How HTM teams create consistent, high-quality planned maintenance across modalities and sites.
By Alyx Arnett
Variation in planned maintenance (PM) work shows up long before it becomes a documentation issue. Different intervals across sites, inconsistent checklists, and uneven technician practices can lead to missed steps, problematic survey findings, and PM drift as systems grow.
Those gaps are widening, says Brian Herty, senior director of clinical engineering solutions at Agiliti. As health systems expand, rely on multiple service partners, and work with more complex devices, the number of ways PMs can diverge increases. That’s why healthcare technology management (HTM) leaders are working to standardize PMs—so work is performed the same way, on the same schedule, no matter who touches the device or where it’s located.
“The simpler we can make this for our technicians, the better,” says Herty. “Standardization removes variance for them and makes their job much easier to work through.”
Why Standardization Matters
Variation can creep in quietly. One site may follow the manufacturer’s annual interval for a device class, while another opts for a less frequent schedule. A newly acquired hospital may arrive with legacy frequencies or checklists that don’t match system policy. Those discrepancies can undermine survey readiness, says Don Tucker, MBA, CHTM, CBET, area director of biomedical engineering for the west and south regions at Wellstar Health System.
“If you’re in a healthcare system, Hospital A shouldn’t be doing something different than Hospital B,” Tucker says. “Regulatory agencies are going to survey you on what you say you do. If your MEMP and SOP [standard operating procedure] say one thing and another site is off script, you run the risk of being cited.”
Standardization also creates a simpler, more consistent experience for technicians and the clinical teams they support. “It needs to be repeatable for our technicians,” says Herty. “I want to make sure I have the same expectations of my technicians no matter where they are.”
It also enables benchmarking, says Herty. “It allows us to show customers how they’re performing—where things are going well or where support is needed,” he says.
Standardization also strengthens operational resilience. In multi-site systems, it allows technicians to step in across locations more easily. And even at a single site, a standardization plan creates more predictable operations that aren’t disrupted when roles shift or responsibilities change.
Build the Right PM Checklist
PM standardization starts with ensuring each asset is linked to the correct, model-specific procedure in the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS). That setup “ensures the right checklist, PPE [personal protective equipment], and test equipment requirements are already aligned with the asset when the technician arrives,” says Will Moore, vice president of program management at The InterMed Group.
The model-specific checklist is key, Herty says. “It’s a requirement now in order to provide good quality,” he says. “In times past, you had a general bed or infusion pump checklist. Now there’s such a variety within these devices, which is why I really emphasize that device-model level. Let’s get very specific for these folks.”
TRIMEDX takes a similar approach. “Our CMMS drives standardization by assigning PM schedules by make, model, and description,” says Radhika Kumar, network vice president of clinical engineering. “….Standardized checklists are embedded in work orders to ensure uniform documentation. Automation and AI-driven tools are helping auto-populate PM checklists directly into service tickets, minimizing manual interpretation and reducing variation.”
Herty also encourages building in the original equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) prebuilt pass/fail parameters and tolerances. Agiliti uses “hard stops” when a value falls outside range. “If I’m doing an electrical safety test and the checkout needs to be between 50 and 300, and the result is 500, it’s a fail. It’s a hard stop, and it circles the technician back to perform a repair,” he says.
Keeping checklists current is just as important. PM procedures need to be updated as OEM manuals change and as field experience reveals new insights. “We certainly have eyes on these OEM release revisions, updated service manuals,” says Herty. “You can’t set it and forget it. It’s not the role of the technician to know if the PM checklist is correct.”
Standardize Policy Decisions and Lock Them into the MEMP
PM standardization requires clear policy. HTM leaders must document whether their program follows manufacturers’ recommendations or uses an alternative equipment maintenance (AEM) strategy, says Tucker.
“Your MEMP should state what you’re following, and then you, as leaders, need to ensure that you’re actually following that standard. If a system decides to be an AEM house, every technician needs to know that. If you’re not an AEM program, you cannot deviate from the OEM’s recommendations,” says Tucker.
Those policy decisions also need to be reflected in the CMMS. Tucker adds that the system should make clear which devices fall under AEM, what intervals apply, and the procedure being followed. “If you’re going off script from what the manufacturer states, then you need to be able to show what it is that you’re doing,” he says.
Train to Competency
Competency is another requirement for consistent PM work. Herty advocates “fit-for-purpose training” at the model level, with documented competencies used to route work orders. “What I don’t want to do is send a technician out there to work on a device when he or she isn’t fully prepared or comfortable,” he says.
Moore also stresses being deliberate about who receives the work order. “Respiratory specialists should be assigned to ventilator PMs and associated corrective work, while general biomedical technicians may cover a broader range of monitoring and support devices,” he says. “Equally important is making sure technicians are not overloaded. Adequate time must be built into schedules so PMs are completed thoroughly and not rushed.”
TRIMEDX uses self-assessments, manager reviews, and ongoing audits to keep competencies current. “We maintain an extensive library of service manuals and resources accessible to all technicians, supplemented by strong partnerships with OEMs and training schools to bridge knowledge gaps,” Kumar says. “Competency assessments, combining self-evaluations with manager reviews, are conducted regularly to identify areas for improvement.”
Tucker recommends annual policy sign-offs and competency checklists for every technician. “Have them sign off on, yes, they’ve read and understand the policies,” he says. “Then complete a competency checklist.” At his company, a competency assessment tool was developed in which technicians rate themselves on each type of equipment in a category, and then the manager reviews it for accuracy. “You can rate yourself with a score that’s equivalent to meaning, ‘I don’t even know what this is and can’t spell it,’ to ‘I could teach this to anybody,’” he says.
Plan for the Environment
Even the best procedures can break down when the environment interferes. Access, timing, and site conditions can all introduce variation if they aren’t planned for, says Herty.
“Access to equipment is one of the biggest sources of variation,” Herty says. If techs can’t get their hands on a device ahead of when the PM is due, “it starts a domino effect,” he says. Agiliti encourages teams to plan around clinical workflows—often scheduling after-hours or during the holidays when it’s less busy—so techs can work without disrupting patient care. “Best case is we plan with the customer before the equipment needs to be touched,” Herty says.
Imaging PMs, for instance, depend on room availability, coordination with clinical staff, and access to specialized test equipment, Moore says. “Imaging PMs also carry higher operational impact, so communication with the customer about status, results, and any follow-up needs is especially important.”
Teams also navigate environmental differences—such as variability in water quality or inconsistent power—across sites, notes Billie Thurston, network vice president of clinical engineering for TRIMEDX at Henry Ford Health. When those factors require adjustments, Thurston says the company conducts gap analyses and collaborates with hospitals to align local needs with organizational standards.
Use Audits, Peers, and Data to Keep Improving
Once policies and procedures are in place, HTM teams rely on audits, peer reviews, and data to ensure PM work stays consistent. InterMed audits completed work orders to verify that all required tasks were executed and documented. “We routinely perform audits against completed work orders,” Moore says. “We also conduct regular reviews to identify gaps, training needs, or opportunities to streamline steps.” The company also uses peer reviews to “create opportunities for technicians to learn from one another and refine their methods.”
Herty highlights the value of digital checklists in enabling trend analysis. The captured data enables leaders to identify trends, such as whether certain technicians or departments encounter the same failure points and how long PMs take to complete. When patterns appear, Herty starts with the user. “More times than not, I see this less around the manufacturer’s product or the PM checklist itself,” he says. “I go back to the user. Does the user need some additional training? Are there environmental factors within said department that aren’t supporting good service?”
TRIMEDX also uses operational and performance data to spot issues early. “Trends in repair history and mean time between failure serve as strong signals,” Thurston says. “If PMs are not performed correctly, repair rates typically increase.” Additionally, the company’s Quality and Regulatory Compliance team conducts ongoing audits to verify the accuracy of documentation.
The Payoff—and the Shift Toward Predictive
Standardization pays off over time by making PM work more consistent and creating cleaner data to act on. Sustaining that consistency requires ongoing training, audits, feedback, and a willingness to evolve as devices and OEM standards change, says Kumar.
“Limiting variation in PM documentation isn’t something that can be solved in isolated batches. It requires a culture of continuous improvement,” Kumar says. “Consistency comes from embedding quality checks, training, and process refinements into everyday operations, so teams are always learning and adapting rather than treating standardization as a one-time project.”
Looking ahead, Herty sees PMs shifting from planned to predictive. “I think we’ll start using the word ‘preventive’ less and ‘predictive’ more,” Herty says. He believes the field will move beyond calendar-based PMs and use historical maintenance data to anticipate when service is needed.
Kumar notes that emerging tools are already reshaping how PMs are carried out. “AI-powered tools will continue to reduce human variation by auto-populating PM checklists, auditing compliance in real time, and even predicting when parts or kits should be ordered—eliminating manual steps and delays,” Kumar says. “This will allow the human workforce to focus on more strategic, meaningful work.”
No matter how PM programs evolve, Tucker says the work still comes down to doing it correctly and consistently. “Anytime you deviate from what you’re supposed to do, you potentially put patients at risk,” he says. “This is something that we preach and teach in this career field, that everything that you touch is going to affect patient safety and care.”
