Importance & Benefits Of

Clinical Engineering Departments In Turkey

mer Faruk KURU, Sadk Cihan KARINCA, Serbay BAHEC, Recep USLU, Osman Arkan NACAR MD. , smet KKSAL MD., Ali Sait SEPTOLU MD.
Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Health, Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency, Department of Medical Devices

Abstract:
A Clinical Engineer is a professional who supports and advances patient care by applying engineering and managerial skills to healthcare technology. The department of Clinical Engineering plays an important role beginning
from procurement process and facilitates effective management of medical devices which are especially used in health care facilities. Additionally, clinical engineering department increases life cycle of medical devices,
optimizes spare parts and technical services costs of medical devices in order to improve the quality of health care. In this respect, as Turkish Competent Authority, local regulatory actions are on the verge of establishing
process. In these local regulations focus on improving the quality of healthcare which will also contributes reducing the Turkeys current account deficit in the near future. In this overview, considering the circulation of medical
devices in Turkish Hospitals, the importance and benefits of Clinical Engineering Department has been explained briefly.

Clinical Engineering

The Discipline of Clinical Engineering

relationship with
Medical
Companies
nsurance
Companies

Nurses

Leasing
Agencies

Doctors

Clinical
Engineering

Allied Health
Personnel

Regulation
Agencies

Health Technology
Safety
Management
Medical Device Service
Systems analysis,
Technology
Equipment control,
hospital safety
assessment,
computerized assets &
programs, incident
Technology Application
evaluation,
Maintenance
investigation, root
Engineering at the
acquisition, strategic
management systems,
cause analysis,
bedside, specialization
planning, life cycle
inspection,
user error, Risk analysis
in clinical areas, quality
cost analysis,
maintenance, repair, in& management,
assurance &
upgrades &
house and outsourced
hazard & recall
improvement, clinical
replacement
programs,
reporting systems,
applications support,
planning, utilization
independent service
post-market device
home care support,
analysis, resources
organizations, vendor
surveillance, devicehelp desk, installation
optimization, regional
and
device interactions
& integration
& national health
service management,
electromagnetic
technology policy,
spare parts
Compatibility
program & personnel
management
Disaster preparedness
administration
Information Technology
Information systems
integration and
management, patient data
management, artificial
intelligence, telemedicine,
picture archiving and
communication systems,
wireless networks
(telemetry), Health
Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act

Clinical
nvestigation

Patients

Hospital
Environment

Hospital
Administration

Education & Training

Credentialing, health care
provider technology
training, distance
education, in-service
education, training
schools, academic
programs, international
training, professional
development, volunteer
work

First half of the year 2013 (public hospitals)

Standards & Regulations

Compliance assurance,
medical device and
facilities
standards, quality
standards,
regulations, consensus
standards and guidelines,
accreditation, expert
witness,
certification

839 public hospitals

1238 technical personnel
( engineer/technician specialized on medical equipment )

Expected ratio

Amount of medical equipment: 2 billion $

Number of medical equipment: 1.5 million
Active usage: % 84,61
Less than 5 years old: %67,8
Cost of technical services: 140 million $
Cost of technical services (year) : 250 million $

Clinical Facilities
Clinical space design,
electrical power,
medical gases, water,
HVAC (heating,
ventilation, and air
conditioning),
sanitation, construction,
renovation,
communications
infrastructure

Research
&
Development
Medical device design
&
manufacturing,
evaluations, modeling
& simulation, human
factors, failure mode
and effect analysis,
clinical trials &
institutional review
board supports

Up-time: > % 90
Cost of technical services = %7 - % 10 x Amount of medical
equipments

100 medical equipment inspection company

1000 medical equipment PM and troubleshooting services company

What has being done about clinical engineering in Turkey?

Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health
Turkish Public Hospitals Agency
Clinical Engineering Unit

Republic of Turkey Ministry of Health

Turkish Medicines and Medical Devices Agency
Clinical Engineering Unit
Framework of Medical Device Test, Control and Calibration
Directive

Gathered around 839 public hospitals

in 81 cities under 87 union
(5 in stanbul , 2 in Ankara, 2 in zmir, 1 in others)

Required criteria indicated in the directive

Authorising the company
Required criteria about education of technical specialist
Which specifications has the educational institute instructor
Surveillance of the companies

Each medical equipment will be tracked with a unique ID

Framework of Medical Equipment Technical Services

Directive

Required criteria indicated in the directive

Authorizing the company
Required criteria about education of technical specialist
Education of workers
Surveillance of the companies

So that

it will be possible to calculate the cost per medical equipment

Framework of Clinical Engineering Unit

in Hospitals Directive

Responsibilities
Personal qualification
Roles of hospital management

Determining
Medical Devices
which Hospitals
Needs

Prepare technical specifications

of Medical Devices, Accessories,
Spare Parts

Accepting device after

purchasing, Controlling
Technical Specifications of
Devices

Maintenance and
Repair Management

Management of spare parts

inventory and stocks

Equipment related medical waste control

Equipment related power consumption
Equipment related calibration activities
Equipment related spare part tracking
Up-Time and cost efficiency analysis,
Salvage and source development activities,
Human resources requirement per equipment

Performance Analysis
of Medical Devices

Contact:
faruk.kuru@titck.gov.tr, cihan.karinca@titck.gov.tr, serbay.bahceci@titck.gov.tr, recep.uslu@titck.gov.tr,
osman.nacar@titck.gov.tr, ismet.koksal@titck.gov.tr, sait.septioglu@titck.gov.tr

Management of
medical device
inventory

Planning and
Management of
Calibration Periods
Medical Device

To educate other
personal about
medical devices
usage ( doctor,
nurse etc.)

Reference:
The Clinical Engineering Handbook, J. Dyro