Overview of Testing Medical Equipment: Appendix B
We need to first need to understand why we are testing Medical equipment, so there is no better place to start than Appendix B.
Appendix B states:
The electrical inspection and safety testing set out in this Appendix is intended to ensure that risks arising from electrical hazards are maintained at acceptable levels during the useful life of medical electrical equipment; medical electrical systems; and non-medical electrical equipment used in the patient environment.
Put simply we want to make sure the equipment that patients/and or users use is safe for them in their environment and because of the nature of medical equipment this is going to have different requirements than standard testing requirements of the AS/NZS 3760.
Its also important to note that electrical tests are to be carried out:
- At routine intervals of the life of the equipment
- Prior to placing new equipment into service
- Following any ‘engineering’ work that could affect electrical safety (if an item needs repaired it must be repaired by a qualified, registered electrical worker with the appropriate knowledge and skills to repair medical equipment and proof of passed inspection be provided).
These requirements are similar to the AS/NZS 3760.