Maintaining infrastructure is a priority for most hospital facility management professionals, as many want to ensure the efficiency and safety of healthcare environments. Their strategic focus is strongly supported by accrediting bodies that recognize the importance of maintenance in enhancing patient safety and overall hospital performance. While not every department in a hospital interconnects, some departments depend on each other to function optimally. The degree to which hospital departments rely on interconnected processes can vary, with effective maintenance playing a key role in ensuring smooth operations where these interdependencies exist. By neglecting day-to-day maintenance, hospital operations can be impaired, potentially impacting patient care.
Inadequate maintenance can escalate the risk of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), potentially increasing the incidence among hospital patients. According to the CDC, “on any given day, about one in 31 hospital patients has at least one” HAI, stressing the crucial need for rigorous maintenance and measures to control infections. Patients who contract HAIs may face a higher risk of readmission, underscoring the need for rigorous infection control and maintenance practices. Hospitals might then have to use resources to rectify an infection that could have been prevented through proper facility maintenance. HAIs have been shown to significantly contribute to morbidity and mortality in healthcare settings, with millions affected annually, therefore underscoring the need for stringent maintenance protocols.
Focusing on maintaining hospital facilities also impacts hospital budgets. A lack of routine maintenance can lead to equipment failures, leaving management with little to no option outside of calling for an emergency repair that can be more costly than it would have been to upkeep the machinery. Insights from the 2022 Hospital Construction Survey indicate that emergency repairs, often resulting from deferred maintenance, tend to incur higher costs compared to regular, scheduled maintenance.
Maintenance routines also heavily impact hospital accreditation and the way facilities meet healthcare regulation standards. Retaining accreditation is essential for hospitals, especially since it validates compliance with standards that are often tied to financial reimbursements from programs like Medicare and Medicaid. While it’s rare, hospitals risk losing their accreditation if evaluations reveal that lapses in maintenance or other areas are severely compromising patient safety, highlighting the critical nature of adhering to established healthcare standards. While accreditation encompasses a broad range of standards, effective maintenance routines are essential in upholding a hospital’s commitment to safety and quality care.
There are many layers to maintaining hospital facilities, but each aspect is important to keep hospital services running smoothly. With patient health and accreditation to consider, a strategic plan is needed to help these hospitals keep meeting high standards of healthcare services and hygiene. Implementing a routine maintenance plan can be challenging, yet it is crucial for ensuring the long-term well-being of patients and the effective operation of hospital services.
