The EBME (Electro-Biomedical Engineering Department) is responsible for the maintenance, repair and management of medical equipment within the Trust, safeguarding both patients and users from any risk that may occur while using medical equipment.

EBME also provides services to the East Anglian Ambulance Service and Community providers of Healthcare throughout West Suffolk.

The medical equipment maintained by EBME varies in complexity that is from items used for Life Support, such as ventilators, defibrillators, haemodialysis pumps, infusion devices to the low tech items, such as flow meters, pressure mattresses, urine alarms used throughout the hospital.

EBME is committed to managing and maintaining medical equipment to achieve quality, reliability and customer satisfaction with the aim of achieving the following:

• Continuous quality service to Healthcare providers in the West Suffolk Region
• Develop workshop practices and stock system to improve services provided
• ISO accreditation

The challenge for the EBME department is to review all aspects of the service provided and to initiate whatever changes are necessary to ensure that a continued high quality service is delivered.

Contact details

EBME Manager: David Wilson, tel no. ext 2856

Reporting Breakdowns and Faults:	Electro medical equipment: ext 2867 Anaesthetic/ventilators: ext 2869 Out of hours reporting: ext 2867
See below for information on reporting break downs| and equipment returns| .

Opening Times

Monday - Friday: 8am to 4:30pm

Reporting Break Downs

Please phone the telephone numbers listed above and leave supply the following information: -

• Your name
• Location
• Equipment's Hospital Registration number e.g. WSHA 5675
• Nature of fault (not working properly is not very helpful)
• When the equipment is available

Please ensure the equipment is clean and decontaminated and has a signed completed yellow decontamination tag. (Please see Decontamination section and MDA SN 9516 July 1995 a technician may refuse to repair an item of equipment unless this criteria is met).

If you are reporting a breakdown out of hours please leave a message on the answer phone number stated above supplying the same information.

Equipment returns

Equipment will usually be returned to the department to which it is logged, if the equipment has been loaned from another department and you wish it be returned to you, you must tell the technician.

The equipment will usually be returned with a pink tie on label. This is part of the EBME departments quality assurance system, it notifies the user that the equipment has been repaired and that function checks may be required as dial readings will have been altered. It also quotes a job card number this is the number you should quote to the EBME manager in case of query. If the user department runs an assurance system the card may be used or else discarded.