “Having ECS manage those tasks gives my charge technologist and senior technologist more time to focus on patient care.”

“Time is the new currency of hospitals and ECS is going to give clarity and time back to staff so they can focus on what matters most: patient care,” said TJ Jarvis, CMEPP director, national participant accounts.

About CMEPP
CMEPP is Canada’s only not-for-profit organization dedicated to driving hard dollar savings for healthcare organizations related to medical equipment service contracts. The organization currently has 86 Participant members located in 300 locations across the country. Since its inception in 1996, CMEPP has delivered over $69 million in savings to hospitals. For more information, please visit: https://www.cmepp.com.